Aggies Host Arkansas to Open SEC Play

Aggie Basketball Game #13:
Arkansas (6-6; 0-0 SEC) at ^#20/19 Texas A&M (10-2; 0-0 SEC)
Saturday, Jan. 2, 2016 · 3:30 p.m. (CT)
Reed Arena (12,989) · College Station, Texas

 
TV: SEC Network (For more info – 12thMan.com/TV)
   Paul Sunderland, Play-by-Play
   Dane Bradshaw, Commentary
 
RADIO: Texas A&M Radio Network
   Dave South, Play-by-Play
   Al Pulliam, Commentary
   Local: WTAW 1620 AM (College Station/Bryan)
   Satellite: Sirius (Ch. 108) / XM (Ch. 190)
 
LIVE AUDIO/STATS: 12thMan.com
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS: tamustats.com
 
--
 
COLLEGE STATION – After winning 10 games during one of the most challenging non-conference schedules in program history, Texas A&M begins its run through the SEC on Saturday when it hosts Arkansas at 3:30 p.m. inside Reed Arena.
 
The matchup will be nationally televised on SEC Network with Paul Sunderland calling the play-by-play and Dane Bradshaw providing color commentary. Additionally, radio coverage will be provided on the Aggie Sports Network, which can be heard locally in the Bryan/College Station area on WTAW (1620 AM).
 
Saturday's contest is also the final game of this season's Holiday Hoops promotion, which features discounted $5 tickets to Aggie men's games.
 
In their most recent outing, the Aggies (10-2, 0-0 SEC) closed out the 2015 calendar year with an 82-63 victory over Cal Poly on Tuesday in College Station. Led by a season-best 18 points from rookie big man Tyler Davis, Texas A&M's win over the Mustangs improved its record inside the friendly confines of Reed Arena to a perfect 8-0 on the season.
 
Additionally, during the win over Cal Poly senior Alex Caruso notched two steals to give him 228 for his Aggie career and leave the College Station native tied atop Texas A&M's all-time steals list with former A&M standout David Edwards (1991-94). The current steals leader among all NCAA Division-I players, Caruso needs just one take-away against the Razorbacks to stand alone as the Aggies' all-time steals king.
 
Caruso, who has racked up 27 assists against just four turnovers in his last four games, also ranks seventh on the career assists list among NCAA-I active players. Topping the list, teammate Anthony Collins, who has 622 dimes split between his time at South Florida and Texas A&M.
 
Arkansas, meanwhile, comes to Aggieland with an even 6-6 record on the season after falling in overtime, 85-81, at Dayton on Wednesday. The Razorbacks have won three of their last five games with both setbacks coming in overtime.
 
Led by head coach Mike Anderson, the Razorbacks were a 27-win team a year ago, finishing second in the SEC standings and reaching the third round of the NCAA Tournament.
 
This season, Moses Kingsley, a 6-foot-10 junior forward, has collected a double-double in eight of 12 games played and averages 16.9 points and 10.3 rebounds per contest to lead the Razorbacks.
 
Last year, the lone meeting between the schools came on Feb. 24 when the then-16^th ranked Razorbacks held off a furious Aggie comeback attempt to claim an 81-75 win at Bud Walton Arena.
 

OPENING TIPS

• Long-time Southwest Conference foes Texas A&M and Arkansas face off at Reed Arena Saturday afternoon ... the meeting will be the 151st meeting all-time between the schools and just the fourth as SEC members.
• Texas A&M is 7-3 in its last 10 conference-opening contests, including wins over Arkansas at Reed Arena to begin SEC plan in both the 2012-13 and 2013-14 seasons.
• Rookie center Tyler Davis was selected SEC Freshman of the Week on Dec. 21 after a standout performance against Baylor ... The Plano, Texas, native enters the Arkansas game having made 20 his last 21 field goal attempts dating back to A&M's contest at Arizona State on Dec. 5 and is shooting a team-high 79.4 percent from the floor this season ... He leads the country in 2-point basket shooting percentage according to KenPom.com.
• The heralded Aggie freshman class receives a boost this week as Kobie Eubanks joins the active roster ... the 6-foot-5 guard hails from Fort Lauderdale, Fla., and was regarded as a four-start prospect by ESPN, 247Sports, Rivals.com and Scout.com ... See Pg 7 for More Info
• Senior Alex Caruso recently hit a pair of major career milestone collecting his his 500th career assist during win over KSU on Dec. 12 and reaching the top spot on A&M all-time steals list with a pair of take-aways against Cal Poly on Dec. 29 ... See Chart on Pg 6 for More Info
• Caruso just needs one steal against the Razorbacks to break a tie with David Edwards (1991-94) atop the program's all-time career steal list. Both players have 228 during their respective careers.
• Additionally, Caruso ranks first among all active college basketball players with 228 career steals ... See Chart Below
• In his last four games, Caruso is averaging 10.5 points per contest and has dished out 27 assists while committing just four turnovers (6.8 assist-to-turnover ratio).
• Fellow back court mate Anthony Collins tops the list of all active Division I players with 622 career assists split between his time at South Florida and Texas A&M ... Caruso, meanwhile, ranks seventh on the list and fifth in program history with 522 career assists.
 

SERIES HISTORY VS. ARKANSAS (ARKANSAS LEADS 98-53)

• Saturday will be the fifth SEC contest between the Aggies & Razorbacks ... the two schools shared a spot in the Southwest Conference from 1915 until 1991 when the Razorbacks joined the SEC.
• The two schools have faced off 151 previous times on the hardwood during the series, which dates back to the 1923-24 season ... Arkansas stands out as the sixth-most common opponent in A&M men's basketball history.
• Last season, the Aggies & Razorbacks played just once, Feb. 24 in Fayetteville ... No. 18 Arkansas won 81-75 ... A&M trailed by as many as 25 but cut the Razorback lead to just two with 1:30 to play ... Danuel House led the Aggies with 28 points while Jalen Jones notched a double-double (10 points / 11 rebounds).
• A&M's Billy Kennedy is 2-3 all-time as a head coach against the Razorbacks ... his lone meeting against Arkansas prior to his tenure at A&M came during the 1997-98 season while the head coach at Centenary ... the Gents fell in Fayetteville 61-48.
• Kennedy's head coaching counterpart, Arkansas' Mike Anderson, is 2-8 all-time against the Aggies.
 

TEXAS A&M-ARKANSAS CONNECTIONS

• A&M's Billy Kennedy - Texas A&M's head coach served as an assistant coach at Texas A&M during the 1990-91 season under Kermit Davis. His final game as an Aggie assistant was a 108-61 loss to the Razorbacks on March 8, 1991, during the Southwest Conference Tournament.
• Arkansas' Melvin Watkins - The Razorback assistant served as the 18th head coach in Texas A&M men's basketball history from 1998-2004 ... In six seasons on the Aggie bench, Watkins compiled a 60-112 (.349) record.
 

UP NEXT

The Aggies hit the road for back-to-back SEC contests at Mississippi State (Jan. 6) and Tennessee (Jan. 9).
 

REED ARENA SUCCESS

• The Aggies are 8-0 on their home court this year and are now 216-76 (.740) all time in 18 seasons at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were 41-41 the first six years at Reed and are 175-35 since.
• In the last three seasons, Texas A&M is 39-7 (.848) on its home floor.
• A&M has won 87 of its last 103 home games against unranked opponents (31 of last 43 in league play).
• Texas A&M is 8-0 in non-conference games at Reed Arena this season ... the Aggies are 134-13 (.912) all-time in non-conference games inside the facility, which hosted its first basketball game in the fall of 1998 ... a loss to Rice on Dec. 22, 2011, snapped A&M's 67-game non-conference home win streak at Reed Arena (which dated back to the start of the 2005-06 season) and 80-game regular-season, non-conference home win streak (which dated back to 2003), both school records.
 

CARUSO TIES SCHOOL RECORD FOR STEALS, PASSES 500 CAREER ASSISTS

With two steals against Cal Poly on Dec. 29, Caruso pulled even with A&M's all-time leader David Edwards on Aggie basketball's list of all-time steals with 228 career take-aways.
 
Additionally, Caruso notched his 500th career assists during Dec. 12th's win over Kansas State. The College Station native currently has 516 during his A&M career to rank fifth in school history. Up next is Dave Goff (1976-80) in fourth place with 535 career assists.
               

CARUSO STANDS OUT AS NCAA-I ACTIVE STEALS LEADER

• Senior Alex Caruso is the NCAA's active Division-I leader in steals (228), one of just four active players with 200 or more steals ... Senior Anthony Collins ranks 14th on the list (169).
• A&M is the only school to have two players in the Top-15 of the active career steals list.
               

COLLINS & CARUSO RANK AMONG NATION'S ASSIST LEADERS

• Senior Anthony Collins ranks first among all NCAA Division-I players with 622 career assists, while teammate Alex Caruso ranks seventh on the list (522).
• A&M is the only school to have two players in the top seven of the career assists list for active players.
               

DAVIS NAMED SEC FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK (DEC. 21)

Following an outstanding performance in a victory over No. 16 Baylor, rookie Tyler Davis was named SEC Men's Basketball Freshman of the Week.
 
A 6-foot-10, 265-pound center from Plano, Texas, Davis helped the Aggies earn their second win over a ranked opponent this season, scoring 13 points by going a perfect 6-of-6 from the field during the 80-61 win Saturday night at Reed Arena. Playing against Baylor standout big man Rico Gathers, Davis was solid on the defensive end, adding five rebounds to go along with a game-high two blocked shots.
 
Davis has made his last 12 field goal attempts dating back to Texas A&M's contest at Arizona State on Dec. 5 and is shooting a team-high 78.0 percent from the floor this season. The rookie center leads the country in 2-point basket shooting percentage according to KenPom.com.
 

KENTUCKY TOPS PRESEASON SEC MEDIA POLL; AGGIES THIRD

Kentucky was predicted to win the 2016 Southeastern Conference men's basketball championship in voting by a select panel of both SEC and national media members.
 
The Wildcats are the overall preseason favorite for the 11th time since the 1998-99 season.
 
LSU freshman Ben Simmons was the choice of the media for SEC Men's Basketball Player of the Year. Simmons becomes just the second freshman chosen as preseason player of the year by the media, joining Kentucky's Julius Randle in 2013-14. Florida's Dorrian Finney-Smith, Kentucky's Tyler Ulis, Texas A&M's Danuel House and Vanderbilt's Damian Jones also received votes in the Player of the Year voting.
 
House, Jones, Simmons and Ulis were each All-SEC First Team selections along with Kentucky's Skal Labissiere and Ole Miss's Stefan Moody.