Dec. 30, 2010
Texas A&M/McNeese State Game Notes (PDF)
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COLLEGE STATION, Texas - No. 18 Texas A&M looks for its ninth straight win Friday afternoon when the Aggies (11-1) host McNeese State (8-4) in a New Year's Eve matinee. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. at Reed Arena.
Fans can get in for as low as $2.50 through the Old Army Spirit Company promotion or purchase half-price tickets throughout the arena--starting at $5--through the Half-Price Holiday Hoops ticket special. Visit oldarmyspirit.com or tickets.12thmanfoundation.com to purchase or for more information.
In addition, two lucky fans in attendance at the game will receive free tickets to the AT&T Cotton Bowl on Jan. 7, compliments of the Athletic Department.
GAME 13: (#18/18) Texas A&M AGGIES (11-1)
vs McNeese State COWBOYS (8-4)
Friday, December 31, 2010 • 3:05 PM (CT) • TV: None
Reed Arena (12,989) • College Station, Texas
TELEVISION: None
RADIO: Texas A&M Sports Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
Al Pulliam, Commentary
Local/Internet: WTAW-AM 1620/radioaggieland.com
Satellite Radio: Sirius 113
SERIES: A&M leads, 3-1
In Lake Charles: McNeese leads, 1-0
In College Station: A&M leads, 3-0
At Reed Arena: A&M leads, 2-0
Current Win Streak: A&M, 2 games
Longest A&M Win Streak: 2 games (current)
Longest McNeese Win Streak: 1 game
Largest A&M Win: 97-68 (1994-95)
Largest McNeese Win: 83-68 (1995-96)
Mark Turgeon vs. McNeese: 2-0
Dave Simmons vs. Texas A&M: 0-2
Last Meeting: A&M, 57-52 (Jan. 3, 2009 in College Station)
THE MATCHUP
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 11-1, 0-0 Big 12
Ranking: 18th (USAT/ESPN), 18th (AP)
NCAA RPI / Sagarin Rating: 13 / 21
Streak: Won 8
Last 5 / Last 10: 5-0 / 9-1
Last Game: def. Wagner (H), 86-51 (Dec. 21)
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas '87)
Record: 237-151 (13th year)
at Texas A&M: 84-32 (4th year)
vs. McNeese State: 2-0
A&M Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP/Min
5 B.J. Holmes G 5-11 175 Sr. 9.3 2.8 3.7 12 / 27.4
22 Khris Middleton F 6-7 215 So. 15.4 4.4 2.6 12 / 27.0
45 Nathan Walkup F 6-7 210 Sr. 10.3 6.4 1.5 12 / 22.7
McNEESE STATE COWBOYS
Record: 8-4, 0-0 Southland
Ranking: NR
NCAA RPI / Sagarin Rating: 313 / 220
Streak: Won 2
Last 5 / Last 10: 4-1 / 7-3
Last Game: def. Univ of Southwest (H), 100-61 (Dec. 21)
Head Coach: Dave Simmons (Louisiana Tech '81)
Record: 84-104 (7th year)
at McNeese: 57-75 (5th year)
vs. Texas A&M: 0-2
McNeese State Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP/Min
0 Diego Kapelan G 6-3 195 Sr. 14.0 1.9 1.3 11 / 28.3
3 Patrick Richard F/G 6-4 208 Jr. 15.9 5.4 2.2 10 / 31.0
23 C.J. Collins G 5-10 172 Sr. 7.9 2.5 3.3 12 / 31.0
43 P.J. Alawoya F 6-7 215 Sr. 8.1 9.9 0.5b 11 / 26.7
54 Daniel Richard P 6-9 190 Jr. 4.8 2.8 0.8 12 / 20.8
GAME NOTES
Looking for Nine
A&M suffered its first loss of the year on Thanksgiving Day, a two-point setback to a hot-shooting Boston College squad ... since then, the Aggies have won eight straight and held their opponents (Manhattan, No. 20 Temple, SFA, Pacific, Prairie View, No. 21 Washington, Arkansas, Wagner) to a sparse 36 percent shooting from the floor and 27 percent from 3-point range ... during that span, Aggie foes have averaged just under 56 points per game and been out-rebounded by a margin of 12 boards.
The eight-game win streak is A&M's longest since the 2008-09 season, when the Aggies won their final 10 non-conference games ... it is already the third time a Mark Turgeon-coached A&M team has won at least eight straight games (10 games, 2008-09; 8 games, 2007-08; 8 games, 2010-11).
Hot Start
Only one team in school history have had better starts than this year's Aggies (11-1) ... the 1919-20 team ran the table and finished a perfect 19-0 ... a win against McNeese would make the 2010-11 team the fifth ever to start the year 12-1 or better (1919-20, 13-0 ... 1959-60, 2004-05, 2007-08 and 2008-09, 12-1).
Mark Turgeon other A&M teams were 11-1 (2007-08), 11-1 (2008-09) and 9-3 (2009-10), respectively, through their first 12 games.
Home, Sweet Home
The Aggies have won 58 straight non-conference games at Reed Arena ... the streak dates back to the start of the 2005-06 season and includes wins over Arizona, Alabama, LSU and Washington, among others ... the last home non-conference loss for the Aggies was to St. Joseph's (58-51) in the 2005 NIT quarterfinals ... A&M is 90-9 all-time in non-conference games at Reed (.909).
Texas A&M has won 71 consecutive regular-season non-conference home games ... the last non-conference team to beat the Aggies at Reed Arena was Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (82-80) in 2003.
A&M has won 25 of its last 26 home games, including 10 of its last 11 in Big 12 play ... the Aggies are 38-3 at home since the start of the 2008-09 season with a 13-3 mark in conference games.
The Aggies are 72-6 (.923) at home since the start of the 2006-07 season and are 104-12 (.897) since the start of the 2004-05 campaign.
A&M has won 23 straight home games against unranked opponents (eight straight in Big 12 play) ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 46-3 against unranked opponents at Reed Arena, including a 12-3 mark against unranked Big 12 teams.
The Aggies are the only Big 12 team to win at least 15 home games for the last six consecutive seasons.
A&M is 146-54 (.730) in its 13th season at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were 41-41 the first six years at Reed and are 105-13 since.
Texas A&M broke its home attendance record three times in 2010, including the current mark of 13,717 vs. Texas (Feb. 27) ... A&M sold out four games, topping the 13,000 mark in each game ... the Aggies' season average of 9,889 ranked second on the school chart behind the record of 10,343 set in Turgeon's first season in 2007-08 ... A&M has posted its top five single game marks, and two of the top three season averages, under Turgeon.
The top 18 single-game attendance marks in A&M history have been set since the start of the 2005-06 season ... the top 15 non-conference attendance marks also have been set in that time span.
Elite Poll Company
Texas A&M (No. 18 football, No. 18 basketball) is one of only four schools nationally to be ranked in the top 20 in the latest AP poll in both football and men's hoops ... Ohio State (#2 MBB/#6 FB), Michigan State (#20 MBB/#7 FB) and Missouri (#10 MBB/#14 FB) are the others.
A&M (No. 18 football, No. 18 MBB, No. 7 WBB) is one of just three schools nationally to be ranked in the top 20 in the latest AP poll in football, men's basketball and women's basketball ... Ohio State (#2 MBB/#6 FB/#13 WBB) and Michigan State (#20 MBB/#7 FB/#12 WBB) are the others.
Locking it Down
The Aggies have used quite a few key defensive showings to keep their current win streak alive ... not counting A&M's blowout wins over Prairie View and Wagner, the Aggie defense has allowed a total of 3 field goals and 6 free throws in the last 5 minutes of its most recent wins over Pacific, Washington and Arkansas ... a look at some of the defensive efforts that have led to victories along the 8-game win streak:
LATE-GAME DEFENSIVE STANDS, CURRENT WIN STREAK
Opponent Clock Situation Opponent rest of game Result Notable
Arkansas 6:42 left down 6 (58-52) 0 FG, 2 FT W, 71-62 (OT) UA also scoreless in OT until layup w/:16 left
Washington 5:02 left up 5 (61-56) 2 FG, 2 FT W, 63-62
Pacific 5:19 left up 9 (63-54) 1 FG, 2 FT W, 79-59 FG was 3-pointer with :06 left in game
SFA 3:00 left up 7 (57-50) 1 FG, 0 FT W, 62-53
Temple 6:42 left down 1 (47-46) 1 FG, 2 FT W, 54-51
Manhattan 12:49 left up 5 (43-38) 2 FG, 3 FT W, 74-45
Road Warriors
The Aggies have won 10 of their last 14 games away from Reed Arena dating back to early February of last season ... three of those four losses have been by 4 points or less ... A&M's setbacks in that stretch came at No. 24 Baylor (70-66), against No. 1 Kansas in the Big 12 semifinals in Kansas City (79-66), in overtime to No. 10 Purdue in the NCAA Second Round in Spokane (63-61) and most recently on Thanksgiving Day vs Boston College (67-65).
Success Against Ranked Teams
The Aggies are 2-0 this season against ranked opponents, picking up a 54-51 win over Temple (No. 20 USAT/ESPN, No. 21 AP) at the Old Spice Classic in Orlando and a 63-62 win over Washington (No. 21 AP, No. 22 USAT/ESPN) this past Saturday at Reed Arena ... it marks just the third time in school history that an A&M team has scored at least two regular-season wins against ranked non-conference foes ... two of the three times have come under Mark Turgeon (2009-10 and 2010-11) ... legendary coach Shelby Metcalf won 4 in the 1978-79 season.
Mark Turgeon is 4-2 at A&M in games against ranked non-conference opponents during the regular season ... his teams have won three straight.
A&M played 12 ranked teams last season ... the Aggies will play 7 other games against teams ranked in the latest AP Top 25 poll (Dec. 20), including Kansas (3rd), Missouri (9th), Kansas State (11th), Baylor (15th, 2 games) and Texas (18th, 2 games).
Making a Stand
Texas A&M's defense, which had been strong all season, faced a tough test on Dec. 11 from the nation's best offense in Washington and shined brightly ... A&M held Washington, who entered the contest averaging 95.5 points per game, to a season-low 62 points ... the Aggies held the Huskies to a season-low 37.7 percent shooting (entered averaging 51.3%) ... A&M's defense allowed UW 6-of-22 (27.3%) shooting from the 3-point arc (entered averaging 47.5%) ... A&M forced Washington into a season-high 20 turnovers.
A&M has held 8 of its 12 opponents under 38 percent shooting from the field ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 48-4 (8-0 this year) when their opponent shoots under 40 percent and are 76-20 (11-1) when they make under 50 percent.
Aggies in the NCAA Rankings
In the latest NCAA rankings (as of Dec. 20), A&M ranked 5th nationally in rebounding margin (+12.1) ... Pitt (16.2) leads the country ... the Aggies have out-rebounded every opponent this season ... the Aggies are 75-13 under Turgeon (11-1 this year) when matching or out-rebounding their foes.
A&M also ranked 14th in the country in scoring defense (57.2 ppg) ... Stephen F. Austin, whom the Aggies beat at Reed Arena on Dec. 2, leads the nation (52.2 ppg).
The Aggies are holding opponents to 37.3 percent shooting from the floor, which ranks 22nd nationally ... A&M ranks 33rd nationally in 3-point field goal defense, with foes shooting just 28.8 percent from behind the arc.
Senior Watch
A&M's senior class needs 15 more wins to become the winningest class in school history ... the Class of 2011 is 86-32 (.729) entering Friday's game with McNeese State, trailing only the 2010 (100-38, .725), 2009 (98-37, .726) and 2008 (95-37, .720) classes in the record books ... this year's group surpassed the 1982 (85-40, .680) squad with their 86th win, which came vs Wagner, on Dec. 21.
An NCAA bid would make the 2011 seniors just the third class in school history to advance to four NCAA Tournaments, joining those from the Classes of 2009 and 2010.
Miscellaneous
The Aggies out-rebounded Wagner by 27 (47-20) in an 86-51 win on Dec. 21 ... the 27-board advantage was A&M's largest since besting Louisiana-Monroe by 27 rebounds on January 3, 2004.
Texas A&M has outscored its opponents 429-310 in the first half this season and has carried an average lead of 10 points into the locker room ... the Aggies have led at the break in 8 of 12 games and are 8-0 when ahead at the half.
The Aggies dished out 20-plus assists in back-to-back games for the first time in the Mark Turgeon era in early December ... A&M had 21 against Pacific (Dec. 4) and added 20 in a win over Prairie View (Dec. 8) ... the last Aggie team to accomplish that feat was the 2006-07 squad.
A&M hit 10-plus 3-pointers in consecutive games for the first time in the Mark Turgeon era (10 vs Pacific, 11 vs Prairie View) ... the 2006-07 squad was the last to hit 10 or more 3-pointers in back-to-back games.
Texas A&M was 0-for-8 from 3-point range against Washington (Dec. 11), snapping a streak of at least one 3-pointer in 310 consecutive games which dated back to Jan. 17, 2001 ... the Aggies still defeated UW, however, 63-62.
A&M rebounded from a tough two-point loss to Boston College on Nov. 25 with a 29-point win over Manhattan the next day ... the Aggies never trailed in the game, and held the Jaspers to 7 points over the final 13 minutes ... under Mark Turgeon, the Aggies have won 11 of their last 12 games following a loss.
About McNeese State (8-4)
McNeese State (Lake Charles, Louisiana) is 8-4 on the year and has won 6 of its last 7 entering the matchup with the Aggies ... the Cowboys are coming off wins over Southwestern Assemblies of God (65-63 in OT) and most recently the University of the Southwest (100-61) on Dec. 21 ... all of MSU's losses have come on the road (Washington, Southern Miss, Miami, LSU).
The Cowboys return 4 starters and 10 letterwinners from a 2009-10 team that went 10-20 and 5-11 in Southland play ... Dave Simmons (Louisiana Tech '81) is in his fifth season at the school with a record of 57-75
Series Notes
Texas A&M leads the all-time series, 3-1, and has won two straight ... the Aggies have won all three games played in College Station and both at Reed Arena (wins in 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons).
The teams last met on Jan. 3, 2009, when A&M escaped with a 57-52 win ... the game was tied with 2:30 to play but the Aggies scored the last 5 points to get the victory ... Junior Elonu (15 pts, 7 rebs) and Josh Carter (13 pts, 6 rebs) led the way for Texas A&M, while Diego Kapelan and Kleon Penn had 15 points apiece for the Cowboys.
It will mark McNeese's first game against a Big 12 foe since a 76-75 loss to Texas Tech this past New Year's Day in Lubbock.
Sidebars
Mark Turgeon first game as Texas A&M's head coach came against McNeese State, on Nov. 9, 2007 at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were victorious, 73-50.
Aggie freshman Kourtney Roberson is the lone Louisiana native on the roster, hailing from Arcadia (in the northern part of the state, about 1 hour east of Shreveport).
Texas A&M senior guard B.J. Holmes and McNeese State senior forward P.J. Alawoya were teammates at Hastings High School in Houston.
Up Next
The Aggies will close out non-conference play on Monday evening against Nicholls State at Reed Arena (7 p.m.) ... A&M's next game will be its Big 12 opener, set for Saturday, Jan. 8 at Oklahoma (3 p.m. tip).
LAST TIME OUT: (#24) Texas A&M 86, Wagner 51
COLLEGE STATION (Dec. 21)-David Loubeau scored 16 points and No. 24 Texas A&M used a big first-half run to top Wagner 86-51 before 8,007 fans at Reed Arena. The game was tied 13-13 in the first half when the Aggies (11-1) went on an 11-0 run including consecutive baskets by Loubeau - to surge past Wagner (4-7). Texas A&M led 40-20 at the half, on the strength of outscoring Wagner 22-4 in the paint over the first 20 minutes. The Aggies have won eight consecutive games, while the Seahawks have lost four straight. B.J. Holmes added 12 points for the Aggies. Chris Martin led the Seahawks with a game-high 17 points. Texas A&M outrebounded Wagner 47-20, including 16-3 on the offensive end. Texas A&M also has won 71 consecutive nonconference regular season games at home. Texas A&M's bench outscored Wagner's 34-4, and the Aggies handled Wagner in second-chance points 19-1.
Texas A&M Head Coach Mark Turgeon: "I was pleased. I thought we played well except for the turnovers, Nate had a lot of them. I thought we defended pretty well and concentrated pretty well. We shared the ball in the second half. These games are scary going into Christmas, it's hard to keep their attention. The guys did a good job tonight. I told them, I'm really pleased with what you've done to this point, but what we've done to this point is not going to affect what happens after Christmas. We're going to have to come back and practice hard. But, if you would've told me we'd be 11-1 going into Christmas, I'd have taken it. We're much further along defensively than I thought we would be. We're rebounding at a high level too, and I know our competition is going to increase. I'm pleased. We're going to have to get back after Christmas and really work hard."
Postgame Notes: A&M 86, Wagner 51
The Aggies out-rebounded Wagner, 47-20, their largest margin of the year ... the 27-board advantage was A&M's largest since besting Louisiana-Monroe by 27 rebounds on January 3, 2004 ... tonight was A&M's second-highest rebounding total this season (52 vs Alcorn State).
A&M has out-rebounded every team this season ... the Aggies are 75-13 under Turgeon (11-1 this year) when matching or out-rebounding their foes.
The Aggies' shot 53 percent from the floor, a season high.
The game was A&M's 200th all-time at Reed Arena ... the Aggies are 146-54 all-time in the facility.
The Aggies won their 58th straight non-conference home game and 71st consecutive regular-season, non-conference home game ... A&M has now won 25 of its last 26 home games, including 10 of its last 11 in Big 12 play.
Wagner's 10 points in the paint were an opponent season low.
Wagner's 20 first-half points matched a season low by an Aggie opponent ... Texas A&M International also scored 20 in the first frame in a loss to A&M on Nov. 19 ... the Aggies have outscored their opponents 429-310 in the first half this year.
The Aggie senior class won its 86th career game, moving it into fourth all-time in the school annals ... the Class of '11 trails only the 2010 (100), 2009 (98) and 2008 squads (95) in victories.
Senior Nathan Walkup recorded the second double-double of his career (10 points, 11 rebounds) ... it was his second in as many games (15 pts/12 reb vs Arkansas on Saturday).
Junior David Loubeau scored 16 points, two shy of his season high ... sophomore Ray Turner matched his season high with 7 points on the night.
DEFENSE NOTES
Stout "D"
A&M suffered its first loss of the year on Thanksgiving Day, a two-point setback to a hot-shooting Boston College squad ... since then, the Aggies have won eight straight and held their opponents (Manhattan, No. 20 Temple, SFA, Pacific, Prairie View, No. 21 Washington, Arkansas, Wagner) to a sparse 36 percent shooting from the floor and 27 percent from 3-point range ... during that span, Aggie foes have averaged just under 56 points per game and been out-rebounded by a margin of 12 boards.
A&M has held 8 of its 12 opponents under 38 percent shooting from the field ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 48-4 (8-0 this year) when their opponent shoots under 40 percent and are 76-20 (11-1) when they make under 50 percent.
Texas A&M's defense, which had been strong all season, faced a tough test on Dec. 11 from the nation's best offense in Washington and shined brightly ... A&M held Washington, who entered the contest averaging 95.5 points per game, to a season-low 62 points ... the Aggies held the Huskies to a season-low 37.7 percent shooting (entered averaging 51.3%) ... A&M's defense allowed UW 6-of-22 (27.3%) shooting from the 3-point arc (entered averaging 47.5%) ... A&M forced Washington into a season-high 20 turnovers.
A&M ranked 14th in the country in scoring defense (57.2 ppg) with the latest statistics update on Dec. 20 ... Stephen F. Austin, whom the Aggies beat at Reed Arena on Dec. 2, leads the nation (52.2 ppg).
The Aggies are holding opponents to 37.3 percent shooting from the floor, which ranks 22nd nationally ... A&M ranks 33rd nationally in 3-point field goal defense, with foes shooting just 28.8 percent from behind the arc.
Texas A&M is 73-12 under Turgeon (11-1 this year) when opponents score under 70 points.
Rebounding
The Aggies out-rebounded Wagner by 27 (47-20) in an 86-51 win on Dec. 21 ... the 27-board advantage was A&M's largest since besting Louisiana-Monroe by 27 rebounds on January 3, 2004.
In the latest NCAA rankings (released Dec. 20), A&M ranked 5th nationally in rebounding margin (+12.1) ... Pitt (16.2) leads the country ... the Aggies have out-rebounded every opponent this season ... the Aggies are 75-13 under Turgeon (11-1 this year) when matching or out-rebounding their foes ... A&M is just 8-17 under Turgeon when being out-rebounded.
Texas A&M has out-rebounded three teams this year by 20 or more boards ... the Aggies beat Alcorn State on the glass by 20, A&M International by 25 and Wagner by 27 ... A&M did not out-rebound anyone last season by more than 18.
Four players are averaging at least 4.4 rebounds per game-Nathan Walkup (6.4), David Loubeau (5.5), Kourtney Roberson (4.5) and Khris Middleton (4.4) ... it's early, but by comparison just two did so last season-Bryan Davis (8.1) and Loubeau (4.7).
Forcing Turnovers
Texas A&M is averaging 17.6 points off turnovers per game ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 53-9 (7-0 this year) when they have more points off turnovers than their opponent.
Texas A&M's 16 steals in the win at A&M-Corpus Christi were the most by an Aggie team in the Mark Turgeon era and the most since a win over Grambling State in December 2006.
OFFENSE NOTES
Fast-Paced Offense
Texas A&M has outscored its opponents 429-310 in the first half this season and has carried an average lead of 10 points into the locker room ... the Aggies have led at the break in 8 of 12 games and are 8-0 when ahead at the half.
Texas A&M is 36-2 under Mark Turgeon when scoring at least eight fast-break points (6-0 this year) ... the Aggies' 21 fast-break points against Prairie View (Dec. 8) were a season high.
The Aggies are 25-3 under Turgeon (4-0 this year) when scoring at least 80 points and 55-5 (8-0) when scoring at least 70 ... A&M has scored 74 or more in 7 of its 11 wins this year.
A&M is 67-11 under Turgeon when leading at halftime (8-0 this year), and 15-19 when trailing (3-1).
Sharing the Ball
Texas A&M is averaging 15.1 assists per game this year, on pace for its highest average since the 2006-07 season.
The Aggies dished out 20-plus assists in back-to-back games for the first time in the Mark Turgeon era ... A&M had 21 against Pacific (Dec. 4) and added 20 in a win over Prairie View (Dec. 8) ... the last Aggie team to accomplish that feat was the 2006-07 squad.
Texas A&M dished out a season-high 21 assists in Saturday's win over Pacific ... it was the most in a game by an Aggie team since they totaled 21 in a 77-71 win over Kent State on Nov. 29, 2008.
From Way Downtown
A&M hit 10-plus 3-pointers in consecutive games for the first time in the Mark Turgeon era (10 vs Pacific, 11 vs Prairie View) ... the 2006-07 squad was the last to hit 10 or more 3-pointers in back-to-back games.
Texas A&M was 0-for-8 from 3-point range against Washington (Dec. 11), snapping a streak of at least one 3-pointer in 310 consecutive games which dated back to Jan. 17, 2001 ... the Aggies still defeated UW, however, 63-62.
Make Shots, Win Games
Texas A&M is 57-7 under Turgeon (7-1 this year) when hitting better than 45 percent from the field and a perfect 32-0 (2-0) when hitting at 50 percent or higher.
Strong Down Low
Texas A&M has scored at least 40 points in the paint in three games this year ... A&M did so just four times last year ... this season, the Aggies are averaging 30.5 points down low (28.6 average in 2009-10).
Under Turgeon, A&M is 79-24 when scoring at least 20 points in the paint (9-1 this year).
Take Another Chance
The Aggies are averaging 17.1 second-chance points through 12 games ... A&M only went over 20 in that category one time last year (home vs Texas) but has already done so twice this season.
Balancing Act
The loss of A&M's top three scorers from last year (B.J. Holmes (9.3).
A total of 8 players have combined for 42 double-figure outings thus far (Middleton 10, Walkup 7, Holmes 7, Loubeau 6, Hibbert 5, Roberson 5, Harris 1, Lewis 1) through the first 12 games.