Preview: No. 1 Tennessee

Saturday, February 2

College Station

7 p.m.

Texas A&M

Tennessee

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Photo by: Sam Craft/Texas A&M Athletics

Feb 01, 2019 | Men's Basketball

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By: Texas A&M Athletics Communications

Aggie Basketball Game #20:
Texas A&M (8-11, 1-6 SEC) vs No. 1 Tennessee (19-1, 7-0 SEC)
Saturday, Feb. 2, 2019 • 7:00 p.m. (CT)
Reed Arena (12,989) • College Station, Texas

TELEVISION: ESPN
Tom Hart, Play-by-Play
Sean Farnham, Commentary

RADIO: Texas A&M Radio Network/1620 AM (Bryan-College Station)
    Andrew Monaco, Play-by-Play
   John Thornton, Commentary

SATELLITE RADIO: Sirius: 113/XM: 191/Internet: 962
LIVE AUDIO/STATS: 12thman.com/live
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS: tamustats.com

COLLEGE STATION -- The Texas A&M men's basketball team will wrap up a week of home play hosting No. 1 Tennessee Saturday night. The Vols are the second nationally-ranked opponent A&M has faced this week as the Aggies are looking to bounce back after a loss to No. 19 LSU in the midweek. Tennessee has only lost one game this season and is currently in the midst of a 15-game winning streak, most recently topping South Carolina on the road, 92-70.The game marks just the third time A&M has hosted the top-ranked team in the nation and the eighth time the Aggies have faced a No. 1.

Texas A&M Quick Hits
• TJ Starks put up 21 points against LSU, surpassing the 20-point mark for the second time this season, both coming in SEC play, and fourth in his career.
• Josh Nebo recorded his second double-double of the year when he scored 16 points (4-5 FG, 8-10 FT) and grabbed 11 rebounds.
• Nebo's 50 blocks on the year are more than double any other Aggie's total and good for second in the SEC (2.6), ninth in the nation.
• Wendell Mitchell went off to score all 22 points against Kansas State in the second half, averaging 23.5 points and shooting 73.3-percent from three through two games last week.
• Savion Flagg leads all starters shooting .463 from the field and .375 from three in SEC play.
• The Aggies came back from a first half deficit to earn a win for just the second time this season after trailing Kansas State 30-26 at the break Saturday (Alabama, 32-43).
• The Aggies matched their season high from beyond the arc at Florida, knocking down nine threes for the third time this year (Valpo, TSU).

Series Info
• Saturday will be the 13th meeting between the Aggies and Volunteers on the hardwood ... Tennessee holds a slim 7-5 edge in the all-time series.
• Last season, the Vols defeated the Aggies 75-62 in Knoxville, as Admon Gilder led the way with 16 points.
• On Feb. 23, 2013, the two squads engaged in a four-overtime thriller at Reed Arena which saw the Vols emerge with a 93-85 victory ... A&M's Elston Turner set a Reed Arena scoring record during the contest by finishing with 38 points.
• Prior to becoming conference partners in the SEC, most recent meetings between the schools came during a home-and-home series in back-to-back seasons with A&M winning 83-66 in College Station on Dec. 4, 2002, before dropping a 108-84 decision at Tennessee on Dec. 2, 2003.

SEC Action
• The Aggies are in their seventh season as a member of the SEC. A&M is 3-4 all-time in SEC openers and 67-58 in league play.
• Five of the nine Aggies that saw the court in the team's league opener against Arkansas made their SEC debuts.
• On Jan. 12, 2019, A&M earned its first win in Tuscaloosa as a member of the SEC. Florida and Arkansas remain as the only places the Aggies have yet to earn road wins as a member of the SEC.
• Sophomore TJ Starks returns the most experience in SEC play, after he started the last ten games of conference play last season and was eventually named to the All-Freshman team. He was also named to the SEC Preseason Second Team by the league's coaches.

A&M All-Time Vs. No. 1 Teams
In program history, the Aggies have faced the top-ranked team seven times (0-7), most recently on January 10, 2015, when the Aggies fell to No. 1 Kentucky in College Station, 70-64, taking the Wildcats to double-overtime.
Texas A&M All-Time vs. (AP) Top-Ranked Teams
Date   Opp.   Location   Results
Jan. 10, 2015   Kentucky   College Station, Texas   L, 64-70 (2OT)
Mar. 12, 2010   Kansas   Kansas City, Mo.   L, 79-66
Feb. 15, 2010   Kansas   College Station,Texas   L, 59-54
Jan. 16, 2010   Texas   Austin, Texas   L, 72-67 (OT)
Dec. 9, 2006   UCLA   Anaheim, Calif.   L, 65-62
Jan. 22, 1997   Kansas   Lawrence, Kan.   L, 89-60
Dec. 11, 1971   UCLA   Los Angeles, Calif.   L, 117-53

Hot Week For Mitchell
• Junior JUCO transfer Wendell Mitchell averaged 23.5 points and 4.0 steals, shooting 73.3-percent from beyond the arc through two games, after entering the week of Jan. 20 averaging 10.1 points, shooting 32-percent from three.
• Mitchell went off for 25 points at Florida, draining seven threes on nine attempts in the game. He scored 17 of his total in the first half.
• He followed up the impressive performance with a 22-point game against Kansas State, all coming in the second half, to finish one point shy of outscoring the Wildcats on his own (23) in the period.