Aggies Return Home to Host MSU Tuesday

Tuesday, February 20

College Station

6 p.m.

Texas A&M

Mississippi State

Tickets

Photo by: Thomas Campbell/Texas A&M Athletics

Feb 19, 2018 | Men's Basketball

Tickets Texas A&M Game Notes Mississippi State Game Notes SEC Basketball

By: Texas A&M Media Relations

Aggie Basketball Game #28:
Mississippi State (19-8; 7-7 SEC) at Texas A&M (17-10; 6-8 SEC)
Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2018 • 6 p.m. (CT)
Reed Arena (12,989) • College Station, Texas

TELEVISION: SEC Network (For more info – 12thMan.com/TV)
Roy Philpott, Play-by-Play
Brooke Weisbrod, Commentary

RADIO: WTAW 1620 AM (Bryan-College Station)
Dave South, Play-by-Play
Al Pulliam, Commentary

SATELLITE RADIO: Sirius Ch. 137 / XM Ch. 190
LIVE AUDIO/STATS: 12thman.com/live
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS: tamustats.com

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COLLEGE STATION, Texas – With just four games remaining in the regular season, Texas A&M hosts Mississippi State Tuesday night in an SEC clash that has post-season implications on the line for both squads. The game is set to tip off at 6 p.m.

The contest will be televised on SEC Network with Roy Philpott calling the play-by-play action and Brooke Weisbrod providing color commentary. Additionally, radio coverage will be available on the Aggie Sports Network, which can be heard locally in the Bryan/College Station area on WTAW (1620 AM).

Texas A&M (17-10; 6-8 SEC) enters the week receiving votes in both the Associated Press and USA Today/Coaches polls while checking in at No. 21 in the NCAA's daily RPI report as they continue to build their post-season resume that already features seven wins over top-50 RPI opponents.

Meanwhile, Mississippi State (19-8; 7-7 SEC) comes to Aggieland needing just one victory to hit the 20-win plateau for the first time since the 2011-12 campaign. The Bulldogs split a pair of games last week, falling at Vanderbilt, 81-80, on Wednesday before defeating in-state rival Ole Miss, 79-62, in Starkville on Saturday.

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SETTING THE SCENE / NOTABLES

Texas A&M looks to bounce back after seeing its four-game winning streak snapped with a pair of road losses last week … the Aggies enter the week ranked No. 21 in the most recent NCAA RPI Rankings (2/19), with seven victories over top-50 opponents, while ESPN regards A&M's strength of schedule as the fourth-toughest nationally.
Sophomore Robert Williams posted his 17th career double-double during Saturday's contest at Arkansas, finishing with 20 points and 14 rebounds ... the 17 double-double ranks second among all active SEC players, trailing only Georgia's Yante Maten's 26.
Last year's win by the Bulldogs in Starkville snapped a four-game Aggie winning streak in the series ... However, the series has been highly competitive with A&M's last three victories over MSU coming by an average of just two points.

SERIES HISTORY VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE (A&M LEADS 6-4)

Tuesday will be the 11th all-time meeting between the Aggies & Bulldogs on the hardwood and the seventh as SEC competitors ... It will also mark MSU's fourth visit to College Station.
Last season, Mississippi State carded a 67-59 win over the Aggies in Starkville ... Tyler Davis led A&M with 16 points in the loss.
The series have been extremely competitive recently with the average margin of victory in the last four meetings between the schools under four points (3.75).
Prior to the Aggies joining the SEC, Texas A&M last faced Mississippi State at Madison Square Garden on Nov. 17, 2011, during the 2K Sports Classic ... MSU earned a 69-60 victory.
Aggie head coach Billy Kennedy is 5-8 against the Bulldogs, while MSU's Ben Howland is 3-2 against A&M with two wins coming while Howland was the head coach at UCLA (2004-13).

THE SEC STANDS OUT AS ONE OF THE COUNTRY'S TOP LEAGUES

The SEC's six teams in the Top 25 of the Feb. 19 NCAA RPI are the most in the nation: No. 8 Auburn, No. 15 Tennessee, No. 18 Kentucky, No. 21 Texas A&M, No. 24 Missouri and No. 25 Arkansas.
Seven SEC teams rank in the Top 50 of the RPI (Tied 1st in the nation).
Twelve SEC teams rank in the Top 80 of the RPI (1st in the nation).
Thirteen SEC teams have Top 60 SOS and seven are in the Top 25
The SEC's 115 Quadrant 1 and Quadrant 2 wins are 20 more than any other conference (as of Feb. 19).
Seven teams are receiving mention in the Associated Press Top 25 highlighted by Auburn (12th) and Tennessee (19th). Kentucky, Arkansas, Missouri, Texas A&M and Alabama are receiving votes.
Forty-one percent (40 of 98) of the SEC's games in league play this year have been decided by seven points or less while 20 percent (20) have been decided by one possession. Only eight games have been decided by 20 or more points.
The SEC earned a 6-4 win in the fifth annual Big 12/SEC Challenge on Jan. 27. Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt each picked up wins to give the league the trophy.

REED ARENA SUCCESS

The Aggies are 12-2 on their home court this year and 248-84 (.747) all-time in 20 seasons at Reed Arena ... the Aggies were 41-41 in the first six years at Reed and are 207-43 (.828) since.
In the last five seasons, Texas A&M is 71-15 (.826) on its home floor.
A&M has won 164 of its last 190 home games against unranked opponents (47 of last 64 in league play).
Texas A&M finished 7-0 in non-conference games at Reed Arena this season and is 152-14 (.916) all-time in non-conference games inside the facility, which hosted its first basketball game in the fall of 1998 ... A&M has never lost a non-conference game inside Reed Arena while playing as a ranked team (47-0).

AGGIES GRIND THROUGH ONE OF THE NATION'S TOUGHEST SCHEDULES

A&M's non-conference slate has been among the most daunting in the country. The Aggies took on West Virginia (at Ramstein Air Base in Germany as part of the Armed Forces Classic), USC, Arizona (in Phoenix) and, at the end of this month, Kansas, all away from College Station. Additionally, A&M won the Legends Classic (Nov. 20-21) at Brooklyn's Barclays Center where the Aggies defeated Oklahoma State and Penn State to capture the event's title.

In addition to the challenging non-conference slate, SEC play looks to be a grind this year as the league has proven to be one the best conferences in recent years and is coming off an attention-grabbing campaign where it posted an 11-5 record in the NCAA Tournament and had three teams advance to the Elite Eight.

ESPN currently ranks Texas A&M's strength of schedule as the fourth-toughest in the nation.
17 total games vs. postseason teams from last season (13 NCAA / 4 NIT) - A&M is currently 8-6
11 teams that made the 2017 NCAA Tournament (A&M plays Arkansas, Kentucky twice) - A&M is currently 7-5
Of A&M's 31 regular season games, only 14 are against teams that did not make the NCAA or NIT last season.
A&M will play a postseason team away from home (including neutral sites) 10 times - A&M is currently 3-5

UP NEXT AFTER THE MISSISSIPPI STATE GAME

The Aggies are back on the road this weekend as they travel to Nashville, Tenn., to face Vanderbilt inside Memorial Gym ... The game will tip off at 3 p.m. and be televised by ESPN or ESPN2.