Jan. 7, 2011
A&M Game Notes (PDF)
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - No. 16 Texas A&M puts its 10-game win streak on the line Saturday afternoon when the Aggies (13-1) open Big 12 play against the Oklahoma Sooners (8-6) at Lloyd Noble Center in Norman. Tipoff is set for 3 p.m. and the game will air regionally on the Big 12 Network (KBTX-TV 3.1 in Bryan/College Station).
A&M is unbeaten since suffering its only loss of the season on Thanksgiving Day, a two-point setback to Boston College at the Old Spice Classic in Orlando, and most recently defeated Nicholls State 66-55 Monday night. OU, meanwhile, has won five of its last six after a 73-49 thrashing of Maryland-Eastern Shore on Monday. The Sooners are undefeated in Norman this year, while the Aggies are 4-1 away from Reed Arena.
GAME 15: (#16/16) Texas A&M AGGIES (13-1, 0-0)
at Oklahoma SOONERS (8-6, 0-0)
Saturday, January 8, 2011 • 3:00 PM (CT) • TV: Big 12 Network
Lloyd Noble Center (12,000) • Norman, Oklahoma
TELEVISION: Big 12 Network (Regional)
Mitch Holthus, Play-by-Play
Stephen Howard, Commentary
Bryan/College Station: KBTX-TV
ESPN Full Court: DirecTV 720/Dish TBA
National
ESPN Full Court................DirecTV 720...Dish TBA
Arkansas
Ft. Smith-Fay-Sprngdl-Rgrs.....KFTA..........FOX
Little Rock-Pine Bluff.........KARZ..........MNT
California
Los Angeles....................KDOC..........IND
Colorado
Denver.........................ALTITUDE2.....RSN
Iowa
Cedar Rapids-Waterloo & Dubq...KFXA..........FOX
Davenport-Rock Island-Moline...WBQD-LP.......MNT
Des Moines-Ames................WOI-DT........ABC
Ottumwa-Kirksville.............KYOU..........FOX
Rochestr-Mason City-Austin.....MEDIACOM-MC...RSN
Sioux City.....................KPTH..........FOX
Kansas
Joplin-Pittsburg...............KFJX..........FOX
Topeka.........................KTMJ..........FOX
Wichita-Hutchinson Plus........KSAS..........FOX
Kentucky
Paducah-C. Girardeau-Harrbg....WDKA..........MNT
Missouri
Columbia-Jefferson City........KMIZ..........ABC
Kansas City....................KMCI..........IND
Springfield....................KCZ...........CW
St. Louis......................KPLR 11.2.....TTV
Nebraska
Lincoln & Hstngs-KrnyPlus......KLKN..........ABC
North Platte...................KIIT..........FOX
Omaha..........................KXVO..........CW
New York
Binghamton.....................WBPN..........MNT
Oklahoma
Oklahoma City..................KOCB..........CW
Tulsa..........................KQCW..........CW
Texas
Abilene-Sweetwater.............KIDZ-LP.......FOX
Amarillo.......................KCPN..........MNT
Austin.........................KNVA..........CW
Beaumont-Port Arthur...........KJAC..........NBC
Bryan-College Station..........KBTX..........CBS
Corpus Christi.................KTOV..........MNT
Dallas-Ft. Worth...............KTXA..........IND
Houston........................KTBU..........IND
Lubbock........................KJTV..........FOX
Odessa-Midland.................KOSA-DT2......CBS
San Angelo.....................KIDY..........FOX
San Antonio/Austin.............KCWX..........CW
Sherman, TX-Ada. OK............KXII..........CBS
Tyler-Longview-Lfkn & Ncgd.....KFXK..........FOX
Tyler-Longview-Lfkn & Ncgd.....KFXL-LP.......FOX
Waco-Temple....................CW TEXAS......CW
Wisconsin
Milwaukee......................WMLW..........IND
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 (OU broadcast only)
Series: Oklahoma leads, 28-6
Current Win Streak: A&M, 2 games
In Norman: Oklahoma leads, 14-2
At Lloyd Noble Center: Oklahoma leads, 14-2
In College Station: Oklahoma leads, 11-4
At Reed Arena: Oklahoma leads, 8-4
At Neutral Sites: Oklahoma leads, 3-0
At Big 12 Tournament: Oklahoma leads, 1-0
Longest A&M Win Streak: 2 games (twice)
Longest Oklahoma Win Streak: 14 games
Largest A&M Win: 69-54 (2009-10)
Largest Oklahoma Win: 128-80 (1988-89)
Mark Turgeon vs. Oklahoma: 3-3
Jeff Capel vs. A&M: 3-5
Last Meeting: A&M, 69-54 (March 6, 2010 in Norman)
THE MATCHUP
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
Record: 13-1, 0-0 Big 12
Ranking: 16th (USAT/ESPN), 16th (AP)
NCAA RPI / Sagarin Rating: 29 / 25
Streak: Won 10
Last 5 / Last 10: 5-0 / 10-0
Last Game: def. Nicholls State (H), 66-55 (Monday)
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas `87)
Record: 239-151 (13th year)
at Texas A&M: 86-32 (4th year)
vs. OU: 3-3
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 2.9 3.6 14 / 28.0
22 Khris Middleton F 6-7 215 So. 15.4 4.8 2.8 14 / 27.3
45 Nathan Walkup F 6-7 210 Sr. 10.1 6.4 1.5 14 / 23.1
OKLAHOMA SOONERS
Record: 8-6, 0-0 Big 12
Ranking: NR
NCAA RPI / Sagarin Rating: 210 / 157
Streak: Won 3
Last 5 / Last 10: 4-1 / 5-5
Last Game: def. Md.-Eastern Shore (H), 73-49 (Monday)
Head Coach: Jeff Capel (Duke '97)
Record: 161-92 (9th year)
at OU: 82-51 (5th year)
vs. Texas A&M: 3-5
Oklahoma Probable Starters
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP/Min
2 Steven Pledger G 6-4 212 So. 11.9 2.5 1.9 14 / 28.9
4 Andrew Fitzgerald F 6-8 231 So. 13.6 5.4 0.6 14 / 30.1
14 Carl Blair G 6-2 209 So. 6.1 2.3 4.1 12 / 22.3
21 Cameron Clark G 6-6 189 Fr. 9.0 5.1 0.8 14 / 31.7
34 Cade Davis G 6-5 209 Sr. 13.1 4.9 2.4 14 / 36.2
About Oklahoma (8-6)
Oklahoma is 8-6 on the year and has won three straight and 5 of its last 6 entering Saturday's Big 12 opener ... the Sooners crushed Maryland-Eastern Shore, 73-49, in their last game on Monday night ... OU is averaging 68.8 points per game and is shooting nearly 48 percent from the floor ... Oklahoma is undefeated this season in Norman, going a perfect 8-0.
OU returns 5 letterwinners and 1 starter from a 2009-10 team that went 13-18 and finished ninth in the Big 12 at 4-12 ... Jeff Capel is 90-57 in his fifth year at Oklahoma.
Series Notes
Oklahoma leads the series, 28-6, but A&M has won 5 of the last 7 meetings.
Last season the Aggies swept the series with the Sooners for the second time in school history (2006-07) ... Texas A&M downed OU 65-62 at Reed Arena on Jan. 19, then closed the regular-season with a 69-54 win in Norman.
OU leads, 14-2, in games played in Norman ... A&M wins came in 2007 (56-49) and last March (69-54).
Of the last 10 games, 8 have been decided by single digits.
Sidebars
A&M sophomore G Naji Hibbert and OU sophomore F Andrew Fitzgerald were AAU teammates on Team Melo in their hometown of Baltimore, Maryland.
Aggie senior Derrek Lewis is a 2007 graduate of Union High School in Tulsa.
A&M assistant coach Pooh Williamson is a native of Beggs and a 1995 graduate of the University of Tulsa ... Williamson also spent four seasons on the coaching staff at TU, including the winter of 2005 as interim head coach.
A&M/OU in 2010
Jan. 19: Texas A&M 65, Oklahoma 62
COLLEGE STATION (1/19/10)--Donald Sloan had 16 points including the go-ahead jumper with 32 seconds remaining and a pair of free throws seconds later to give Texas A&M a 65-62 win over Oklahoma before 11,109 at Reed Arena. The win ended a two-game losing streak for the Aggies (13-5, 2-2 Big 12). Texas A&M trailed by one before Sloan's driving jumper in the lane made it 63-62. The Sooners (11-7, 2-2) had a chance to take the lead, but Willie Warren's off-balance attempt fell short, and Bryan Davis grabbed the rebound. He was immediately fouled but missed the free throws, giving Oklahoma another chance. Tommy Mason-Griffin missed a shot, and Sloan was fouled on the rebound. He made two free throws with 3 seconds remaining. The Sooners got the ball one last time, but Sloan intercepted a pass from Tiny Gallon as time expired. Mason-Griffin led Oklahoma with 21 points.
March 6: (#23) Texas A&M 69, Oklahoma 54
NORMAN (3/6/10)--Khris Middleton scored 15 points, B.J. Holmes followed with a three-point play and a 3-pointer from the right wing as Texas A&M built a 50-38 lead. Middleton then followed Ray Turner's two-handed follow dunk with four straight points as the Aggies pushed their advantage to 64-48 with 5:58 remaining. Oklahoma used an 11-1 burst that featured three 3-pointers before Mason-Griffin's driving layup pushed the lead to 23-14 with 8:10 left in the first half. Davis led the Aggies back with eight points, including three dunks, in a 14-3 charge and A&M led 36-32 at halftime. The Sooners were within two when Gallon came down awkwardly after blocking Middleton's jumper from the right side. With Wright, Crocker and Fitzgerald all facing foul trouble, he returned to play but was clearly limping.
GAME NOTES
Looking for Eleven in a Row
Texas A&M has rattled off 10 straight wins since suffering its only loss of the year, a two-point setback on Thanksgiving Day to a hot-shooting Boston College squad in the opening round of the Old Spice Classic in Orlando ... the 10-game streak is tied for the fifth-longest in school history, and includes wins over then No. 20 Temple, then No. 21 Washington and against Arkansas on a neutral court in Dallas ... a look at the longest win streaks in program history:
LONGEST WIN STREAKS, TEXAS A&M HISTORY
Year(s) Wins
1. 1919-21* 25
2. 1914-16* 20
3. 2004-05 11
1921-22 11
5. 2010-11 10
2008-09 10
2005-06 10
1959-60 10
1918-19 10
* spanned two seasons
The 10-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; 10 games, 2010-11; 8 games, 2007-08).
A victory would tie the Aggies for the third-longest win streak in school history ... the school record is 25 from 1919-1921 (19 straight by '19-20 team, first 6 of '20-21 season).
Over the 10-game win streak, the Aggies have held their opponents to a sparse 37 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 11.4 boards ... a closer look at the numbers:
WIN STREAK STATS
Category
Record 10-0
A&M Points/Game 70.8
Opponent Points/Game 55.8
Margin of Victory +15.0
Opponent FG Pct. .371
Opponent 3-Pt FG Pct. .276
Rebound Margin +11.4
Opp. Combined Record (as of 1/5) 72-56 (.563)
Locking it Down
The Aggies have used quite a few key defensive showings to keep their current win streak alive ... a look at some of the defensive efforts that have led to victories along the 10-game win streak:
LATE-GAME DEFENSIVE STANDS, CURRENT WIN STREAK
Opponent Clock Situation Opponent rest of game Result Notable
Nicholls St. 4:09 left up 9 (62-53) 0 FG, 2 FT W, 66-55
McNeese St. 3:43 left up 3 (56-53) 2 FG, 0 FT W, 66-57 last MSU FG came w/:00.1 left in game
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
In the last 3 minutes of games on the win streak, the Aggie defense has held foes to 19.6 percent shooting (9-of-46) from the field.
Hot Start
Texas A&M has matched the second-best start in school history by winning 13 of its first 14 games.
Only one team in school history has had a better start than this year's Aggies (13-1) ... the 1919-20 team ran the table and finished a perfect 19-0 ... a win against Nicholls would make the 2010-11 team only the fourth ever to start the year 14-1 or better (1919-20, 15-0 ... 2007-08 and 2008-09, 14-1).
Mark Turgeon other A&M teams were 13-1 (2007-08), 13-1 (2008-09) and 11-3 (2009-10) through their first 14 games.
Big 12 Notables
Texas A&M matched its best-ever finish in Big 12 play last season, tying for second place with an 11-5 record ... it was the Aggies' second-best record in league history, trailing only the 2006-07 squad (13-3) ... A&M was 4-4 on the road in conference tilts in 2010.
The Aggies have won 41 Big 12 games since the start of the 2007 league season ... prior to that, A&M had totaled only 43 victories in the first 10 years of Big 12 play.
Texas A&M has won 3 of its last 4 Big 12 openers.
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 5 other games against teams ranked in the latest AP Top 25 poll (Jan. 3), including Kansas (3rd), Missouri (9th), Texas (12th, 2 games) and Kansas State (17th).
Making a Stand
A&M has held 8 of its 14 opponents under 38 percent shooting from the field ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 49-4 (9-0 this year) when their opponent shoots under 40 percent and are 78-20 (13-1) when they make under 50 percent.
Only two of the Aggies' foes--Boston College (48.9%) and A&M-Corpus Christi (46.7%)--have shot better than 42 percent in a game this year.
On the current 10-game win streak, opponents are being held to 37.1 percent shooting ... in the last 3 minutes of games on the win streak, the Aggie defense has held foes to 19.6 percent shooting (9-of-46) from the field.
Texas A&M is 75-12 under Turgeon (13-1 this year) when opponents score under 70 points ... the high-water mark for an opponent this year is 67 points (Boston College, Nov. 25).
A&M faced the nation's leading scorer, Nicholls State's Anatoly Bose (25.0 PPG), on Jan. 3 ... the Aggies held Bose to just 6 points on 1-of-12 shooting ... 4 of his 6 points came from the free-throw line ... Bose had hit double figures in 23 consecutive games dating back to last year and had not scored fewer than 15 points this season ... his only field goal came with just under 17 minutes left in the game.
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.
Aggies in the NCAA Rankings
In the latest NCAA rankings (as of Jan. 2), A&M ranked 2nd nationally in rebounding margin (+12.7), trailing only Pitt (14.9) ... the Aggies have out-rebounded every opponent this season ... the Aggies are 77-13 under Turgeon (13-1 this year) when matching or out-rebounding their foes.
A&M also ranked 9th in the country in scoring defense (56.7 ppg) ... Stephen F. Austin, whom the Aggies beat at Reed Arena on Dec. 2, leads the nation (51.5).
The Aggies are holding opponents to 37.6 percent shooting from the floor, which ranks 14th nationally ... A&M ranks 27th nationally in 3-point field goal defense, with foes shooting just 28.9 percent from behind the arc.
Senior Watch
A&M's senior class needs 13 more wins to become the winningest class in school history ... the Class of 2011 is 88-32 (.733) entering Saturday's game at Oklahoma, 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.
Elite Poll Company
Texas A&M (No. 18 football, No. 16 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 (#18 MBB/#7 FB) and Missouri (#9 MBB/#14 FB) are the others.
A&M (No. 18 football, No. 16 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/#20 WBB) and Michigan State (#18 MBB/#7 FB/#11 WBB) are the others.
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 45 double-figure outings thus far (Middleton 12, Walkup 8, Holmes 8, Loubeau 7, Hibbert 5, Roberson 5, Harris 1, Lewis 1) through the first 14 games.
Miscellaneous
Mark Turgeon (86 wins) needs 5 more victories to pass D.X. Bible (90 in seven seasons) and become the third-winningest coach in school history ... Turgeon needs 7 more to eclipse Bob Rogers (92 in six seasons) as the second-winningest coach in A&M annals ... Shelby Metcalf (438 wins in 26 1/2 seasons) is the Aggies' all-time winningest coach.
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 494-378 in the first half this season and has carried an average lead of 8.3 points into the locker room ... the Aggies have led at the break in 9 of 14 games and are 9-0 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.
Texas A&M has won nearly 75 percent of its games since the start of the 2006-07 season (113-39, .743) ... the Aggies are 156-57 (.732) since the beginning of the '04-05 campaign.
Up Next
The Aggies will return to Reed Arena Wednesday evening and host Oklahoma State in A&M's Big 12 home opener (7 p.m., Big 12 Network).
LAST TIME OUT: (#16) Texas A&M 66, Nicholls State 55
COLLEGE STATION (Jan. 3)--David Loubeau scored 18 points and B.J. Holmes made a pair of free throws to close out the win. Fred Hunter scored 17 points to lead Nicholls State. Anatoly Bose, who entered the game ranked third nationally in scoring with 25 points a game, was limited to six points. Bose, who had scored at least 15 points in each game this season, put up 28 against LSU and 37 against Oklahoma State. But he was shut down by Texas A&M's defense led by Walkup. He missed all eight of his field goals in the first half and finished making just 1 of 12 with four free throws. Texas A&M gained its first lead on a three-point play by Walkup that made it 17-16 about eight minutes before halftime. The Aggies led by seven about 2 1/2 minutes before halftime but Nicholls State outscored them 9-6 in the last bit of the first half to cut their halftime lead to 35-31.
Texas A&M Head Coach Mark Turgeon: "We're not playing great right now. I thought they controlled a lot of the tempo in their offense, we had some tough matchups out there. (Justin Ayers) came in and really hurt us, scoring 14. We're not playing the way we did before Christmas. We lost some of our intensity on defense, some of our toughness, and even some of our confidence. We have to get it back before Saturday. (Defensively things changed when) We started to guard. They were shooting close to 50 percent, and then they ended up at 39.5 percent. I thought our execution was good. 18 assists on 22 buckets is pretty good. We shortened our rotation in the second half, and I think that helped us. (Before conference play) We just have to get back to being us. We're just not us right now, hopefully we will be come Saturday. Maybe it was the environment, maybe that our guys are ready for a challenge. We practiced well yesterday, we've gone 7 days of practice in a row. We're a little dysfunctional. We're a little mentally fatigued too. I think a day off will help us, and then three days to work on us and get better for Saturday."
Postgame Notes
Texas A&M's defense held the nation's leading scorer, Anatoly Bose (25.0 PPG), to just 6 points on 1-of-12 shooting ... 4 of Bose's 6 points came from the free-throw line ... Bose had hit double figures in 23 consecutive games dating back to last year and had not scored fewer than 15 points this season ... his only field goal came with just under 17 minutes left in the game.
Texas A&M's 13-1 record matches the second-best start in school history ... the 1919-20 team went 19-0 on the season, while this year's team is one of four (1959-60, 2007-08, 2008-09) to open by winning 13 of its first 14 games.
The Aggies' 10 game win streak is their longest since the end of non-conference play in the 2008-09 season, and matches the longest in the Mark Turgeon era.
A&M will carry a 60-game home non-conference win streak into next season, having gone a perfect 9-0 this year at Reed Arena ... the Aggies have also now won 73 straight regular-season, non-conference home games.
Texas A&M has won 27 of its last 28 home games and 25 in a row against unranked opponents.
The Aggies opened the game 0-for-7 from the floor, but hit 11 of their final 16 shots (.688) heading into the locker room.
Sophomore Naji Hibbert made the first start of his career.
Junior Dash Harris matched his season high with 7 assists.
Junior David Loubeau tied his season high with 18 points (8-of-10 shooting), and was two shy of his career best.
ADDITIONAL NOTES: DEFENSE
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 76-13 under Turgeon (12-1 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 4.5 rebounds per game--Nathan Walkup (6.4), David Loubeau (5.2), Khris Middleton (4.7) and Kourtney Roberson (4.5) ... 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 points off turnovers per game ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 54-9 (8-0 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.
ADDITIONAL NOTES: OFFENSE
Fast-Paced Offense
Texas A&M has outscored its opponents 459-347 in the first half this season and has carried an average lead of 8.7 points into the locker room ... the Aggies have led at the break in 8 of 13 games and are 8-0 when ahead at the half.
Texas A&M is 37-2 under Mark Turgeon when scoring at least eight fast-break points (7-0 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 12 wins this year.
A&M is 67-11 under Turgeon when leading at halftime (8-0 this year), and 16-19 when trailing (4-1).
Sharing the Ball
Texas A&M is averaging 14.9 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 a win over Pacific (Dec. 4) ... 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 30.6 points down low (28.6 average in 2009-10).
Under Turgeon, A&M is 80-24 when scoring at least 20 points in the paint (10-1 this year).
Take Another Chance
The Aggies are averaging 17 second-chance points through 13 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.
TEAM NOTES
Home, Sweet Home
The Aggies have won 60 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 92-9 all-time in non-conference games at Reed (.911).
Texas A&M has won 73 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 27 of its last 28 home games, including 10 of its last 11 in Big 12 play ... the Aggies are 40-3 at home since the start of the 2008-09 season with a 13-3 mark in conference games.
The Aggies are 74-6 (.925) at home since the start of the 2006-07 season and are 106-12 (.898) since the start of the 2004-05 campaign.
A&M has won 24 straight home games against unranked opponents (eight straight in Big 12 play) ... under Turgeon, the Aggies are 47-3 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 148-54 (.733) in its 13th season at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were 41-41 the first six years at Reed and are 107-13 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.
Who's Back?
Texas A&M returns 10 of 16 letterwinners from last season, including three starters. Returning starters are juniors B.J. Holmes. Sophomores Naji Hibbert (all 34 games) and Ray Turner (20) also saw significant action last season ... six of the Aggies' top nine scorers in 2009-10 were non-seniors.
A&M lost three seniors, members of the winningest class in school history--Donald Sloan, Bryan Davis and Derrick Roland (all to graduation).
Who's New?
The Aggies bring in a strong group of newcomers, including three freshmen-Daniel Alexander (Dripping Springs), Keith Davis (DeSoto) and Kourtney Roberson (Arcadia, La.).
Junior Elston Turner (Missouri City/University of Washington) is not eligible to play this season due to NCAA transfer rules.
Tobi Oyedeji (1992-2010)
Tobi Oyedeji (pronounced O-yuh-day-jee), a member of the incoming Class of '14, was lost tragically following a car accident in Houston on May 16, 2010.
A memorial scholarship has been set up in Tobi's honor and he has a locker inside the Aggies' Reed Arena locker room.
His good friend, Ray Turner, has switched jerseys to No. 35, Tobi's number, for this season.
The team will wear a memorial patch with Tobi's last name emblazoned on it on the right shoulder of the jersey.
Looking for Six
A&M has made five straight appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Prior to this streak, A&M had never played in consecutive NCAA Tournaments and had not been to the NCAAs since 1987. Five of A&M's 11 NCAA appearances, and 6 of its 9 NCAA wins, have come since 2006.
A&M is one of just 12 schools that have made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last five seasons.
A&M and Pittsburgh are the only schools in the country to win an NCAA tournament game in each of the last five years.
A&M is one of just three schools to have won a postseason game in each of the last six years (5 NCAAs/1 NIT, joining North Carolina (5 NCAAs/1 NIT) and Memphis (4 NCAAs/2 NITs).
A&M has posted six straight 20-win seasons. Before the 2004-05 season, A&M had only six 20-win seasons in its history.
Texas A&M went 24-10 last season, tying for second in the Big 12 with an 11-5 mark. A&M earned the No. 5 seed in the South Region of the NCAA Tournament, falling in overtime to No. 4-seed Purdue, 63-61, in the second round in Spokane, Washington.
A&M, Kansas and Texas are the only Big 12 schools that have won at least 20 games in each of the last six seasons.
NBA Aggies
An Aggie has been chosen in four of the last six NBA Drafts. Chinemelu Elonu was the last to go, in 2009 (second round to Los Angeles Lakers). The others were Antoine Wright in 2005 (first round to the New Jersey Nets), Acie Law IV in 2007 (first round to the Atlanta Hawks), and DeAndre Jordan in 2008 (second round to the Los Angeles Clippers).
Prior to Wright's selection in 2005, A&M had not had a player drafted since Winston Crite in 1987.
There are three Aggies currently playing in the NBA: Antoine Wright (Sacramento Kings), Acie Law IV (Memphis Grizzlies) and DeAndre Jordan (Los Angeles Clippers). Prior to 2007, A&M never had more than one active NBA player.
Head Coach Mark Turgeon
Turgeon is the only coach in school history to lead the Aggies to three straight NCAA Tournaments.
The only coaches with more wins than Mark Turgeon (73) in their first three years at a Big 12 school are his mentors at Kansas, Larry Brown (83 in 1983-86) and Roy Williams (76 in 1988-91). Ironically, Turgeon was a point guard for those teams under Brown and was an assistant coach in Williams' first three seasons with the Jayhawks.
Turgeon was named 2010 Big 12 Coach of the Year by The Dallas Morning News, San Antonio Express-News and Columbia (Mo.) Tribune.
Turgeon is the only coach in Big 12 history to win 24 or more games in each of his first three seasons.
Turgeon's 73 wins at A&M were the most ever by an A&M coach in a three-year period. The previous mark was 70 wins by Billy Gillispie (2004-07).
Turgeon has led the Aggies to three straight 20-win seasons, including three of the top six victory totals in the school's 98-year basketball history.
Turgeon is the only coach in school history to win 23 or more games three times.
Turgeon's 25 wins in 2007-08 tied for the most by a first-year coach in the history of any Big 12 school and were an A&M record for a coach in his debut. Tom Penders went 25-9 in his first year at Texas (1988-89) prior to the formation of the Big 12.
Turgeon has led his teams to at least 20 wins in six of the last seven seasons (his Wichita State team won 17 games in 2006-07). His teams have advanced to postseason play seven times in the last eight years. Turgeon's record in the last seven years is 159-75 (.680).
Turgeon has led his teams to four NCAA Tourneys in the last five years, winning at least one game in each appearance.
As a player, assistant coach and head coach, Turgeon has compiled a 26-12 NCAA Tournament record (8-4 as a player, 13-4 as an assistant, 5-4 as a head coach). Turgeon is the only active Big 12 head coach to play and coach in an NCAA Final Four.
In 13 NCAA Tournament appearances as a player, assistant coach and head coach, Turgeon has lost a first-round NCAA game just once (Oregon in 1995 under Coach Jerry Green).
TURGEON QUOTEBOARD (1/6)
Assess where your team is at right now and where you'd like them to be in a month or so...
"Well, we haven't played well since coming back from the break so there's a little concern there. We've practiced better this week, which usually indicates that hopefully you'll play better on game day. That's my big concern right now. I don't know where we'll be a month from now. I'm kind of curious to see. We've got some really tough games out of the gate here, (including) several top 15 teams in the country. That will give us a really good indication of where we are. I'm looking forward to it and our guys are too. Hopefully like in the past we'll continue to get better."
Was it just a post-holiday lag that caused the struggles in the last two games?
"I blame myself. We took too much time off, then we had a few injuries right when we got back, and we weren't able to practice the way we wanted to. So we've gotten after it pretty hard right now and were starting to get back to where we were."
What's your assessment of your non-conference season?
"We've done okay. We've won some close games, and that's really what it comes down to. We won the games we were supposed to win. Then, we played a really good Temple team and won a close game. We played a really good Boston College team on that day and lost a close game. We beat a really good Washington team in a close game that came down to wire, and the same thing with Arkansas. So we've won some close games against some better programs, and it has kind of gotten us where we are nationally. I've been pleased with where we are but it's a whole other animal now. We've been where we are before, with this kind of record going into the league, but I'm really curious to see where we are with the challenges that lie ahead."
What has been the key to your success?
"Defense and rebounding. Offense has been frustrating. I know we're much better offensively than we're playing. We've got a lot of real good basketball players that can score the ball. I know that will get better. We've worked hard on execution the last few days and getting that where we need it to be. But we've hung our hat on defense and rebounding and that's been pretty good for us."
Break down your upcoming Big 12 schedule (at OU, OSU, Missouri, at Texas, K-State) and the game on Saturday...
"Well, it's tough for everyone. There are a lot of really good teams in our league. The OU game, it scares you because it's the first game of the league. They've won 5 of 6 and have some confidence going into the game. There will be a lot of energy out of their team and we'll have to match that. They've gone small and played a smaller lineup lately. (OU Coach) Jeff (Capel) has been playing more zone and putting more shooters and ball-handlers on the floor, and I think it's really helped their team. That really creates tough matchups for us. We're going to have to go in there and there will be a lot of energy in that building. We haven't played a true road game since November. It'll be a challenge for us, but we'll be excited too, and our guys should be ready."
OU is in what people have called a rebuilding phase this year, how do you see that team moving forward?
"I think Jeff's done a nice job with them because they were in a tail-spin and I think they've come out of it. And they're playing better and with more confidence. I just love Cade Davis, how tough he is, what he's done for that program and all the sacrifices he's made for that program. It looks like they are getting a lot out of Cameron Clark too. If they stay positive, that's the thing. Starting the Big 12 is like starting a new season. They're undefeated in that building. They have good players, it's just getting them all on the same page. It seems Jeff has them all on the same page right now.
On the improvement of Dash Harris over the last few weeks...
"Yeah, he's actually played well since coming back from Christmas break. He's really assisted well and not turned the ball over. He probably had his best day of the year in practice yesterday, and was really fantastic. He was back to the old Dash. We've stuck with him through this whole drought and I that's given him confidence. He knows we believe in him. In the last couple of games his turnover numbers have been great and like I said had his best practice of the year yesterday. We're looking forward to Dash really helping us in Big 12 play." 
