Tuesday, February 18
Starkville, Miss.
6:00 PM
Texas A&M
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Mississippi State
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Players Mentioned
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
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/ Men's Basketball
Photo by: Craig Bisacre/Texas A&M Athletics
No. 7 Aggies Face Rugged Road Test vs. No. 21 Bulldogs
Feb 17, 2025 | Men's Basketball
STARKVILLE – The No. 7 Texas A&M men's basketball team (20-5 overall / 9-3 vs. SEC) faces a rugged road challenge from the Mississippi State Bulldogs at 6 p.m. on Tuesday at Humphrey Coliseum as the Aggies seek to extend their SEC-high winning streak to six games.
AGGIES UP TO NO. 7 IN AP TOP 25
STATISTICAL COMPARISON
As of 2/16
LAST 10 GAMES VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
$ SEC Tournament, Nashville, Tenn.
NEED-TO-KNOWS
FOUR IN A ROW: The win over Arkansas gave the Aggies four-straight seasons with 20 victories, which had only been accomplished previously when Texas A&M logged 20+ wins for seven straight seasons from 2004-11. Buzz Williams became the second Aggie head coach to post four consecutive 20-win seasons, joining Mark Turgeon from 2007-11).
STINGY ON DEFENSE: The Aggies rank No. 6 in KenPom.com's Adjusted Defensive Efficiency rating at 92.0, which is an estimate of the defensive efficiency (points allowed per 100 possessions) a team would have against the average D-I offense.
In more common statistical measures, A&M is one of 24 D1 teams holding opponents to less than 40.0% from the field. Opponents hit just 39.6% of FGA vs. the Aggies, which is No. 16 nationally. Similarly, the Aggies allow 21.5 FGM/G (No. 10) on 54.4 FGA/G (No. 33).
SHOOTERS SHOOT: The Aggies average 6.9 more shots/game than their opponents in SEC play, which ranks No. 2 among league schools.
A&M averages 59.6 FGA per SEC game, while limiting its league opponents to just 52.7 FGA/G, which is the lowest average in the conference by 1.3 FGA/G.
1,900 & COUNTING: With 18 points vs. ARK (2/15), Wade Taylor IV became the 43rd player in SEC history to eclipse the 1,900-point plateau, and the first since Mississippi State's Quinndary Weatherspoon in 2019.
Taylor's career total stands at 1,905, which is 85 points from matching Bernard King's Texas A&M record of 1,990 from 1999-2003. Taylor is 57 points behind the other Bernard King, who tallied 1,962 points for Tennessee from 1974-77.
SUM OF PARTS: The Aggies are one of three SEC teams averaging more than 40.0 rebounds/G for the full season (No. 3 with 41.0/G), and are doing it without a single individual ranked among the league's top 20.
Among the 16 D1 teams averaging 40+ rebounds/G, Texas A&M and Tennessee State are only schools without a player averaging 6.0+ rebounds/G. Solomon Washington is the Aggies' top rebounder at 5.5/G (tNo. 429 nationally <-not a="">
UNCOMMON AGGIES: According to research by Will Warren/Stats By Will, the Aggies have won 32 times in 65 games when being out-shot by its opponent over the past four seasons. Only the College of Charleston has a better winning % (min. 50 games).
In 2024-25, the Aggies are 5-3 when losing the FG% battle, including wins over NET top 10 teams Purdue (.440-.453) and Texas Tech (.373-.451).
MAKING IT DIFFICULT
Seven of Texas A&M's previous opponents rank in the top 60 nationally in field goal percentage. All seven shot under their season averages in FGM-FGA and FG% against the Aggies.
Texas A&M Opponents in NCAA FG% Top 60
*Season low
TREND BULLETS
TV/RADIO
- The Bulldogs are ranked No. 29 in the NET and represent a Quad 1 opportunity for the Aggies.
- In the Buzz Williams era, the Aggies are 4-2 vs. the Bulldogs, including a 1-1 mark at State's Humphrey Coliseum.
- The Aggies are 3-4 all-time in Starkville, including a narrow 69-62 loss in the most recent trip to "The Hump" on Feb. 25, 2023, which ended the Aggies' chase for the SEC title and clinched the 2023 SEC regular season championship for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
- Texas A&M leads the all-time series at 10-9 that began with a 58-54 neutral site win in Houston on Dec. 20, 1963 in Dr. Shelby Metcalf's first season.
- The Aggies hold a 9-7 series lead since joining the SEC in 2012-13.
AGGIES UP TO NO. 7 IN AP TOP 25
- The Aggies' No. 7 ranking in the latest AP Top 25 is the highest of the Buzz Williams era and the highest for the program since being ranked No. 5 in the Dec. 25, 2017 poll.
- A win over No. 21 Mississippi State would be A&M's second ranked road win as an AP top 10 team of the season, joining the then-No. 10 Aggies' 80-78 win at No. 17 OU (1/8). Prior to this season, a top 10-ranked Aggie squad had won just six times away from Aggieland, and only once against a ranked team (No. 10 Aggies over No. 6 Kansas, 69-66, on Feb. 3, 2007).
STATISTICAL COMPARISON
| Statistic | Mississippi St. | Rank | Texas A&M | Rank |
| Scoring Offense | 79.2 | 62 | 74.5 | T-171 |
| Scoring Defense | 71.7 | T-182 | 65.4 | 33 |
| Scoring Margin | 7.5 | 74 | 9.2 | T-51 |
| Field Goal % | 45.7 | 136 | 42.5 | 295 |
| Free Throw % | 67.9 | 298 | 68.4 | 287 |
| Free Throws/G | 13.5 | 191 | 16.7 | 32 |
| FT Attempts/G | 19.9 | T-133 | 24.4 | 12 |
| 3-Point % | 31.5 | 302 | 31.2 | 310 |
| 3-Pointers/G | 8.3 | 123 | 7.0 | 256 |
| 3-Point Attempts/G | 26.3 | T-60 | 22.3 | T-187 |
| FG% Defense | 43.0 | 142 | 39.6 | 16 |
| 3-Point % Defense | 35.8 | 308 | 31.6 | 82 |
| Fouls/G | 16.9 | T-184 | 16.9 | 189 |
| Rebound Margin | 3.6 | 86 | 9.3 | 5 |
| Off. Rebounds/G | 13.1 | T-35 | 16.1 | 1 |
| Def. Rebounds/G | 25.4 | 125 | 25.0 | 162 |
| Rebounds/G | 38.6 | 40 | 41.0 | 6 |
| Assist/Turnover Ratio | 1.46 | 39 | 1.01 | 262 |
| Turnovers Forced/G | 13.5 | T-74 | 14.3 | 45 |
| Effective FG pct | .523 | 140 | .483 | 310 |
LAST 10 GAMES VS. MISSISSIPPI STATE
| Date | Opponent (RK) | Result | TAMU | Opp |
| 01/14/2017 | @Mississippi State | L | 59 | 67 |
| 02/20/2018 | Mississippi State | L | 81 | 93 |
| 03/09/2019 | @Mississippi State | L | 81 | 92 |
| 03/14/2019 | *Mississippi State | L | 54 | 80 |
| 02/22/2020 | Mississippi State | W | 87 | 75 |
| 01/13/2021 | @Mississippi State | W | 56 | 55 |
| 03/03/2021 | Mississippi State | L | 57 | 63 |
| 03/05/2022 | Mississippi State | W | 67 | 64 |
| 02/25/2023 | @Mississippi State | L | 62 | 69 |
| 03/06/2024 | Mississippi State | W | 75 | 69 |
NEED-TO-KNOWS
FOUR IN A ROW: The win over Arkansas gave the Aggies four-straight seasons with 20 victories, which had only been accomplished previously when Texas A&M logged 20+ wins for seven straight seasons from 2004-11. Buzz Williams became the second Aggie head coach to post four consecutive 20-win seasons, joining Mark Turgeon from 2007-11).
STINGY ON DEFENSE: The Aggies rank No. 6 in KenPom.com's Adjusted Defensive Efficiency rating at 92.0, which is an estimate of the defensive efficiency (points allowed per 100 possessions) a team would have against the average D-I offense.
In more common statistical measures, A&M is one of 24 D1 teams holding opponents to less than 40.0% from the field. Opponents hit just 39.6% of FGA vs. the Aggies, which is No. 16 nationally. Similarly, the Aggies allow 21.5 FGM/G (No. 10) on 54.4 FGA/G (No. 33).
SHOOTERS SHOOT: The Aggies average 6.9 more shots/game than their opponents in SEC play, which ranks No. 2 among league schools.
A&M averages 59.6 FGA per SEC game, while limiting its league opponents to just 52.7 FGA/G, which is the lowest average in the conference by 1.3 FGA/G.
1,900 & COUNTING: With 18 points vs. ARK (2/15), Wade Taylor IV became the 43rd player in SEC history to eclipse the 1,900-point plateau, and the first since Mississippi State's Quinndary Weatherspoon in 2019.
Taylor's career total stands at 1,905, which is 85 points from matching Bernard King's Texas A&M record of 1,990 from 1999-2003. Taylor is 57 points behind the other Bernard King, who tallied 1,962 points for Tennessee from 1974-77.
SUM OF PARTS: The Aggies are one of three SEC teams averaging more than 40.0 rebounds/G for the full season (No. 3 with 41.0/G), and are doing it without a single individual ranked among the league's top 20.
Among the 16 D1 teams averaging 40+ rebounds/G, Texas A&M and Tennessee State are only schools without a player averaging 6.0+ rebounds/G. Solomon Washington is the Aggies' top rebounder at 5.5/G (tNo. 429 nationally <-not a="">
UNCOMMON AGGIES: According to research by Will Warren/Stats By Will, the Aggies have won 32 times in 65 games when being out-shot by its opponent over the past four seasons. Only the College of Charleston has a better winning % (min. 50 games).
In 2024-25, the Aggies are 5-3 when losing the FG% battle, including wins over NET top 10 teams Purdue (.440-.453) and Texas Tech (.373-.451).
MAKING IT DIFFICULT
Seven of Texas A&M's previous opponents rank in the top 60 nationally in field goal percentage. All seven shot under their season averages in FGM-FGA and FG% against the Aggies.
Texas A&M Opponents in NCAA FG% Top 60
| Rk. | School | Season FG-FGA/G (FG%) | vs. Texas A&M |
| 10 | vs. Purdue | 27.9-56.5 (.494) | 24-53 (.453) |
| 30 | Kentucky | 30.2-62.5 (.483) | 24-52 (.462) |
| 34 | vs. Texas Tech | 29.3-60.8 (.482) | 23-51 (.451) |
| 37 | at Missouri | 27.1-56.4 (.480) | 21-53 (.396) |
| 39 | Alabama | 30.6-63.7 (.480) | 27-68 (.397) |
| 46 | Ohio State | 28.2-59.1 (.477) | 20-59 (*.339) |
| 51 | vs. Creighton | 26.5-55.8 (.475) | 23-60 (.383) |
| Total | 23.1-56.6 (.409) |
TREND BULLETS
- Five of Texas A&M's game results have been decided by three points or less (3-2 record) and 13 games have been within one-possession after the under 4:00 media timeout (9-4). (Tight games history on pg. 6)
- Over his past eight games, Nebraska transfer CJ Wilcher is connecting on 48.0% of his 3-point shots. He raised his season 3FG% to 40.0%, which is easily the best on the team.
- Over his past four games, Wade Taylor IV has connected from deep on 15 3-pointers at a 44.1% clip. He's also averaged 4.3 assists/G and hit 83.3% from the FT stripe.
- Since Taylor returned from an injury that kept him out of three games in January, the Aggies are 7-1 with the lone loss coming on a buzzer-beater on the road.
- Taylor has reached 10+ points in 20 of 21 games in 2024-25. The Aggies are 18-3 with Taylor in the lineup (missed 4 games due to injury).
- Four Aggies average above a +8.0 box plus-minus: Wade Taylor IV (+9.9), Henry Coleman III (+8.6), Andersson Garcia (+8.2) and Pharrel Payne (+8.1).
- .Henry Coleman III averages a team-high 7.8 rebounds over the Aggies' last five games (all wins), along with 10.2 points and 1.4 steals.
- A&M pounds the offensive glass for a NCAA-best 16.1 offensive rebounds/G, which is 1.1/G more than any other D1 school and 1.7/G more than any other major conference team (St. John's, 14.4).
- A&M's ability to gather O-rebounds allows team to average 6.9 FGA/G than its opponents in SEC play (up from +4.3 in non-conference games).
- Texas A&M hoops has rallied from a 15-point or more deficit to at least a tie six times in the past two seasons, including twice already in 2024-25. (Comeback history on page 7)
- Texas A&M is averaging 18.0-25.0 FT-FTA (72.0%) over the past five games. The Aggies have earned 34 more FTA and made 19 more than their opponents in that span.
- Texas A&M averages just 1.9 free throw MAKES fewer than its opponents' free throw ATTEMPTS per game (16.7 FTM to 18.6 FTA).
- Texas A&M has earned 40+ rebounds in 15 games, while just allowing 40+ opponent rebounds just three times.
- In a bit of an oddity, the Aggies shoot better from beyond the arc away from Reed Arena (33.0% in 12 road/neutral) compared to 29.3% in 13 home games. Even weirder, the Aggies make 34.9% from deep in seven true road games.
- The Aggies are 15-1 when hitting least 65% of their FTA and 5-4 when connecting on less than 65%. Similarly, the Aggies are 15-3 when they earn 20 or more FTA.
TV/RADIO
- 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. It is also available on SiriusXM on channel 162 or 191. The Mississippi State radio call will by on SiriusXM 84. .
- The game will be broadcast on the SEC Network with Dave Neal and Dane Bradshaw providing the description.
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