Saturday, January 16
Athens, Ga.
1:00 PM
Texas A&M
at
Georgia
Aggies Look to Continue Winning Streak at Georgia
Jan 15, 2016 | Men's Basketball
Aggie Basketball Game #17:
#15/14 Texas A&M (14-2; 4-0 SEC) at Georgia (9-5; 2-2)
Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016 · 1:00 p.m. (CT)
Stegeman Coliseum (10,523) · Athens, Ga.
TV: ESPNU (For more info – 12thMan.com/TV)
Mike Morgan, Play-by-Play
Chris Spatola, Commentary
RADIO: Texas A&M Radio Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
Mike Caruso, Commentary
Local: WTAW 1620 AM (College Station/Bryan)
Satellite [UGA Broadcast]: Sirius (Ch. 108) / XM (Ch. 191)
LIVE AUDIO/STATS: 12thMan.com
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS: tamustats.com
--
COLLEGE STATION – The No. 15 Texas A&M men's basketball team puts its seven-game winning streak on the line Saturday when the Aggies face off against Georgia inside Stegeman Coliseum for a 1 p.m. (CT) contest.
The Aggies (14-2; 4-0 SEC) are facing their third SEC road challenge in four games, having already defeated Mississippi State in Starkville and Tennessee in Knoxville during their current streak which has allowed Texas A&M to take sole possession of the top spot in the league standings.
The SEC showdown will be nationally televised on ESPNU with Mike Morgan calling the play-by-play and Chris Spatola 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).
Led by their experienced senior class, the Aggies will be seeking a measure of redemption against the Bulldogs as Georgia stands out as the only SEC school that Texas A&M has not defeated since its entrance to the SEC for the 2012-13 season.
Forward Jalen Jones, the reigning Naismith Trophy Player of the Week, has paired up with guard Danuel House to give the Aggies a lethal 1-2 scoring punch with each player cracking the 20-point plateau in the last two games to combining for 98 points during that time.
Jones' torrid scoring pace ranks the Dallas native third in the league at 23.0 points per league outing while House ranks seventh with a 19.7 point-per-game clip. A&M stands out as the only SEC team with two players averaging 19 or more points in league play.
Setting the table for Jones and House, Texas A&M's two other seniors, Alex Caruso and Anthony Collins, are also playing at a high level and have helped the squad rank first among all SEC schools in assist-to-turnover ratio as a team (1.7) during conference games. As a duo, Caruso and Collins have dished out 49 assists against only 10 turnovers in four league affairs.
Georgia, meanwhile, enters the weekend with a 9-5 overall record as well as a 2-2 record in SEC play after home wins over Missouri and Tennessee and road losses to Florida and Ole Miss. Three of the Bulldogs' five loss have come by two for fewer points.
Sophomore forward Yante Maten averages 16.3 points and 7.5 rebounds per contest to highlight a quartet of Bulldogs who averaged double-digit scoring on the season (J.J. Frazier [15.6], Kenny Gaines [14.8] and Charles Mann [10.4]).
Seventh-year head coach Mark Fox is 4-0 all-time against the Aggies and owns a 238-137 all-time record in 12 seasons as a collegiate head coach.
OPENING TIPS
• The Aggies (13-2; 3-0 SEC) hit the road this weekend for a Saturday match-up against Georgia (9-5; 2-2 SEC) inside Stegeman Coliseum ... Texas A&M is 2-1 on the road this season, having already notched SEC wins at Mississippi State and Tennessee.
• Georgia stands out as the lone SEC school Texas A&M has not defeated since joining the league for the 2012-13 campaign (0-4).
• Texas A&M enters the weekend riding a seven-game winning steak that dates back to Dec. 12th's victory over Baylor ... The streak stands out as A&M's longest since the Aggies ripped off 13 consecutive victories from Nov. 26, 2010 to Jan. 15, 2011.
• The 4-0 start to SEC play is Texas A&M's best beginning to conference play since joining the league for the 2012-13 campaign ... The program's last five-game winning streak to begin conference play came during the 1985-86 season, when A&M won its first five straight Southwest Conference games.
• Through the first couple weeks of SEC play, road teams have won only six of 26 league games -- Texas A&M has two of those victories ... In terms of close contests, only four SEC games so far have been decided by four points or less with A&M claiming wins in three of those affairs.
• Clutch free throw shooting has been a big key for the Aggies' hot start to SEC play ... This season during games that are closer than 10 points with two minutes remaining, the Aggies are shooting 86.4 percent from the free throw line (19-of-22) to close out the contest.
• Individually, senior Anthony Collins is a perfect 24-for-24 from the charity stripe this season and came up big during Tuesday's win over Florida ... The Houston native made all four of his free throw chances during the game's final minute as the Aggie wrapped up a 71-68 victory over the Gators.
• Seniors Danuel House and Jalen Jones have each been explosive on the offensive end during the past two games, combining to score 98 points as a duo and individually cracking the 20-point plateau in each game ... In wins over Tennessee and Florida, Jones is averaging 26.5 points per contest while House is scoring at a 22.5 point-per-game clip.
• On Tuesday, Jones was honored for his strong play by being named Naismith Trophy Player of the Week.
• In SEC play, senior Alex Caruso is averaging 10.0 points, 6.3 assists, 5.5 rebounds and 2.3 steals per contest and owns a 3.6 assist-to-turnover ratio.
SERIES HISTORY VS. GEORGIA (UGA LEADS 4-0)
• Saturday will be the fifth all-time meeting between the Aggies & Bulldogs on the hardwood.• Georgia stands out as the only SEC team the Aggies have not defeated since joining the league for the 2012-13 season.
• Last season, Georgia earned a 62-53 win over the Aggies at Reed Arena ... Alex Caruso contributed 20 points to A&M's effort, while Danuel House added 14 ... The Bulldogs were led by Kenny Gaines and Charles Mann, who scored 15 and 14 points, respectively.
• Texas A&M floor general Billy Kennedy is 0-4 against the Bulldogs, while Georgia's Mark Fox is 4-0 against the Aggies.
UP NEXT
Texas A&M returns home to Reed Arena to host LSU on Tuesday at 8 p.m. … The game will be televised by ESPN with Brad Nessler, Sean Farnham and Shannon Spake calling the game.
Players Mentioned
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G
/ Men's Basketball
G/F
/ Men's BasketballMedia Availability: Bucky McMillan
Thursday, July 24
Pluckers Playmakers: Episode 4
Thursday, May 01
Introductory Press Conference: Bucky McMillan
Monday, April 07
Welcome to Aggieland: Bucky McMillan
Monday, April 07
