Aggie Men Look for Season Sweep of Auburn

BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas –The Texas A&M men’s basketball team seeks to sweep the season series with the Auburn Tigers in a 6 p.m. matchup on Tuesday at Reed Arena.

• A “mirror” opponent for Texas A&M, the Aggies handed Auburn a 79-63 defeat in the teams’ first meeting at Neville Arena on Jan. 25. The victory also snapped the Tigers’ then-national best 28-game home winning streak.
• The Aggies are 4-1 against the Tigers under head coach Buzz Williams and lead the all-time series, 14-6 (11-4 in SEC play).

HOT TICKET AGGIES:
Texas A&M Basketball has become a hot ticket, playing in front of an average crowd of 13,805 (96,633 total fans) over the past seven games.

• Reed Arena (capacity 12,989) has averaged a crowd of 12,471 in its last three home games (all Aggie wins) since the students have returned for the spring semester.
• The Aggies have drawn crowds of 12,000-plus fans to each of the past three home games, which hadn’t been done in seven years (since games vs. LSU, Missouri and Iowa State in January 2016)
• In fact, the last time the Aggies drew 12,000-plus fans for three straight conference games was the spring of 2010 when they drew 13,000-plus in four straight games vs. Big 12 foes Texas Tech, Baylor, Kansas and Texas.

TRENDS & STREAKS:

• The Aggies have allowed 30 or fewer first-half points in eight of 10 SEC games.
• Over the past four games, the Aggies have averaged just 9.0 turnovers (36 total), which is the lowest TO average for any 4-game stretch in exactly 200 games.
• The Aggies have earned a rebounding advantage in 10 of past 12 games, after having the board advantage in just six of the first 11 games of 2022-23.
• Tyrece Radford has scored 14 or more points in 10-of-12 games, including four games with 20 or more. Radford’s FG% in the first 11 games of the season was 31.5% and is 49.2% in the last 12.
• Henry Coleman III has double-digit points in 6 of his past 8 games, including 15 ors more in his last three.Coleman has 3 double-doubles in SEC play, including an 18-point/15-rebound gem vs. ARK on 1/31.
• Solomon Washington scored his first points since entering concussion protocol after the 1/18 UF game with 7 points vs. UGA on 2/4.

ANATOMY OF A TURNAROUND:
Since a demoralizing 67-62 loss to Wofford that left the Aggies 6-5 after 11 games, the Aggies have reeled off 10 wins in their last 12 games.

Notable First 11 G –> Last 12 G Improvements
Tyrece Radford scoring            10.8 pts/G –> 16.6 pts/G
Julius Marble scoring                8.3 pts/G –> 11.1 pts/G
Dexter Dennis rebounding       4.1 rebs/G –> 6.8 rebs/G
Team Defense                          70.4 pts/G –> 62.4 pts/G
Opponent FG%                         42.2% –> 37.7%
Opponent 3FG%                       36.2% –> 30.2%
Total Rebounds                        35.1 rebs/G –> 39.8 rebs/G
Defensive Rebounds                 23.1 rebs/G –> 26.6 rebs/G
Personal Fouls                          21.0 fouls/G –> 17.2 fouls/G
1st Half Score (TAMU-Opp)      34.2-33.8 –> 36.9-26.9

GETTING TO THE LINE:
The Aggies rank No. 3 nationally in free throws made and No. 4 in FT attempts (No. 1 in SEC). Texas A&M has shot 100+ more free throws than nine SEC teams.

• The Aggies average 18.2 – 24.7 FTM-FTA per game, which is well ahead of the pace set by ALL Texas A&M squads after 1970.
• Texas A&M has shot 16 or more free throws in 9-of-10 SEC games. The lone outlier was a 7-of-7 FT effort vs. UF on 1/18.
• Texas A&M has been to the line 25 or more times in 14 of 23 games and has hit 20 or more FTs nine times.
• Tyrece Radford and Wade Taylor IV are in the SEC top 10 in free throw makes.

NCAA Team Free Throw Leaders
(Sorted by FT Made)
Rk   School                FT          FTA
1.     UTRGV                18.4      26.1
3.     UAB                    18.3      24.8
2.     Texas A&M         18.2      24.7
4.     Nevada               17.7      22.3
5.     Alabama             17.7      24.3

FOLLOW THE ACTION:

• The game will be televised by ESPN2 with Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Dane Bradshaw (color) on the call.

• The matchup airs on the Texas A&M Radio Network or locally on 1620 AM/94.5 FM with Andrew Monaco and Dr. John Thornton calling the action.

PROMOTIONS:

• A&M Student Early Entry: The North entry of Reed Arena will open at 4:30 p.m. for ANY A&M Student. All doors will open to the public at 5 p.m.
• 50% Off Concessions: Fans can purchase concession items for 50% off for the first 30 minutes that doors are open at Reed Arena (5-5:30 PM) This discount is not applicable to water or alcohol purchases.
• Fan Zone (North Entry):
  • Tent setup with TVs, games & more! For ALL fans starting at 5 p.m.
  • Commemorative Bag Giveaway: 50^th Anniversary of Title IX crossbody clear bags (1^st 1,500 fans at the Fan Zone)
  • Free Raising Cane’s and Dos Equis tastings.
• 12^th Man Rewards: 100 Points