No. 14 Aggies Clash with Cavaliers in ACC/SEC Challenge

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. --- The No. 14 Texas A&M men's basketball team closes out November with a 6:15 p.m. clash with the Virginia Cavaliers as part of the ACC/SEC Challenge on Wednesday at John Paul Jones Arena.

• The two teams have faced off just once previously with the Aggies winning the only other meeting, 60-59, at the 1962 Arkansas State Holiday Tournament.
• While the Aggies and Cavaliers are strangers on the hardwood, Buzz Williams and his staff are familiar with UVa from their time at Virginia Tech (2014-18). Williams faced the Cavaliers 10 times in his five seasons in Blacksburg. Williams was 3-7 vs. UVa with the two teams splitting the season series from 2015-18, including a memorable upset of the No. 2 Hoos in Charlottesville on 2/10/2018.

 
TV/RADIO INFORMATION

• The game will be televised on ESPN2 with Dave Pasch (play-by-play) and Corey Alexander (color) on the call.
• The matchup airs on the Texas A&M Radio Network, locally on 1620 AM/94.5 FM or worldwide on the 12th Man Mobile App with Andrew Monaco and Dr. John Thornton describing the action.

 
TRENDS AND NOTABLES

• It's a quick turnaround for the Aggies, who posted a 2-1 record at the ESPN Events Invitational in Orlando with a win in the third-place game on Sunday evening.
• The 21-point rally on Sunday vs. Iowa State stands as the largest in school history.
• Preseason SEC Player of the Year Wade Taylor IV earned All-EEI honors after averaging 24.0 points, 4.0 assists and 3.7 rebounds in Orlando. WT4 hit 15-of-18 (.833) from the FT line and 7-of-19 (.368) from deep.
• In his first start since 11/18/2022, Solomon Washington posted career-highs in 3-pointers made/attempted (3-4), FGs made (6) and points (18) and logged the first 30:00 game of his career (30:05).
• The EEI marked the emergence of junior transfer Jace Carter, who saw his first 20-minute court time of the year with a trio of 23:00+ efforts in his home state. He averaged over 25:00 per game and slashed 6.7/5.7 in points and rebounds.
• Drawing comparisons to former NBA great Dennis Rodman for his tenacious D and rebounding prowess, Andersson Garcia ranks No. 1 nationally in offensive rebounds/game with 4.0, while his 7.6 total rebounds are No. 4 nationally off the bench (min. 4 games).
• Graduate transfer big man Wildens Leveque produced the strongest game of his time at Texas A&M vs. ISU as he hit 3-of-4 shots, had 7 rebounds and blocked 2 shots.
• Despite an out-of-character 11.7 turnovers/game in the EEI, the Aggies still rank No. 18 nationally at 9.1 TO/G.
• Also out of character, the Aggies were out-shot at the FT line in all 3 EEI games. Texas A&M opponents only shot more FTs than the Aggies in five games last season and never in consecutive contests.
• The M&W's 12.1 rebounds/G differential ranks No. 11 nationally. The Aggies have out-rebounded 5 of 7 opponents by at least 10 rebounds.

 
FILLING THE BOX SCORE
Junior guard Wade Taylor IV is one of six Division I players producing double-digit points, while also contributing at least 30 assists and 15 steals.
 
Making Their Teams Go
(Sorted by Points)
Player, School                              Pts.        Asts.      Stls.
Wade Taylor IV, Texas A&M        20.0       31          17
DeMarcus Sharp, Austin Peay       19.0       37          21
Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State              15.1       40          20
Kellen Tynes, Maine                     12.9       33          19
Arturo Dean, FIU                          12.6       42          28
Reece Beekman, Virginia              11.8       35          18
 
ABOUT THE 35 POINTS
Wade Taylor IV poured in a career-high 35 points vs. No. 13 FAU in game 2 of the EEI.
Taylor is one of three DI players to log at least 35 points and 5 assists in a game this season.

• It was the most points by an Aggie during the Buzz Williams era at Texas A&M (since 2019-20).
• It was the highest point total by an Aggie since Elston Turner had 37 vs. Ole Miss in 2013.
• It was the third-most points in the 17-year history of the Orlando tournament. Markus Howard of Marquette holds the top two spots with 51 and 40 in 2019.

 
35 Points / 5 Assists in a Game (2023-24)
Player, School                              Pts.      Asts.     Opponent
Tyler Thomas, Hofstra                  40        5          vs. HIgh Point
Tucker DeVries, Drake                  36        6          Lipscomb
Wade Taylor IV, Texas A&M          35        5          vs. FAU
 
COLEMAN III PLAYING BIG:
Before leaving the FAU game late in the first half and missing the Iowa State contest, senior Henry Coleman III was arguably playing the best basketball of his career.

• Coleman, from Richmond, Va., averages a team-best 8.3 rebounds/G and he's the team's No. 2 scorer at 14.2 points/G.
• He was named SEC Player of the Week on 11/20 after posting double-doubles in wins over SMU and ORU.
• He had three straight double-doubles entering the EEI and then produced a season-high 24 points in the win over Penn State. He had hit 4-of-5 shots vs. FAU before exiting at the 3:03 of the first half.

 
OFFENSIVE ON THE GLASS
Texas A&M is tied for No. 1 nationally in offensive rebounding (18.0) and No. 16 in total rebounding (43.4).

• Bench sparkplug Andersson Garcia  ranks No. 1 nationally in offensive rebounds/game with 4.0, while his 7.6 total rebounds are No. 4 nationally off the bench (min. 4 games).
• Texas A&M has posted 12 or more offensive rebounds in every game, including 20+ efforts in two games -- 28 vs. ORU and 22 vs. FAU.
• The 28 offensive rebounds vs. ORU were the most by a NCAA Division I team since San Jose State had 29 against New Mexico on Feb. 17, 2023 and the most by the Aggies in the Buzz Williams era (previous best vs. DI team was 24 vs. Arkansas in last year's SEC Tournament). 

 
Division I Top Rebounding Teams
(Sorted by Offensive Rebounds/G)
School                   Off.        Def.         Total
Texas A&M            18.0       25.4        43.4
Eastern Kentucky   18.0       30.4        48.4
St. John's               17.3       24.7        42.0
Florida                  16.8       25.7        42.5
Troy                      16.4       27.9        44.3
 
ONE OF A KIND RADFORD
Tyrece Radford is the nation's lone 6-foot-3 or shorter player with 1,500+ points and 750+ rebounds for his career. He is one of three 1,500/750 guards nationally and one of eight 1,500/750 players of any size.
Active Players with 1,500 Point/750 Rebounds
(Sorted by Points)
Player, School                               Ht.        Pts.         Rebs.
Armando Bacot, North Carolina      6'11"    1,904       1406
Hunter Dickinson, Kansas               7'2"      1,744       863
Tyler Burton, Villanova                   6'7"      1,704       873
Baylor Scheierman, Creighton        6'7"      1,695       983
Zach Edey, Purdue                         7'4"      1,671       916
Charles Pride, St. Bonaventure       6'4"      1,605       790
Johni Broome, Auburn                   6'10"    1,530       943
Tyrece Radford, Texas A&M           6'3"      1,521       769
As of Nov. 28, 2023
 
PRESS CONFERENCE
Head coach Buzz Williams and forward Wildens Leveque answered questions from the local media prior to the team's trip to Charlottesville. Video available below OR viewable by clicking here.