Aggies Battle Boilermakers Sunday in NCAA Second Round
Mar 20, 2010 | Men's Basketball
March 20, 2010
Spokane, Wash. - No. 5 seed Texas A&M faces No. 4 seed Purdue on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Spokane, Wash. The game will be televsied by CBS Sports and CBS College Sports starting at approximately 2:00 p.m. (PT)/4:00 p.m. (CT).
Audio from today's press conference is available to the right.
2010 NCAA Tournament Second Round
#5 Texas A&M Aggies (24-9, 11-5 Big 12/T-2nd)
vs.
#4 Purdue Boilermakers (28-5, 14-4 Big 10/T-1st)
Approx. 2 p.m. (PT/4 p.m. (CT)
(game will start 30 minutes after Michigan State-Maryland games, which starts at 11:30 a.m. PT)
Sunday, March 21
Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena (11,420 cap.)
Spokane, Wash.
TELEVISION: CBS Sports
Tim Brando, play-by-play
Mike Gminksi, analyst
RADIO: Texas A&M Sports Network
Dave South, play-by-play
Al Pulliam, analyst
National Rankings
Texas A&M: #23 (AP and ESPN/USA Today)
Purdue: #10 (AP), #11 (ESPN/USA Today)
RPI
Texas A&M: #13 (#6 Strength of Schedule)
Purdue: #16 (#53 Strength of Schedule)
Last 5 Games
A&M: 4-1
Purdue: 4-1
Coaches
Texas A&M: Mark Turgeon (Kansas '87)
73-30 in third season at A&M
226-149 in 12th year as a head coach
0-0 vs. Purdue
0-2 vs. Matt Painter (Wichita State vs. Southern Illinois in 2003-04)
Purdue: Matt Painter (Purdue '94)
111-55 in fifth season at Purdue
136-60 in sixth season as a head coach
0-0 vs. Texas A&M
2-0 vs. Mark Turgeon (Southern Illinois vs. Wichita State in 2003-04)
Series
Purdue leads, 2-1
A&M leads at neutral sites, 1-0
1941-42: Purdue 55, A&M 31 (West Lafayette, Ind.)
1981-82: Purdue 86, A&M 68 (NIT, West Lafayette, Ind.)
2001-02: A&M 71, Purdue 64 (Las Vegas Classic, Las Vegas, Nev.)
How They Got Here
No. 5 seed A&M defeated No. 12 Utah State, 69-53, in Friday's first round. No. 4 Purdue beat No. 11 Siena, 72-64, on Friday. A&M tied for second in the Big 12 Conference at 11-5 while Purdue tied for first in the Big 10 at 14-4.
Aggies in Elite Company
After Friday's first-round win against Utah State (69-53), A&M joins Pittsburgh as the only schools to win an NCAA Tournament game in each of the last five years. A win against Purdue would send A&M to its second Sweet Sixteen in four years (2007). The Aggies also advanced to the Sweet Sixteen in 1969 and 1980.
Tough Schedule
No. 10-ranked Purdue will be the 12th nationally-ranked opponent for the Aggies this season, tied for the most nationally with Georgetown and Illinois. That doesn't include New Mexico, which was unranked when it played the Aggies in December but is now in the top 10. Friday's game is the sixth for the Aggies against teams tranked in the top 10 in this week's AP poll. A&M is 4-7 against ranked teams this season and needs one more win to tie the school record for victories against ranked opponents (1978-79 under Coach Shelby Metcalf). All nine of A&M's losses were to teams in the RPI top 50, including six to teams in the RPI top 10. All nine losses were to teams in the 2010 NCAA Tournament field.
Senior Moment
Friday's win against Utah State was the 100th victory for A&M's senior class, which already ranked as the winningest class in school history. Last year's class, which was made up entirely of Josh Carter, went 98-37 (.726). This year's class is 100-37 (.730), including a 5-3 mark in NCAA Tournament play, more than half of the NCAA wins (9) in A&M history.
A&M in the NCAA Tournament
The Aggies are 9-11 in the NCAA Tournament, which includes a 6-4 mark in the last five seasons. A&M is making its 11th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and its fifth straight. The Aggies are 2-4 in second round games and have lost two straight. Their last second-round win was against Louisville (72-69) in Lexington in 2007. Last year, No. 1 seed Connecticut ousted A&M. In 2008, No. 1 seed UCLA escaped with a 51-49 victory in Anaheim. The highest-seeded team A&M has ever beaten was No. 3 seed North Carolina in 1980 (78-61 in double overtime). A&M is 1-5 against top-four seeds.
Series vs. Purdue
The Boilermakers lead the series, 2-1, but A&M has won the only previous game played at a neutral site. Purdue posted wins of 55-31 (1941-42) and 86-68 (1981-82) at home. The Aggies recorded a 71-64 win the last time the teams met at the Las Vegas Classic in 2001-02. A&M is 11-16 against members of the Big 10 Conference, but has won five straight with wins against Minnesota (2009-10), Ohio State (2007-08), Penn State (2004-05 and 2005-06) and Purdue (2001-02). The Aggies' last loss to a Big 10 team came in 1993-94, when Northwestern left College Station with a 67-48 victory.
Turgeon in Elite Company
Mark Turgeon is the first coach in the history of any Big 12 school to win at least 24 games in each of his first three seasons. Turgeon's record at A&M is 73-30 (.709), the most wins ever in a three-year span by an A&M coach. Only Turgeon's mentors at Kansas -- Larry Brown (83 wins in 1983-86) and Roy Williams (76 wins in 1988-91) -- won more games in their first three years at a Big 12 school. Turgeon was a point guard on those same teams for Brown and was an assistant coach in Williams' first three years at Kansas. Turgeon is 5-3 as a head coach in the NCAA Tournament. He is 26-11 as a player, assistant coach and head coach in 13 appearances.
Sloan Extends A&M Record for Games Played
Senior guard Donald Sloan has played in 137 career games, the most in A&M history. Senior forward Bryan Davis will play in his 135th game on Sunday against Purdue, tying him with Josh Carter (2005-09) for second on the chart.
More on Sloan
Sloan, a first-team All-Big 12 pick by the league's coaches and several media outlets, has scored in double figures in 17 straight games. A&M is 51-10 when Sloan has at least 3 assists in his career (including a 28-5 mark in the last two seasons and a 3-1 record in NCAA Tournament games) and is 55-20 when he scores in double figures.
Holmes Rolls On
Junior guard B.J. Holmes has scored in double figures in three straight games. In the last eight games, Holmes has averaged 10.4 points and made 50.0 percent (19-of-38) from three-point range. Holmes was named to the Big 12 All-Reserve Team for the second straight year by a panel of Big 12 media.
Middleton Rides Hot Streak
Freshman forward Khris Middleton scored a career-high 19 points, making a career-best 5-of-6 three-pointers, in Friday's win against Utah State...his three-point performance was an A&M record for accuracy (.833) in NCAA tournament play...in the last four games, Middleton has averaged 16.3 points while making 57.9 (11-of-19) from three-point range, 59.5 percent from the field (22-of-37) and 100.0 percent (10-of-10) from the free throw line.
Davis Dominates Boards
Senior Bryan Davis has led the team in rebounding in 11 of the last 12 games, including a game-high 9 rebounds vs. Utah State. He's averaged 9.5 rebounds in the last 12 contests. Davis ranks ninth in A&M history in career rebounds (742).
Harris Recovers
After missing the Big 12 tournament with a bruised bone in his wrist, sophomore point guard Dash Harris returned to action against Utah State and had 5 assists with only 2 turnovers in 26 minutes. A&M is 25-3 in his career when he has at least 3 assists, including a 15-2 mark this season. In his last four games, Harris has handed out 19 assists with only 7 turnovers.
Productive Loubeau
Junior David Loubeau scored 14 points with 6 rebounds vs. Utah State. The Aggies are 10-2 this season when he scores in double figures.
Strong Finish
The Aggies are 10-3 in their last 13 games, including two losses to overall No. 1 seed Kansas and a loss at No. 3 seed Baylor (70-66). A&M had second-half leads in both losses to the Jayhawks.
Offensive Notes
A&M is 14-1 this season when its scores at least 70 points. The only loss was to New Mexico (84-81)...A&M is 21-5 when leading at halftime this season...A&M is 23-1 when it leads with 5:00 remaining (losing only to Kansas at home)...A&M is 11-0 when it has at least 8 fast break points...A&M is 21-5 when at least three players score in double figures...after struggling from three-point range through most of the Big 12 season, A&M has made 41.9 percent (44-of-105) from beyond the arc in the last six games...the Aggies' 8 three-pointers against Utah State tied the A&M record for NCAA tournament play (BYU, 2008)...A&M is 14-3 this season when it makes at least 45 percent from the field...A&M is 15-1 when it has a positive assist/turnover ratio. The only loss was at No. 1 Texas (72-67) in overtime...A&M is 15-1 when it has at least 13 assists.
On the Line
A&M is 22-2 when it has more free throw attempts than its opponent...the Aggies have been out-scored from the line in seven of their nine losses, including all five losses in Big 12 play...A&M has made just 66.3 percent from the line this season, but has made 79.0 percent (45-of-57) in the last three games.
Taking Care of the Ball
The Aggies lead the Big 12 in fewest rebounds with an average of 12.2 per game...A&M is 16-3 when it outscores its opponent in points off turnovers.
Rebounding
The Aggies are 20-2 when out-rebounding their opponents.
Defensive Notes
A&M led the Big 12 in scoring defense in league play (65.8)...A&M held No. 1 Kansas to a Big 12 season-low 59 points last month in College Station...Texas scored a season-low 58 points against the Aggies in College Station...A&M is 21-1 when its opponent scores under 70 points, losing only the Kansas game...A&M is 62-10 under Turgeon when its opponent scores fewer than 70...A&M held its Big 12 opponents to an average of 10 points under their scoring averages, with only two surpassing their norms...Utah State scored just 53 points against A&M in the first round, 20.7 points under its average...A&M is 17-2 this season when its opponent makes less than 42 percent from the field.
