Men's Hoops Set to Face Wolverines in Sweet 16 Clash

NCAA West Regional • Sweet 16 Round
Michigan (30-7; 13-5 Big 10) vs. Texas A&M (22-12; 9-9 SEC)
Thursday, March 22, 2018 • 6:30 p.m. (CT)
Staples Center • Los Angeles, Calif.

 
TELEVISION: TBS (For more info – 12thMan.com/TV)
   Kevin Harlan, Play-by-Play
   Reggie Miller & Dan Bonner, Commentary
   Dana Jacobson, Reporting
 
RADIO: WTAW 1620 AM (Bryan-College Station)
   Dave South, Play-by-Play
   Mike Caruso, Commentary
 
SATELLITE RADIO: Sirius Ch. 138 / XM Ch. 202
LIVE VIDEO: https://www.ncaa.com/march-madness-live/
LIVE AUDIO: https://www.siriusxm.com/collegebasketballschedule
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS: https://www.ncaa.com/game/basketball-men/d1/2018/03/22/texas-am-michigan
 
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LOS ANGELES – The Aggies' run in the 2018 NCAA Tournament continues Thursday evening inside Los Angeles' Staples Center when Texas A&M faces Michigan at 4:15 p.m. (CT) during March Madness' Sweet 16.
 
Thursday's contest will be televised on TBS with Kevin Harlan calling the play-by-play action, Reggie Miller & Dan Bonner providing commentary and Dana Jacobson reporting. Additionally, radio coverage will be available on the Aggie Sports Network, which can be heard locally in the Bryan/College Station area on Talk Radio 1620 WTAW.
 
Texas A&M (22-12), the NCAA West Region's No. 7 seed, punched it ticket to the Sweet 16 following an 86-65 victory over defending National Champion North Carolina in Charlotte on Sunday. The Aggies dominated the Tar Heels on the glass, owning a 50-36 rebounding edge while shooting 51.7 percent from the floor and holding UNC to just 33.3 percent shooting.
 
During their two-game run in this year's March Madness, Aggie big men Tyler Davis and Robert Williams have been impressive. Davis is averaging 16 points and 12 boards while shooting 68.4 percent from the field. Williams stands out at 10.5 points and 13.5 boards per contest and is shooting 75.0 percent against Providence and UNC.
 
Michigan (30-7, 13-5 Big 10) comes to Los Angeles as college basketball's hottest team, having won 11 consecutive contests including a thrilling, 64-63 win over Houston in the Second Round. Trailing by two, UM's Jordan Poole made a long distance 3-pointer as time expired to give the Wolverines the victory.
 
The Wolverines are aiming for their third Elite Eight appearance in the last six seasons while the Aggies are looking to advance past the Sweet 16 for the first time in school history.
 
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NOTES FROM THE SECOND ROUND WIN OVER NORTH CAROLINA

TEAM NOTES

• Texas A&M overwhelmed North Carolina with a shooting barrage on the night, the Aggies connected on 10-of-24 3-pointers and were an impressive 31-for-60 from the floor … the 10 made 3's and 31 made field goals were the second most the Aggies have connected on in an NCAA Tournament game.
• The Aggies equaled their eight-block performance from the first round against Providence, matching the program record in March Madness.
• Texas A&M controlled the glass throughout the game, outrebounding the Tar Heels 50-36 on the game … coming into the game the Tar Heels owned the nation's second-best rebounding margin (10.2) in the NCAA while Texas A&M ranked 19th (6.3).
• Four Aggies scored in double figures on the night, the second straight game with a quartet of Aggies scoring more than 10 points.
• The Aggies took a 42-28 lead into the locker room … the Maroon & White tied the most points they have ever scored in the first half of an NCAA tournament game … the Aggies have scored 42 points in the opening half against Memphis in 2007, BYU in 2009, Trinity in 1969 and Utah State in 2010.
• Texas A&M shot a blistering 50 percent from the floor (17-for-34) in the first 20 minutes, including a 5-for-11 mark from beyond the 3-point line.
• In a matchup of two of the best rebounding teams in the NCAA, the Aggies owned a decided 25-18 advantage on the glass in the first half.

 

INDIVIDUAL NOTES

• Freshman TJ Starks led Texas A&M in scoring for the first time in the NCAA Tournament, finishing with 19 points on 7-for-15 shooting … additionally, the rookie guard paced the Aggies in assists for the sixth straight game, finishing with five dimes on the night … Starks' 13 assists in the 2018 NCAA Tournament match David Goff's (1980) Texas A&M record for assists in a tournament.
• Junior Tyler Davis dominated the paint scoring 18 points and corralling nine rebounds against the Tar Heels … Davis moved past Jeff Overhouse (739, 1970-73) for 11th on the all-time rebounding list with 745 boards in his three seasons in Aggieland … after registering three blocks against the Tar Heels, Davis joins Brian Davis (no relation) as the only other Aggie to register three or more blocks in multiple tournament games.
• Junior DJ Hogg put on a display from beyond the 3-point arc in tobacco country, the sharpshooter finished 3-for-7 from deep finishing with his NCAA Tournament best 14 points on the night … Hogg also pitched in eight rebounds as he flirted with a double-double, the eight boards are the most he has pulled down in an NCAA Tournament game
• Sophomore Robert Williams pulled down 13 rebounds against North Carolina … the sophomore has hauled in 524 in his two seasons in the Maroon & White, good for 22nd on the all-time Texas A&M list.
• Aggie head coach Billy Kennedy improved to 137-97 during his seven-year tenure at Texas A&M and 348-276 in 20 seasons as a head coach.

 

TEXAS A&M IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT

• The selection to this season's NCAA Tournament is the 14th in program history for Texas A&M as well as the second bid in the last three seasons ... Texas A&M has made the field in eight of the last 13 years.
• Entering this postseason, the Aggies are 13-14 all-time in 13 appearances in the NCAA Tournament.
• Texas A&M has advanced to the round of 16 six times -- 1951*, 1969†, 1980, 2007, 2016, 2018 (* 16-team field   † 25-team field) ... this included a four of Sweet 16 appearances since the tournament field expanded to 48 teams -- in 1980, under the direction of Shleby Metcalf, in 2007, led by head coach Billy Gillispie, and now twice (2016 & 2018) under Billy Kennedy.
• A&M enjoyed a school-record run of six consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances from 2006-2011.
• Prior to this season five players on the Aggies roster has NCAA Tournament experience - Tyler Davis (3 games), Admon Gilder (3 games), DJ Hogg (3 games), Tonny Trocha-Morelos (3 games) and Duane Wilson (1 game at Marquette).
• A&M head coach Billy Kennedy has led three schools to the NCAA Tournament, Southeastern Louisiana in 2005,  Murray State in 2010 and Texas A&M in 2016 and 2018 ... Kennedy is 5-3 as a head coach in the NCAA Tournament.

 

AGGIES VS. THE 2018 NCAA TOURNAMENT FIELD

• The Aggies have played 17 games against opponents who heard their names called on Selection Sunday and have compiled an 8-9 record against the group.
• This season, Texas A&M has notched wins over Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Buffalo, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Providence and West Virginia.

 

AGGIES SET TO PLAY IN FOURTH NBA ARENA THIS SEASON

The Aggies are no stranger to the big stage this season as the Sweet 16 game vs. Michigan will be Texas A&M's sixth inside an NBA arena this season. Texas A&M has played in the Barclays Center (Nets), Talking Stick Resort Arena (Suns), Spectrum Center (Hornets) and Staples Center (Lakers/Clippers). A&M is 4-1 in NBA Arenas this season.
 
In addition to the NBA venues this season, A&M has played inside the Scottrade Center, the home of the NHL's St. Louis Blues, and at a converted airplane hangar at Ramstein Air Base in Germany for the season-opening Armed Forces Classic.
 

TEXAS A&M'S NCAA COACHES

Billy Kennedy is 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. Kennedy joins Billy Gillispie (2004-07), who was 3-2 in NCAA Tournament games during his tenure in Aggieland, as the only A&M coaches to hold a winning record in the tourney.