The last week of the regular season served as a reminder of why No. 14-ranked Texas A&M is a threat to do damage in March.
After stopping then no. 1 Auburn on March 4 to end a four-game losing line, Aggies finished with a 66-52 victory Saturday at LSU to improve to 22-9 and earn No. 5 seed for the Southeastern Conference tournament in Nashville.
There they will start their pursuit of a tournament title in the second round Thursday afternoon against 13-seeded Texas (18-14), who needs every win it can get to steal a large quay in the NCAA tournament or even the automatic bid that goes to the SEC tournament.
Texas A & M’s current road is somewhat reminiscent of last season, a late year decline followed by better basketball. The only exception is that the team’s path seems to be higher than last season, when the Aggies took top seed Houston to the border in a second round, overtime thriller in the NCAA tournament before they lost.
“We know what we can do,” said Guard Zhuric Phelps. “We stay together through profits and losses.”
Aggies are led by senior guard Wade Taylor IV, who average 15.2 points per match and became the school’s leading goal scorer on Saturday. His first point on Thursday will be the 2,000th of an excellent career. Phelps adds 14.3 ppg.
Texas A&M does not shoot well but wins through toughness and good defense. It is ranked as the 11th Division I average 36.5 returns a game while they chase opponents at a high turnover rate and have excellent rim protection. Payre Payne and Solomon Washington block more than one shot per match.
“We have to play incredibly physical, and I think we have to do a lot of the things that are not necessarily in the Statbladet for us to win,” said Coach Buzz Williams.
While the aggies are trying to improve their sowing for the NCAA field, their priests from Austin simply try to enter. Wednesday’s 79-72 opening round over Vanderbilt helps, but most Pundits believe that Longhorns need to win Thursday’s game and maybe a Friday date with fourth-seeded Tennessee to get a decent to get the beautiful dance.
Longhorns got 19 points each from Tramon Mark and Freshman three Johnson as they passed their first Sec tournament test, but Coach Rodney Terry knows that the games are just getting tougher.
“You have to play with very urgent, near halves,” he said. “In March you have to finish possessions, finish halves, finish games. Every night you will get a sweet 16, elite eight, last four-caliber team.”
Johnson, a 6-foot-6-starter who will probably donate an NBA uniform in another seven months, is on average a team high 20.2 ppg and strikes 39.5 percent of its 3-points. Arthur Kaluma adds 12.7 ppg and a team high 7.8 returns, while Jordan Pope is on average 11 ppg and ground hits for 10.
The law has shared two meetings this year. Texas A&M took an 80-60 victory at home on January 4 behind 18 points from Phelps, and Texas made a decision of 70-69 on January 25 on Mark’s arrangement with three seconds left.
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