No. 18 Aggies Head to Big Apple
Nov 15, 2011 | Men's Basketball
COLLEGE STATION-No. 18/19 Texas A&M takes its first road trip of the season and puts its undefeated record on the line when the Aggies (2-0) travel to New York City and famed Madison Square Garden this week to participate in the 17th annual 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs Cancer.
A&M will face Mississippi State (2-1) in Thursday's first semifinal, with tipoff set for 7:05 p.m. (ET). The game will be televised nationally on ESPN2. The Aggies will then face either St. John's or No. 15 Arizona on Friday in either the championship (7:30 p.m. ET) or consolation (4:30 p.m. ET) game.
Both games will also be carried live on the Texas A&M Sports Network and on Sirius/XM Satellite Radio.
GAME 3: (#18/19) Texas A&M AGGIES (2-0) vs Mississippi State BULLDOGS (2-1)
Thursday, November 17, 2011 • 7:05 PM ET • TV: ESPN2 HD
Madison Square Garden (19,763) • New York, New York
Media Coverage
TELEVISION: ESPN2 HD
Dan Shulman, Play-by-Play
Len Elmore, Commentary
Andy Katz, Sidelines
RADIO: Texas A&M Sports Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
Al Pulliam, Commentary
Local: WTAW-AM 1620
Satellite Radio: Sirius 113/XM 190
INTERNET
Live Video: ESPN3.com
Live Audio: aggieathletics.com
Scouting Texas A&M
Record: 2-0, 0-0 Big 12
Ranking: 18th (USAT/ESPN), 19th (AP)
Streak: Won 2
Last 5 / Last 10: 2-0 / 2-0
Last Game: def. Southern (H), 83-58 (Wed.)
Head Coach: Billy Kennedy (SE Louisiana '86)
Record: 213-179 (14th year)
at Texas A&M: 2-0 (first year)
vs. Miss. State: 0-5
A&M Probable Starters (based on previous game)
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP / Min
5 Dash Harris G 6-1 171 Sr. 4.5 2.5 4.0 2 / 22.5
10 David Loubeau F 6-8 234 Sr. 12.5 3.0 0.5b 2 / 23.5
13 Jordan Green G 6-4 181 Fr. 4.5 2.5 1.5 2 / 13.5
31 Elston Turner G 6-5 211 Jr. 13.5 4.0 3.0 2 / 28.0
35 Ray Turner F 6-9 232 Jr. 20.0 7.0 0.5 2 / 23.0
Scouting Mississippi State
Record: 2-1, 0-0 SEC
Ranking: NR
Streak: Won 1
Last 5 / Last 10: 2-1 / 2-1
Last Game: def. So. Alabama (H), 80-65 (Sat.)
Head Coach: Rick Stansbury (Campbellsville '82)
Record: 274-155 (14th year)
at MSU: 274-155 (14th year)
vs. Texas A&M: never faced
MSU Probable Starters (based on previous game)
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Cl. PPG RPG APG GP / Min
1 Renardo Sidney F 6-10 285 Jr. 10.5 4.0 1.5b 2 / 24.0
3 Dee Bost G 6-2 176 Sr. 17.3 6.0 3.3 3 / 35.0
4 Rodney Hood G 6-8 204 Fr. 12.3 5.7 2.3 3 / 33.7
22 Brian Bryant G 6-3 168 Sr. 7.7 4.3 2.3 3 / 30.3
23 Arnett Moultrie F 6-11 249 Jr. 16.3 12.7 0.7b 3 / 35.3
Quick Hits
- Texas A&M is making its first trip to the Big Apple since 2007 and only its second since the 1949-50 season.
- The Aggies have shot 55 percent or better in consecutive games for the first time since 2007.
- Texas A&M has not trailed since the 15:45 mark of the first half of the season opener against Liberty, a span of 77 minutes and 45 seconds ... the Aggies have trailed their opponent for a total of 4 minutes, 15 seconds this year.
- A&M is averaging 16 fast-break points per game on the young season, nearly 10 more than last year.
- Nearly 60 percent of Texas A&M's points this season have come in the paint ... last week, the Aggies scored 45-plus points in the paint in consecutive games for the first time since 2004.
- Billy Kennedy will be facing Mississippi State for the fifth time in his career and at his fourth different school ... Kennedy actually coached against the Bulldogs in his first-ever game as a head coach, at Centenary (Nov. 15, 1997) ... he faced MSU twice at Centenary (1997-98 and 1998-99), twice at Southeastern Louisiana (1999-00 and 2000-01), and once at Murray State (2007-08) ... Thursday will mark the first time Kennedy has faced Mississippi State outside of Starkville.
- For the first time in league history, Texas A&M has been picked to win the Big 12 Conference men's basketball championship ... the Aggies sat atop the preseason coaches' poll in a tie with Kansas.
- A&M is one of just 12 schools that have made the NCAA Tournament in each of the last 6 seasons (Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Marquette, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Villanova, Wisconsin, Xavier).
- Texas A&M is one of only 8 schools in the entire country that have won 24 or more games in each of the last 5 seasons (Butler, BYU, Kansas, Memphis, Pittsburgh, Texas A&M, VCU, Xavier).
- Texas A&M opened the year ranked in the top 20 nationally (19th/USAT, 20th/AP) for just the fifth time in school history, but the third time in the last six years ... the Aggies' previous preseason ranked teams were: 1979-80 (14th/AP); 1980-81 (15th/AP); 2006-07 (13th/USAT, 13th/AP); and 2007-08 (14th/USAT, 16th/AP).
- A&M has won 62 straight non-conference games at Reed Arena (dating back to start of 2005-06 season) and 75 consecutive regular-season, non-conference home games (dating back to 2003).
- A&M took a 10-day tour of Switzerland and France in August, touring some of the most famous landmarks the countries have to offer and playing a four-game schedule.
2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs Cancer
- Texas A&M continues play in the 17th annual 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs Cancer this week at New York City's famed Madison Square Garden ... the Aggies opened play in the event, and their season, with an 81-59 win over Liberty in College Station on Nov. 9.
- The Aggies will join St. John's, Arizona and Mississippi State for the championship rounds ... A&M will face MSU in the first semifinal (Thursday, 6 p.m. CT) while St. John's and Arizona will play in the nightcap (8:30 p.m. CT) ... the consolation (3:30 p.m. CT) and championship (6:30 p.m. CT) games will take place Friday ... all four games will air live nationally on ESPN2.
- Other schools in the 14-team field are Akron, Duquesne, Eastern Kentucky, Lehigh, Liberty, UDC, Valparaiso, William & Mary, Hiram and Indiana-Kokomo.
Aggies in The Garden
- Texas A&M will be making its third appearance ever in Madison Square Garden, and just its second since 1949 ... the Aggies are 2-1 all-time inside MSG ... A&M swept Washington and Ohio State en route to the 2007 NIT Season Tip-Off title ... the Aggies' only other appearance inside the famed arena was in the 1949 season opener against Long Island.
A&M INSIDE MADISON SQUARE GARDEN, ALL-TIME
Date Opponent Score
1949 Long Island L, 52-66
11/21/07 Washington W, 77-63
11/23/07 Ohio State W, 70-47
- A&M's all-time record in New York City is 2-2, including a 66-52 loss to Manhattan on Dec. 13, 1951.
A&M in In-Season Tournaments
- Texas A&M has fared reasonably well of late in regular-season tournament action ... the Aggies have participated in one in each of the last four seasons and have compiled a 12-3 record over that span ... A&M went 4-0 in 2007 (NIT Season Tip-Off), 3-1 in 2008 (South Padre Island Invitational), 2-1 in 2009 (76 Classic) and 2-1 last fall (Old Spice Classic), and sports a 1-0 mark this year in the 2K Sports Classic.
- The Aggies have won 17 regular-season tournament titles, most recently the 2007 NIT Season Tip-Off ... prior to that A&M's last came in 1989 at the Golden Panthers Classic in Miami.
Series History: Mississippi State (tied, 1-1)
- Thursday's 2K Sports Classic semifinal marks the third all-time meeting between the two future Southeastern Conference divisional foes and the first since 1966 ... both previous meetings have been neutral-site ... the Bulldogs claimed the most recent one 62-49 on Dec. 7, 1966 in Hattiesburg, Mississippi ... A&M's victory came on Dec. 20, 1963 in Houston (58-54).
Series History: Arizona (UA leads, 6-1)
- Arizona has won 6 of the 7 meetings between the schools in a series that dates back to 1949 ... the teams last faced off as part of the Big 12/Pac-10 Hardwood series in 2007 and 2008 ... UA upset then ninth-ranked A&M 78-67 in Tucson on Dec. 2, 2007 ... the Aggies then picked up their only win over the Wildcats on Dec. 5, 2008 in College Station, 67-66, when then freshman Nathan Walkup drained a game-winning 3-pointer with 20 seconds left.
Series History: St. John's
- A meeting between St. John's and Texas A&M on Friday would mark the first ever between the schools in basketball.
Last Time Out: A&M 83, Southern 58
- COLLEGE STATION (Nov. 13)-Junior forward Ray Turner scored 20 points and No. 20 Texas A&M beat Southern 83-58 Sunday in coach Billy Kennedy's return to the Aggies' sideline. A&M raced to a 46-21 halftime lead against the Jaguars, and the contest never was in doubt in the second half. Turner tied his career for the second straight game and the Aggies (2-0) outrebounded the Jaguars 44-21. The Aggies played their first game without star guard Khris Middleton, who tore the meniscus in his right knee in the opener and is out three to four weeks. Forward Kourtney Roberson added 12 points for A&M, while forward David Loubeau and guard Elston Turner had 11 points apiece. Derick Beltran scored 19 points for Southern (1-1).
Postgame Notes: A&M/Southern
- The Aggies won their 62nd consecutive non-conference game at Reed Arena (dating back to start of 2005-06 season) and 75th straight regular-season, non-conference home game (dating back to 2003).
- The Aggies out-rebounded Southern, 44 to 21 ... the 23-board margin was the largest since A&M out-rebounded Wagner by 27 on Dec. 22, 2010.
- Keith Davis set a career high in rebounds for the second straight game with 8 ... Davis had a best of 6 a few days ago against Liberty.
- Junior Ray Turner matched his career high of 20 points, set last game against Liberty ... it marked the first back-to-back 20-point games by an Aggie since Donald Sloan in 2010 (23 vs Nebraska, 24 vs Kansas in Big 12 Championship).
- Freshman Jordan Green (Flower Mound) made the first start of his career.
Middleton to Miss Action
- Texas A&M junior forward Khris Middleton had successful surgery on Nov. 11 to repair a partially-torn meniscus in his right knee and will miss three to four weeks ... Middleton (North Charleston, S.C.) suffered the injury in the first half of an 81-59, season-opening win over Liberty (11/9) ... it was originally thought to be a hamstring injury but a precautionary MRI after the game revealed the partial tear.
- The Southern game (11/13) was the first Middleton has missed in his career ... the preseason All-Big 12 pick had played in all 68 games since he got to A&M and had started the last 45.
Hot Shots
- The Aggies shot 65.4 percent from the floor in the season opener against Liberty, the fifth-best shooting outing in school history ... A&M then connected on 56.6 percent shooting against Southern (11/13).
- A&M shot 55 percent or better just once last season (57.8 vs Missouri, Big 12 tourney quarterfinals) and a total of 4 times in the last 3 seasons combined (once in '10-11, none in '09-10, three times in '08-09).
- In fact, the last time an Aggie team shot 55 percent or better in back-to-back games was Dec. 19 and 22, 2007, against Detroit (57.7) and UC Irvine (63.0) ... that's a span of 92 games.
- A&M is shooting 61 percent so far this year (64-of-105) while holding opponents to just 36.8 percent.
Picking Up the Pace
- A main goal of Coach Billy Kennedy and his staff heading into the season was to play fast and try to score in the first seven seconds of the shot clock ... A&M has showed a very fast-paced style in season-opening wins over Liberty and Southern, racking up 32 fast-break points (16.0 average) ... last year's team averaged 6.9 for the season and 7.7 through non-conference play.
Getting Physical Inside
- Nearly 60 percent (94 of 164, or 57.3%) of Texas A&M's points this season have come in the paint ... A&M's 48 points in the paint against Liberty (11/9) were the most by an Aggie team since putting up 48 against Angelo State in 2009 (Nov. 13) ... with 46 points in the paint against Southern (11/13), A&M's season average stands at 47.0 (averaged 27.5 overall in 2010-11 and 30.4 in non-conference play).
- Before this week, the last time A&M scored 45 or more points in the paint in consecutive games was against Louisiana-Monroe (50) and Chicago State (54) in Dec. 2004 ... the Aggies posted back-to-back games with 40 points in the paint just once last year.
- Texas A&M has blocked 8 shots through the first two games of the season ... the Aggies swatted four in each game, far above last season's average of 1.54 per game ... last season at this time, A&M had 3 blocks through two games.
- The Aggies' 5-spot trio of Keith Davis, Kourtney Roberson and Ray Turner have had a great start to the season ... the trio is averaging 31.5 points and 18.5 rebounds per game and is shooting a combined 62 percent (27-of-35) ... they have also blocked 4 shots and posted 4 steals.
On Point
- Senior Dash Harris is second on the team in assists (4.0/game) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.67) ... A&M is 41-9 over Harris' career when he has at least 3 assists (2-0 this year, 14-5 as a junior, 15-3 as a sophomore and 10-1 as a freshman).
- True freshman Jamal Branch has had a strong Aggie debut ... the Arlington, Texas product is averaging 6 points, 5 assists and 3 rebounds per game and has posted a 5.0 assist-to-turnover ratio.
- Combined, the A&M tandem averages 10.5 points, 9 assists, 5.5 rebounds and has an assist-to-turnover ratio of 3.6.
- Texas A&M head coach Billy Kennedy was recently diagnosed with an early stage of Parkinson's disease ... he took an advised leave of absence, but returned to the bench for A&M's game against Southern on Nov. 13.
- Kennedy was named the 21st coach in Texas A&M men's basketball history on May 16, 2011 ... he is a native of New Orleans and is in his 14th season as a head coach with a record of 213-179 ... over the last two-plus seasons, his teams have combined to post a record of 56-14.
- The 47-year-old Kennedy, the reigning two-time Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year, comes to Aggieland after five seasons at the helm at Murray State University in Kentucky ... there, he guided the Racers to a winning record in each year of his tenure ... in the last two seasons, his team posted a combined 54-14 record, back-to-back Ohio Valley Conference championships and consecutive trips to the postseason.
- His teams have won 6 conference titles and made 4 trips to the postseason and has posted 7 straight winning seasons as a head coach.
- Over his last seven years as a head coach, Kennedy's teams have averaged 21 wins per season, earned four conference titles and made three trips to the postseason--two to the NCAA Tournament and one in the NIT.
- Kennedy is making a return trip to College Station, as he was an assistant on the 1990-91 team under Kermit Davis.
Championship-Caliber Staff
- Billy Kennedy has put together a veteran staff in his first season in Aggieland ... the group has a combined 89 years of collegiate coaching experience.
- Over the last decade, the group has been a part of 18 conference titles and 22 postseasons (15 NCAA, 7 NIT) ... in 2010-11, each staff member won a championship at his respective school and as a group averaged 25 wins on the year.
Rarified Air
- The Aggies are one of only 4 Big 12 schools to post winning conference records in each of the last 3 seasons ... in fact, when looking at the "Super 6" conferences, it puts A&M in some pretty elite company ... only 18 of the 73 teams who have competed in those leagues over the last 3 years have accomplished that feat:
Big 12 4 A&M, Kansas, Kansas State, Texas
Big East 4 Louisville, Pitt, Syracuse, West Virginia
ACC 3 Clemson, Duke, Florida State
Big Ten 3 Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin
SEC 2 Florida, Mississippi State
Pac-10 2 Cal, Washington
Big 12 Favorites
- For the first time in league history, Texas A&M has been picked to win the Big 12 Conference men's basketball championship ... the Aggies sat atop the preseason coaches' poll in a tie with Kansas.
- The previous high for an A&M team was second, in the 2006-07 season.
2011-12 BIG 12 PRESEASON COACHES' POLL
Team (1st Place Votes) Points
1. Kansas (5) 73
Texas A&M (2) 73
3. Baylor (2) 63
4. Missouri (1) 61
5. Texas 51
6. Kansas State 39
7. Oklahoma State 33
8. Iowa State 27
9. Oklahoma 15
Texas Tech 15
- The Aggies have met or exceeded the preseason poll's prognostications in 6 of the last 7 seasons ... a look at A&M's history in the poll and eventual league finish:
A&M's PRESEASON BIG 12 POLL HISTORY
Year Preseason Rank Finish Year Preseason Rank Finish
2011-12 t1st ?? 2003-04 9th 12th
2010-11 6th t3rd 2002-03 12th t12th
2009-10 5th t2nd 2001-02 11th 12th
2008-09 5th t4th 2000-01 10th t12th
2007-08 3rd 6th 1999-00 11th t8th
2006-07 2nd 2nd 1998-99 t11th t10th
2005-06 7th 4th 1997-98 11th 12th
2004-05 11th 7th 1996-97 10th t10th
What's Back
- Texas A&M returns 3 starters and 10 letterwinners from a 2010-11 team that went 24-9, finished third in the Big 12 at 10-6 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth straight season.
- The 2011-12 Aggie roster will feature 25 games of NCAA Tournament experience, with Dash Harris (5), David Loubeau (5) and Elston Turner (5) leading the way.
- A&M will bring back 60 percent or more statistically in 7 of 8 major categories ...
WHAT'S RETURNING IN 2011-12
Category Total Back Pct.
Starts 165 99 60.0
Minutes 6,699 4,436 66.2
Points 2,254 1,517 67.3
Rebounds 1,194 864 72.4
Assists 444 268 60.3
Blocks 51 43 84.1
3-Point FGs 181 73 40.3
Free Throws 557 400 71.8
What's New
- Texas A&M welcomes in a three-member freshman class, all hailing from the Dallas/Ft Worth area-guard Jamal Branch (Arlington), guard Jordan Green (Flower Mound) and forward Grant Jolly (Southlake) ... in addition, the Aggies have one transfer-senior Zach Kinsley (Baton Rouge, La./Univ of New Orleans)-who is eligible to play this fall.
Emerging Big 12 Power
- Texas A&M opened the 2009 Big 12 campaign with a 3-7 record ... from that point on (starting with an 81-66 win over Texas on Feb. 16 of that year), the Aggies have posted a 27-11 Big 12 record (6-0 to close 2009, 11-5 in 2010 and 10-6 in 2011) ... it's the second-best record over that span among conference teams, trailing only Kansas (34-4).
- The Aggies posted back-to-back 10-plus win seasons in Big 12 play for just the second time ever (2006-2007) ... it is only the second time in the last 25 years that an A&M team has accomplished that feat ... prior to '06-07, the last time an Aggie squad recorded consecutive double-digit win seasons in conference play was in 1985 (10) and 1986 (12).
- 2011 was A&M's third consecutive winning season in Big 12 play, the first time the Aggies have accomplished that feat in the Big 12 era ... A&M finished 9-7 in 2009 and 11-5 last year ... it marked the first time since the late 60s (1967-70) that a Texas A&M team finished above .500 in league action for three straight seasons.
- The Aggies have won 49 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.
NCAA Tournament: Make That Six Straight
- Texas A&M is coming off its sixth straight appearance in the NCAA Tournament and 12th overall ... prior to this streak, A&M had never played in consecutive NCAA Tournaments and had not been to the NCAAs since 1987 ... 6 of the Aggies' 12 appearances, and 6 of their 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 6 seasons ... the Aggies join Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Marquette, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, Tennessee, Texas, Villanova, Wisconsin and Xavier in that elite field.
Racking Up the Ws
- Texas A&M is coming off a 24-9 season ... the Aggies reached the 24-win mark for the fifth straight year and for only the seventh time in the program's 99-year history.
- Texas A&M is one of only 8 schools in the entire country that have won 24 or more games in each of the last 5 seasons (Butler, BYU, Kansas, Memphis, Pittsburgh, Texas A&M, VCU, Xavier).
- Only three A&M teams totaled more wins than the 2010-11 Aggie squad: 2006-07 (27), 1979-80 (26) and 2007-08 (25).
- The Aggies recorded their seventh-consecutive 20-win season ... before this stretch, which began in 2004-05, A&M had six in its entire history (1974-75, 1975-76, 1978-79, 1979- 80, 1981-82 and 1985-86).
- A&M, Kansas and Texas are the only Big 12 schools that have won at least 20 games in each of the last 7 seasons.
- Texas A&M has won nearly 75 percent of its games since the start of the 2006-07 season (126-45, .737) ... the Aggies are 169-63 (.728) since the start of the '04-05 campaign.
Reed Arena Dominance
- The Aggies have won 62 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 94-9 all-time in non-conference games at Reed (.913).
- Texas A&M has won 75 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.
- The Aggies are the only Big 12 team to win at least 15 home games for the last seven consecutive seasons.
- A&M has won 35 of its last 38 home games, including 16 of its last 19 in Big 12 play ... the Aggies are 48-5 at home since the start of the 2008-09 season with an 19-5 mark in conference games ... those losses have come to Kansas (#1), Texas (#3), Oklahoma (#5), Baylor and Kansas State.
- The Aggies are 82-8 (.911) at home since the start of the 2006-07 season and are 114-14 (.891) since the start of the 2004-05 campaign.
- A&M has won 30 of its last 31 home games against unranked opponents (12 of last 13 in Big 12 play).
- A&M is 156-56 (.736) in 13 seasons at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were 41-41 the first six years at Reed and are 115-15 since.
- Texas A&M has averaged crowds of 9,000 or better for five straight seasons (averaged 9,000 in 2010-11).
2011-12 Schedule: A Look Ahead
- Texas A&M will play a minimum of 11 games against NCAA Tournament teams this season and host 19 games at Reed Arena.
- The Aggies will play at least three games against teams that advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament this past March in Florida and Kansas-and that's not counting a potential matchup with another Elite Eight squad in Arizona.
- A minimum of 21 of A&M's games this year will come against teams with .500 or better records last season.
- Texas A&M will battle Florida in the MetroPCS Orange Bowl Classic on Saturday, Dec. 17 at the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla. (home of the NHL's Florida Panthers) ... the game will tip at 1:30 p.m. (CT) and will be the second of a doubleheader, which also features Miami and FAU (11 a.m. CT).
Aggies' Summer Features European Tour
- Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy got an early start to his tenure in Aggieland with a 10-day tour of Europe in August. In what was the program's first foreign excursion since 2003, the team spent time in Switzerland (Lucerne and Bern) and France (Paris).
- A&M played 4 games-a pair against the Swiss National Team and two more against AMW Elite, which is a group comprised of players that participate in the French pro leagues (LNB A and B) ... the Aggies dropped both games to the Swiss (62-51 and 85-73) before sweeping AMW (90-61 and 80-78) to finish 2-2.
- The Aggies averaged 73.5 points per game and dominated their opponents on the boards (46 to 34) ... leading scorers were Elston Turner (13.8 ppg), Khris Middleton (12.0), David Loubeau (11.3) and Kourtney Roberson (8.0) ... leading rebounders were Loubeau (9.3 rpg) and Roberson (7.0).
- Among the off-the-court highlights included a Lake Lucerne Boat Cruise, a trip up Mount Pilatus, a ropes course at Outdoor Interlaken, a cruise on the River Seine and a night-time ascent of the Eiffel Tower ... complete coverage of the tour, including blogs, videos, photos and much more, can be found on the men's basketball page at aggieathletics.com.
QUOTEBOARD: Head Coach Billy Kennedy (11/13)
- Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy returned to the bench for the Aggies' Nov. 13 game against Southern ... here's what he had to say following the 83-58 win.
Opening statement... "I'm just thankful to have the opportunity to coach a good group of young mean and have a coaching staff and an administration that's really blessed me with support this last month. It's been a difficult time, the most difficult time I've ever been through. I haven't arrived yet, by any means, but I'm just excited to be the head coach at Texas A&M and am thankful that the coaches did a tremendous job of getting these guys prepared to play. The guys have done a good job of buying in and doing great things."
How good did it feel to be out there? "(I'm) just trying to survive every day and feel good physically and mentally, (but) I'm getting better. It was great to be on the floor and be coaching again at Texas A&M. There were many days and nights that I didn't think this opportunity would come this year. I'm not 100 percent recovered by any means, but I'm getting better. I'm very thankful for the prayers and support that have gotten me through this. I've been around the last couple of days in practice. I'm trying to get acclimated to what's going on, that's the hard thing. I'm relying on my assistants, who have done a tremendous job. I just don't want it to be about me. I want it to be about the players, the program, and everyone else involved. Unfortunately I've been through a tough situation, but I'm pressing on and I believe great things are coming."
QUOTEBOARD: Assoc. Head Coach Glynn Cyprien (11/14)
- Associate head coach Glynn Cyprien addressed the media at the Aggies' weekly press conference (Nov. 14):
On Coach Kennedy's return to the sidelines... "It was great to have Coach (Kennedy) back last night and have him in uniform, have our commander-in-chief back. I thought his energy level was good. He was great with the guys. The guys were really excited to have him back and I thought he did a really good job in coaching the team last night. The guys really responded well. To have him back first of all is a blessing for everyone involved, especially this program and this university, and he's extremely excited to be back. We're awfully excited. We still understand that it's a day-to-day process with him. He's still under the care of his physician, and we just want to continue to pray for Coach and get him back as close to 100 percent as possible."
On the win over Southern... "There were a lot of good things I thought we did. We shot the ball pretty well overall. Looking at the stats, anytime you shoot 56 percent for a game you're excited about it. I thought some guys really played well. Ray Turner continued to play well. He was 9-for-11 last night, and the majority of his points came in transition. He's got to continue to do that for us to be really good. We really emphasize to Ray running and getting up and down the floor and getting easy baskets. I thought Kourtney (Roberson) was pretty good. He was 5-for-8 in the low post, and he's got to be a low-post presence for us. Dash Harris was really good in terms of his leadership with the team, making sure guys were in the right spots and being a great leader. And Jamal Branch played pretty well, 3-for-5 for a freshman isn't bad. So overall as a team I thought the effort was really good. I thought the guys played hard. In the second half defensively there were some lapses, which we've got to clean up. That can't happen. Anytime you get a lead on a team you have to keep them down and not give them confidence. We'd like to cut turnovers back a little bit, but anytime you play fast you're going to have turnovers. That's not necessarily bad. On the defensive end though, we only created 11 turnovers and for me, a defensive guy, that's no good. We'd like to get that number up to around 16 or 20, which means we're really active defensively. But overall we're happy with the effort, we thought the guys played well and played hard."
On playing without Khris Middleton... "Going into the game without Khris (Middleton), we had some concerns as to how we were going to manufacture points, and that's going to be a concern until we get him back. Other guys are going to have to step up and some guys have. We started Jordan Green last night and he was good, he was active not just in terms of points. He played a good role for us."
Do you see Jordan continuing to start? "You know, he was good. He brings a lot to this ballclub. He's really active defensively, he's long, he's wiry, he plays so hard. I don't know, I think it's kind of a day-to-day deal with Jordan and that position. We'd really like for Naji (Hibbert) or one of those older, veteran guys to step up, but right now Jordan's played really well. He's brought it every day in practice and that's what Coach is about and what we're about. The guys that practice the hardest will usually get the nod when it comes to starting."
Talk about this road test and the measuring stick this tournament will provide the team... "I spent all night last night looking at Mississippi State, and they're awfully good. Rick (Stansbury) is a good coach, and we've played against him at different universities I've been at for years. They're good. Dee Bost is a good player. (Arnett) Moultrie is a good player. It's going to be a road test for this team, especially without a veteran in Khris. But we're just going to have to get up there and play. I think the one thing that'll be good for us is that we have a lot of guys that have been tested. We've got a lot of guys that have played a lot of minutes, and we're hoping that will help. There will be some 'big-eyed' guys, some guys who will look around Madison Square Garden with big eyes so to speak. But for us, we're excited about it. We're excited to play against a good team and good opponent, and we want to see how we're going to fare against a good program. It's a great event for us, the timing is good for us and we're awfully excited about it."
Do you anticipate Coach Kennedy being part of the trip? "We expect him to be a part of the trip."
How special is it not only to take the team to The Garden but for him to go with you? "There's no question about it (that it's special). We've kind of circled this date. You want to gauge your team. Having two home games was good, but now you go to a neutral site and play against a good ballclub. This is another gauge for us. Going to New York and that type of setting I think will tell us a lot about our team. Again, we have to have other guys step up and play well without having Khris, but I think they will."
How much more difficult will it be to keep the up-tempo style you've shown in the first two games going this week? "When you play against good teams-and Mississippi State is a good team-you're not going to always be able to play up-tempo like that. You're going to have to manufacture some points in the half court. You're going to have to run some offense. You're going to have to move the ball from side-to-side and get it reversed. This on Thursday is going to be one of those nights, where it won't be a transition, up-and-down game. We're going to have to score some points in the half court, and we understand that. But again, our philosophy is in the first seven, eight or nine seconds we want to push and put the pressure on the defense early, and if you don't have anything back it back out and run some plays and try to score in the half court."
In watching Mississippi State, what are some of the things they do that you'll stress to your team? "Well, they shoot it and they shoot it quick, and they get up and down. They will run a lot of ball-screen action. The game I saw last night, South Alabama, they shot it well and shot it fast. Renardo Sidney didn't play, he had a groin injury. We'll prepare as if he's going to play on Thursday, we expect him to play. That will give them another good post to go along with Moultrie. But I think they want to play fast, they want to play up-tempo. We have to really guard the ball. We have to really rebound the ball. We have to really contest shots, and there's going to be a lot of long rebounds. So we have to get our guards to rebound the ball. It will be a good test. They are very, very talented. They have really good guard play. So we have to be ready to play."
