Aggies Open 76 Classic Against No. 19 Clemson on ESPN2
Nov 24, 2009 | Men's Basketball
Nov. 24, 2009
College Station, Texas - Texas A&M faces No. 19-ranked Clemson in the first round of the 76 Classic Thursday at 3:30 p.m. (CT) in Anaheim, Calif. The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
First Round of 76 Classic
http://www.76Classic.com
76 Classic Schedule
(Listed times are Pacific)
Thursday, November 26
• Game No. 1 - West Virginia vs. Long Beach State, 11 a.m., ESPNU
• Game No. 2 - Texas A&M vs. Clemson, 1:30 p.m., ESPN2
• Game No. 3 - Minnesota vs. Butler, 5:30 p.m., ESPN2
• Game No. 4 - Portland vs. UCLA, 7:30 p.m., ESPN2
Friday, November 27
• Game No. 5 - West Virginia / Long Beach State winner vs. Texas A&M / Clemson winner, 11:30 a.m., ESPN
• Game No. 6 - West Virginia / Long Beach State loser vs. Texas A&M / Clemson loser, 2 p.m., ESPNU
• Game No. 7 - Minnesota / Butler winner vs. Portland / UCLA winner, 6:30 p.m., ESPNU
• Game No. 8 - Minnesota / Butler loser vs. Portland / UCLA loser, 8:30 p.m., ESPNU
Sunday, November 30
• Game No. 9 -Game 6 loser vs. Game 8 loser, 11:30 a.m., ESPNU
• Game No. 10 - Game 5 loser vs. Game 7 loser, 2 p.m., ESPN2
• Game No. 11 - Game 6 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 4:30 p.m., ESPNU
• Game No. 11 -Game 5 winner vs. Game 7 winner, 11:30 a.m., ESPN2
TEXAS A&M GAME NOTES
Texas A&M Aggies
(3-0, 0-0 Big 12)
vs.
Clemson Tigers
(4-0, 0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Thursday, Nov. 26, 2009
1:30 p.m. (PT)/3:30 p.m. (CT)
Anaheim Convention Center (7,734 cap.)
Anaheim, Calif.
TELEVISION: ESPN2 (national)
Dave O'Brien, play-by-play
Steve Lavin, analyst
Andy Katz, sideline reporter
Direct TV: Channel 209
Dish Network: Channel 144
RADIO: Texas A&M Sports Network
http://www.aggieathletics.com/multimedia/aggies-on-the-radio.html
Colin Killian, play-by-play
Al Pulliam, commentary
Sirius Satellite Radio: Channel 214
KAGC (AM 1510) in the Brazos Valley
http://den-a.plr.liquidcompass.net/player/flash/audio_player.php?id=KAGCAM&uid=226%20
Texas A&M Basketball Digital Media
Weekly Press Conference Audio (Monday): http://www.aggieathletics.com/sports/m-baskbl/spec-rel/112309aaa.html
Texas A&M Media Almanac (complete bios, history and records): http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/352a4862
Mark Turgeon's Virtual Guide to Texas A&M Basketball: http://coachturgeon.com/
Aggie Basketball Fast Break blog: http://blogs.aggieathletics.com/fastbreak/
Texas A&M Aggies
http://www.aggieathletics.com/sports/m-baskbl/tam-m-baskbl-body.html
Record: 3-0 (0-0 Big 12)
Ranking: Receiving votes (AP and Coaches)
Last Game: Beat Samford, 68-49, at home Friday
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon's (Kansas `87)
Record: 205-140 (12th year)
at Texas A&M: 52-21 (3rd year)
vs. Clemson: 0-0
Projected Texas A&M Starters
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG
5 Dash Harris G 6-1 175 So 7.7 2.0 4.0
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 Sr 20.0 4.7 4.0
3 Derrick Roland G 6-4 190 Sr 15.7 3.3 2.3
45 Nate Walkup F 6-7 210 Jr 4.3 4.0 --
0 Bryan Davis F 6-9 250 Sr 9.7 5.7 --
Off the Bench
10 David Loubeau F 6-8 230 So. 10.7 6.0 --
11 B.J. Holmes G 5-11 175 Jr 5.7 1.7 --
22 Khris Middleton F 6-7 215 Fr 0.7 4.0 --
23 Naji Hibbert G 6-6 200 Fr 3.7 1.3 --
Clemson Tigers
http://clemsontigers.cstv.com/sports/m-baskbl/clem-m-baskbl-body.html
Record: 4-0 (0-0 Atlantic Coast Conference)
Ranking: No. 19 (AP and coaches)
Last Game: Beat Winthrop, 102-66, Monday at home
Head Coach: Oliver Purnell (Old Dominion `75)
Record: 377-268 (22nd year)
at Clemson: 121-77 (7th year)
vs. Texas A&M: 1-1
Projected Clemson Starters
No. Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG
2 Demontez Stitt G 6-2 175 Jr 6.5 1.8 4.5
5 Tanner Smith G 6-5 220 So 10.5 3.5 --
15 David Potter F 6-6 215 Sr 12.0 2.3 --
35 Trevor Booker F 6-7 240 Sr 13.8 10.0 --
45 Jerai Grant C 6-8 220 Jr 5.3 4.0 --
Big 12 Conference: http://www.big12sports.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10410&KEY=&SPID=13134&SPSID=106110
Atlantic Coast Conference: http://www.theacc.com/sports/m-baskbl/acc-m-baskbl-body.html
Series Notes
- Clemson leads the series, 3-2, but the series is knotted, 1-1, in games played at neutral sites.
- The teams last met in the first round of the 2005 postseason NIT, with the Aggies posting an 82-74 victory in College Station. The series is tied, 1-1, in games played in College Station. Clemson leads, 1-0, in Clemson, S.C.
- A&M is 5-12 against current members of the ACC, but has not played a member school since the 2005 NIT win against Clemson.
Key Game Notes
- A&M is 3-0 for the sixth straight year. The Aggies have started 4-0 the previous five seasons.
- A&M has played in 106 regular-season tournaments and has won 18 titles. The Aggies went 1-1 last year in the South Padre Island Invitational, losing to Tulsa and beating Kent State. A&M won the 2007 Dick's Sporting Goods NIT Season Tip-Off, beating Washington and Ohio State at New York City's Madison Square Garden.
- A&M has won two regular-season tournaments in California -- the 1978 Golden Gate Invitational and the 1987 Met Life Classic. Both events were played in San Francisco.
- A&M's juniors and seniors are very familiar with Anaheim. The Aggies lost to then-No. 1 UCLA (65-62) in the 2006 Wooden Classic and also played the first and second round games of the 2008 NCAA Tournament in Anaheim. All three games were played at the Honda Center. In the 2008 NCAAs, A&M upset No. 23 BYU (67-62) then lost to No. 2-ranked and top-seeded UCLA (51-49) in a controversial finish.
- Clemson (4-0) is ranked No. 19 in both polls (AP and ESPN/USA Today). A&M's last win against a ranked team was in last year's regular-season finale against No. 12 Missouri (96-86). The last time the Aggies beat a ranked team on the road or at a neutral site was when they downed No. 23 BYU in the 2008 NCAAs in Anaheim.
About Clemson
- Clemson is 4-0 after beating Winthrop (102-66) Monday night at home.
- The Tigers are in their seventh season under Head Coach Oliver Purnell.
- Clemson went 23-9 last year and placed fifth in the Atlantic Coast Conference with a 9-7 mark. The Tigers lost in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
- In addition to the win against Winthrop, the Tigers have beaten Presbyterian (84-41), Liberty (79-39) and UNC Greensboro (89-67)
- Clemson is led by senior forward Trevor Booker (6-7), who is averaging 13.8 points and 10.0 rebounds.
Sidebars
- Texas A&M freshman Khris Middleton is from Charleston, S.C., where he averaged 22.4 points and 8.6 rebounds last year for Porter-Gaud HS. Middleton was an AAU teammate (Carolina Celtics) of Clemson freshman Devin Booker.
Samford Recap
COLLEGE STATION (AP) - Guard Donald Sloan scored a game-high 22 points as Texas A&M pulled away from Samford in the second half to win 68-49 Friday night. Guard Derrick Roland followed Sloan with 14 points. The Aggies (3-0), who led by only a point at halftime 36-35, busted the game open midway through the second half on the strength of 3-pointers by B.J. Holmes, Sloan and Nathan Walkup in a span of 2 minutes 33 seconds. The last one lifted A&M to a 56-44 lead. Sloan, a senior, finished 7 of 11 from the field, including 5 of 6 from 3-point range. The Aggies shot 50 percent from the field in both halves (12 of 24 and 11 of 22). Andy King led Samford (0-4) with 17 points. The teams hadn't played since 1977, a 106-91 A&M victory in Birmingham, Ala.
Milestone Watch
- Senior guard Donald Sloan (978) needs 22 points to become the 30th player in Texas A&M history to reach 1,000 in a career.
- Sloan's 4 assists against Samford gives him 303 in his career, 10th on the A&M chart. Sloan could become only the sixth player in A&M history to score 1,000 points with 300 assists.
- Senior forward Bryan Davis (497) needs three rebounds to become the 21st Aggie to reach 500 in a career. He ranks sixth in A&M history with 99 career blocked shots. Davis could become only the fourth A&M player to record 500 rebounds with 100 blocked shots.
Offense Notes
- A&M had 17 fast break points against Angelo State, matching last year's season high (North Dakota). Under Mark Turgeon's, the Aggies have had more fast break points just once (33 vs. Texas State in 2007-08).
- Under Turgeon, the Aggies are 21-1 when they have at least 8 fast-break points.
- A&M is 18-2 under Turgeon when scoring at least 80 points and are 69-9 when it scores at least 60.
- A&M is 41-5 under Turgeon when leading at halftime.
- The Aggies have shot better than 50 percent from the field in two of their three wins. A&M is 23-0 under Mark Turgeon's when it makes at least 50 percent and is 46-11 when it makes better than 40 percent.
- The Aggies lead the Big 12 and rank third nationally in fewest turnovers, averaging just 8.0 per game. They also lead the league in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.0 and are third in turnover margin (+6.7).
- A&M is 21-6 under Mark Turgeon's when it has fewer than 14 turnovers.
- Although the Aggies are not as deep inside as in recent years, they remain productive. Bryan Davis (5.7) lead the team in rebounding. Loubeau is third in scoring (10.7) while Davis is fourth (9.7).
- A&M scored a whopping 48 points in the paint against ASU, its most in a regulation game since it had 62 against Texas State two years ago. Under Turgeon, the Aggies are 50-15 when they score at least 20 points in the paint.
- A&M has had at least three players score in double figures in every game. Eight Players average at least 3.7 points per contest with nine averaging at least 14.7 minutes.
- Turgeon's teams have always been among the most balanced in college basketball. His first two teams at A&M each averaged more than 70 points per game, but no player averaged more than 14. Each team had at least six players average a minimum of 6.0 points. Turgeon's seven Wichita State teams were similarly balanced.
Defense Notes
- Angelo State had 19 turnovers against the Aggies' quick defense. A&M scored 25 points off turnovers, matching last year's season high set in season opener against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The last time the Aggies scored more points off turnovers was in the 2007-08 opener against McNeese State (28), Turgeon's first game as head coach
- A&M is averaging 17.0 points off turnovers per game.
- Under Turgeon, the Aggies are 33-4 when they have more points off turnovers than their opponent.
- A&M has held two of its three opponents to under 43 percent shooting from the field. Under Turgeon, the Aggies are 26-2 when their opponent shoots under 40 percent and are 46-12 when they make under 50 percent.
- A&M is 43-9 under Turgeon when its opponents scores fewer than 70 points and has won seven straight.
- The Aggies are 47-8 under Turgeon when out-rebounding their opponent and has won nine straight. A&M is only 5-13 under Turgeon when being beaten on the boards.
- Turgeon said before the season that the smaller but quicker Aggies would have to "rebound by committee." A&M has done that with six players averaging between 3.3 and 6.0 rebounds per game.
- Eight A&M players recorded between 3 and 6 rebounds at SMU.
Player Notes
Bryan Davis
- A&M is 28-7 when Davis scores in double-figures in his career.
- Needs 3 rebounds to become the 21st Aggie to reach 500 in a career.
- Needs 1 blocks to become the sixth A&M player to reach 100 in a career.
- Could become only the fourth Aggie to record 500 rebounds with 100 blocked shots.
- Has played in 104 career games.
- Scored 17 points with 6 rebounds and 3 steals in opening win against Angelo State.
- Made 7-of-10 free throws against ASU.
- Four of his five field goals against ASU were dunks.
- Had 9 points and a team-high 6 rebounds in win at SMU.
DASH HARRIS
- A&M is 11-1 when Harris has at least 3 assists in his career.
- Leads the nation in assist/turnover ratio (12 assists with 0 turnovers in 79 minutes).
- Scored a career-high 11 points (2-of-4 treys) with a career-best 7 assists vs. Samford.
- Had 9 points with 3 assists in opening win against Angelo State
- Has made 3-of-6 from three-point range after making 3-of-15 all of last season, when he started the year 0-of-9. Since that start, he's 6-of-12.
- Scored 7 points in opener against Angelo State.
- Had 8 points with 2 blocks in unofficial debut in exhibition game against Commerce.
- Added 4 points and 3 rebounds vs. Samford, including his first career three-pointer.
B.J. Holmes
- Scored 11 points, making 3-of-10 three-pointers, in win at SMU.
- Slowed by thigh bruise in first three games.
- Had 3 points in limited action in other two games.
- Scored 16 points with 7 assists in exhibition game against Commerce.
- Made 4-of-6 three-pointers in exhibition vs. Commerce.
- Scored a career-high 20 points and matched his career best with 9 rebounds against Angelo State...made 10-of-14 from the field.
- Had 7 points and 5 rebounds at SMU but earned praise from Coach Turgeon for his defensive performance.
- A&M is 8-2 when he scores at least 8 points in his career, with both losses coming to top-five ranked teams (Oklahoma and Connecticut) last year.
- Had 12 points with 9 rebounds in exhibition game against Commerce.
- Started in First two games.
- In opener against Angelo State had 2 points with 8 rebounds and 3 assists.
- Tallied 6 points with 6 rebounds in unofficial debut in exhibition game vs. Commerce.
Derrick Roland
- Has scored in double figures in all three games this season.
- Had a career-high 21 poiints in win at SMU, making 8-of-8 from the free throw line.
- Leads Big 12 in free throw percentage (1.000, 10-10).
- Scored 14 points with 5 rebounds vs. Samford.
- Scored 12 points with 3 assists in opener against Angelo State...made 2-of-5 three-pointers.
- A&M is 14-2 when Roland scores in double figures in his career.
- Has played in 93 career games.
Donald Sloan
- Scored a career-high 24 points with a team-high 4 assists in win at SMU
- Had 22 points with 4 assists and a team-high 6 rebounds vs. Samford, making a career-best 5-of-6 three-pointers.
- Ranks sixth nationally in three-point percentage (.750) and leads nation among players with at least 10 attempts.
- Needs 22 points to become the 30th A&M player to reach 1,000 in a career.
- Ranks 10th in A&M history in assists with 303.
- Could become only the sixth A&M player to score 1,000 points with 300 assists.
- Has played in 107 career games.
- Had 14 points with 5 rebounds and a team-high 4 assists in opener vs. Angelo State.
- A&M is 42-8 when Sloan has at least 3 assists in his career, including a 19-3 mark over the last two seasons. The Aggies are 36-13 when he scores in double figures.
- Scored a team-high 17 points in exhibition game against Commerce.
- Earned first start of the year (and third of his career) against Samford and responded with a season-high 6 points and 3 rebounds.
- Has made 3-of-6 three-pointers this season.
- Scored 5 points with 4 rebounds in win at SMU and made key three-pointer in second half to break the game open.
- A&M is 16-2 when Walkup scores at least 5 points in his career.
Coach Mark Turgeon
- A former player and assistant coach at Kansas, 44-year-old Mark Turgeon's is entering his third season at Texas A&M. He cut his coaching teeth at Kansas under legends Larry Brown and Roy Williams.
- Turgeon's 49 wins at A&M in his first two seasons in the Big 12 are a record by a league coach. The previous mark was 47 wins by Kansas' Bill Self (2003-05) and Iowa State's Larry Eustachy (1998-00). Others near the top of the list are Texas Tech's Bob Knight (45), Texas' Rick Barnes (43) and A&M's Billy Gillispie (43).
- Turgeon's two-year win total ties for the second-best debut in the entire history of any Big 12 school. Eddie Sutton won 52 games his first two years at Oklahoma State (1990-92), while Tom Penders won 49 in his first two seasons at Texas (1988-90).
- He is only the second coach to lead A&M to consecutive NCAA Tournaments. Turgeon led the Aggies to a 25-11 record in his first season and a 24-10 mark last year. Turgeon's 25 wins in 2007-08 were the most by a Big 12 coach in his debut and tied for the most by a first-year coach in the history of any Big 12 school. Tom Penders went 25-9 in his first year at Texas in 1988-89 prior to the Big 12.
- Turgeon was inducted into the Topeka Shawnee County Sports Hall of Fame in June. Turgeon helped lead Hayden High School to back-to-back state titles in 1982 and 1983, including a perfect season his senior year. He was an all-city pick and also received all-state recognition.
- Turgeon went on to play at Kansas, becoming the first Jayhawk to play in four consecutive NCAA Tournaments (1984-87), including a Final Four appearance in 1986. He played in 12 NCAA Tournament games, helping the Jayhawks to an 8-4 record. Turgeon served as head coach at Wichita State for seven seasons before moving on to A&M in 2007.
- Turgeon has led his teams to at least 20 wins in five of the last six seasons (His WSU team won 17 games in 2006-07). His teams have advanced to postseason play six times in the last seven years.
- Turgeon's record in the last seven years is 138-65 (.680).
- Turgeon has led his teams to three NCAA Tournaments in the last four years, winning at least one NCAA game each year.
- In 2006, he led Wichita State to the Sweet Sixteen, where it was eliminated by eventual Final Four participant George Mason (63-55). The Shockers beat Seton Hall (86-66) and Tennessee (80-73) in the first two rounds. In 2008, Turgeon's first A&M team went 1-1, beating BYU (67-62) in the opener and falling to eventual Final Four participant UCLA (51-49). Last year, the Aggies again downed BYU (79-66) before falling to Final Four-bound Connecticut (92-66).
- As an assistant coach at Kansas under Larry Brown, Turgeon helped the Jayhawks to the 1988 NCAA Championship. As an assistant at KU under Roy Williams (1988-92), he participated in three NCAA Tournaments in four years, including the 1991 national championship game.
- As a player, assistant coach and head coach, Turgeon has compiled a 25-11 NCAA Tournament record (8-4 as a player, 13-4 as an assistant, 4-3 as a head coach). Turgeon is the only active Big 12 head coach to play and coach in an NCAA Final Four.
- Turgeon also participated in the 1995 NCAA Tournament as an assistant coach at Oregon under Jerry Green. It was the Ducks' first NCAA appearance in 34 years.
