Friday, March 18
Oklahoma City, Okla.
6:20 PM
Texas A&M
vs
Green Bay
Photo by: Thomas Campbell/Texas A&M Athletics
Aggies Set to Open NCAA Tourney Run vs. Green Bay
Mar 16, 2016 | Men's Basketball
2016 NCAA Tournament First Round
No. 3 Seed Texas A&M (26-8; 13-5 SEC) vs. No. 14 Seed Green Bay (23-12; 11-7 Horizon)
March 18, 2016 • 6:20 PM (CT)
Chesapeake Arena (17,367) · Oklahoma City, Okla.
TV: TBS (For more info – 12thMan.com/TV)
Carter Blackburn, Play-by-Play
Mike Gminski, Commentary
Jaime Maggio, Commentary
RADIO: Texas A&M Radio Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
John Thornton, Commentary
Local: WTAW 1620 AM (Bryan-College Station)
Satellite (Westwood One): Sirius (Ch. 93) / XM (Ch. 203)
LIVE AUDIO/STATS: 12thMan.com
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS: tamustats.com
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COLLEGE STATION – The No. 15 Aggies' run in the 2016 NCAA Tournament tips off Friday evening inside Oklahoma City's Chesapeake Arena when Texas A&M's faces Green Bay at 6:20 p.m.
The contest will be nationally televised on TBS with Carter Blackburn calling the play-by-play, Mike Gminski providing color commentary and Jaime Maggio reporting. 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).
Texas A&M (26-8), one of three SEC teams in the tourney, is the No. 3 seed in the West regional while Green Bay (23-12) enters the field as a No. 14 seed after punching their ticket to the Big Dance with a 78-69 win over Wright State in the Horizon League tournament final.
The meeting with be just the second ever between the schools on the hardwood, following a 60-49 Green Bay win over the Aggies on Dec. 1, 1995, during play at the First Bank Classic in Milwaukee, Wis.
The Aggies stand out as one of the country's hottest teams, having won eight of their last nine contests with the only setback being an 82-77 overtime loss to No. 10 Kentucky during the championship game of the SEC Tournament on Sunday in Nashville.
Friday's contest will be a clash of styles in some ways as the Phoenix stand out as the sixth-highest scoring offense in the nation, averaging 84.2 points per contest, while Texas A&M ranks 35th nationally by limiting foes to just a 65.5 scoring average on the campaign.
Led by SEC Coach of the Year Billy Kennedy also stand out as one of country's better passing and rebounding teams, ranking 15th nationally in assists per game at 16.9 and 61st in rebounding margin at +3.9.
TEXAS A&M IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
• The selection to this season's NCAA Tournament is the 13th in program history for Texas A&M and the first for the Aggies since 2011 ... Texas A&M has made the field in seven of the last 11 years.• Entering this postseason, the Aggies are 9-13 all-time in 12 appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• This season's No. 3 seed in the field matches the highest ever achieved by A&M, sharing the distinction with the 2006-07 Aggies
• Texas A&M has advanced to the Sweet 16 twice previously, in 1980 under the direction of Shleby Metcalf and in 2007, led by head coach Billy Gillispie.
• A&M enjoyed a school-record run of six consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances from 2006-2011.
• Senior Anthony Collins stands out as the lone player on the Aggies' roster who has played in the NCAA Tournament during his career. The Houston native, who transferred to A&M from South Florida, helped the Bulls make a run to the third round of the 2012 NCAA Tournament.
• A&M head coach Billy Kennedy has led three schools to the NCAA Tournament, Southeastern Louisiana in 2005, Murray State in 2010 and now Texas A&M in 2016.
AGGIES VS. THE 2016 NCAA TOURNAMENT FIELD
• The Aggies have played 10 games against opponents who heard their names called on Selection Sunday and have compiled an 8-2 record against the group.• This season, Texas A&M has notched wins over Baylor, FGCU, Gonzaga, Iowa State, Kentucky, Texas, UNC Asheville and Vanderbilt.
TEXAS A&M'S NCAA COACHES
Billy Kennedy becomes the fifth Texas A&M men's basketball coach to lead his team to the NCAA Tournament. Legendary Aggie coach Shelby Metcalf (1963-90) is the all-time NCAA tourney appearances leader among the group, leading the school the Big Dance five times. Only Billy Gillispie (2004-07), who was 3-2 in NCAA Tournament games during his tenure in Aggieland, owns a winning record while guiding the Maroon & White in the tourney.
Players Mentioned
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