Alabama
Texas A&M
Alabama Men’s Basketball Travels to Face Texas A&M on Saturday Night
2/24/2017 1:27:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Crimson Tide and Aggies tip at 7 p.m. CT on ESPN2
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama will play its penultimate road contest of the season when it travels to face Texas A&M on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT. It will be the only meeting this season between the two teams.
Texas A&M and Alabama will meet for the 15th time in series history, and the sixth time as SEC foes, with the Crimson Tide leading the all-time series, 10-4. Alabama has claimed three straight wins in the series and has been victorious in four of the last five games against the Aggies. Tonight's game marks the sixth time the Tide has played the Aggies in College Station, Texas, with Alabama owning an all-time record of 2-3 in those games. (Complete series information can be found on page 4 of game notes).
Most recently, Alabama had its two-game winning streak snapped on Thursday night with a 60-55 home loss against Georgia. The Tide was able to fight back from a 14-point first half deficit to within a single point on five different occasions over the game's final nine-plus minutes, but could not overcome the final hurdle en route to the five-point defeat. Junior guard Ar'Mond Davis led the Tide with 17 points off the bench.
Saturday's game will be televised on ESPN2 with Tom Hart (play-by-play) and Kara Lawson (analyst) on the call. Fans can listen to the radio broadcast on the Crimson Tide Sports Network (CTSN) as Chris Stewart (play-by-play) and Bryan Passink (analyst) will call all the action. Live stats for the contest can accessed through RollTide.com, while in-game updates and photos will be made available on Twitter on @AlabamaMBB.
HOW TO WATCH/LISTEN
RADIO: Crimson Tide Sports Network
TV: ESPN2
LIVE STATS: Texas A&M-Alabama Live Stats
SOCIAL MEDIA: @AlabamaMBB
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
- Alabama will close the regular season by facing three consecutive SEC teams it has not played all season (tonight at Texas A&M, March 1 vs. Ole Miss and March 4 at Tennessee).
- Each of the last two games between the Tide and Aggies have been decided by one point, with Alabama winning both contests (61-60 on March 7, 2015 and 63-62 on Feb. 10, 2016).
- Alabama is tied for tops in the SEC with five road victories during league play, the most since 2004-05. The last time a Crimson Tide team had six league road wins came during the 1994-95 campaign.
- Graduate senior Bola Olaniyan is averaging 12.0 rebounds a game and 5.5 offensive rebounds per contest over Alabama's last four games played.
- Jimmie Taylor has 195 career blocks and needs just five more swats to become only the sixth player in program history to record 200 blocks in his career.
- A pair of freshman lead the Tide offensively. Forward Braxton Key averages team highs of 12.2 points per game and 29.0 minutes a contest, while also ranking second in rebounds (5.7 rpg) and assists (2.3). Guard Dazon Ingram, who ranks second in points (10.3 ppg), leads UA in assists (3.4 apg), steals (1.1 spg) and 3-point shooting (.459). Six of Alabama's top seven scorers are underclassmen.
- The Tide, which leads the SEC and ranks 24th nationally with a +6.3 rebounding margin, has outrebounded its opponents in 22 of its 27 games this year, including 13 of its 15 SEC foes.
- According to KenPom.com, Alabama ranks 28th in the nation in average team height and 30th in bench production. The same site also lists the Crimson Tide 230th out of 351 Division I programs in overall experience.
- Alabama will close out the regular season home slate when it hosts the Ole Miss Rebels on Wednesday, March 1, at 7:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network. The contest will also mark Senior Night as the Crimson Tide senior class will play their final regular season game at Coleman Coliseum.
SCOUTING TEXAS A&M
• Alabama leads Texas A&M, 10-4, in the all-time series and owns a 4-1 record when playing one another as SEC rivals. The Tide has won three straight games in the series entering Saturday night, including two consecutive games by a single point (won 61-60 at Texas A&M on March 7, 2015 and won 63-62 at Alabama on Feb. 10, 2016). The Tide owns an all-time mark of 2-3 when playing the Aggies in College Station, Texas.
• Billy Kennedy, who was named the 2016 SEC Coach of the Year, is in his sixth season as the head coach of the Aggie basketball program. During his head coaching career (19 seasons), Kennedy's teams have averaged 20 wins over his last 11 seasons as a head coach, earning four league titles and making six trips to the postseason (3 NCAA, 2 NIT, 1 CBI). He owns a record of 113-83 (.577) at Texas A&M and boasts a career mark of 324-162 (.667).
• Texas A&M is led on the year by sophomore forward Tyler Davis, who leads the team with 14.4 points a game, while also ranking second with 6.9 rebounds per contest. Additionally, Davis tops the team in field goal percentage (.631), field goals made (149) and free throws made (90) and attempted (131).
• Davis is joined in the low post by freshman sensation Robert Williams, who ranks among the nation's leaders in blocked shots (2.7 bpg). Williams also tops the team with 7.8 rebounds per game and is third in scoring at 11.9 points per contest.
• Sophomore guard Admon Gilder (13.9 ppg) also averages in double figures, while leading the Aggies in assists (4.0 apg), steals (2.0 spg) and minutes (34.0 mpg). Sophomore DJ Hogg, who has been sidelined for the remainder of the season with an injury, was averaging 12.0 ppg at the time of his injury.
• Texas A&M probable starters (starting five from last game): Guards: Admon Gilder (13.9 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 4.0 apg, 2.0 spg), JC Hampton 6.7 ppg, 1.9 rpg, 1.9 apg). Forwards: Tonny Trocha Morelos (8.3 ppg, 5.1 rpg), Robert Williams (11.9 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.7 bpg, .563 FG%), Tyler Davis (14.4 ppg, 6.9 rpg, .631 FG%).
SCOUTING ALABAMA
• Alabama, which is 16-11 on the year and tied for fourth in the SEC with a 9-6 league record, will head west to play Texas A&M on Saturday night.
• Alabama has 11 players that average double-digit minutes (nine of which are currently active) and eight guys who average between 5.5 and 12.2 points per game. The Tide's top two scorers are both freshmen, while six of the top seven are underclassmen.
• True freshman Braxton Key, who was named the SEC Freshman of the Week for the week of Jan. 30, leads the Tide in scoring (12.2 ppg), double-figure scoring games (16), 20-plus point scoring games (3) and minutes (29.0 mpg). Key also ranks second in rebounding (5.7 rpg), assists (2.3 apg) and three-point field goal percentage (.338).
• Redshirt freshman Dazon Ingram leads the team in assists (3.4 apg), three-point field goal percentage (.459) and steals (1.1 spg), while ranking second in scoring (10.3 ppg) and double figure scoring games (14).
• Sophomore center Donta Hall tops the team in field goal percentage (.643) and blocks (1.4 bpg), while he is tied for second in rebounding (5.7 rpg). Junior Riley Norris leads the team in threes made (36) and attempted (114) and is third in scoring (8.9 ppg). Graduate senior Bola Olaniyan is the Tide's top rebounder (6.5 rpg) and averages 2.9 offensive boards per game. In SEC games only, he leads the league in offensive rebounds a game (3.8) and is fourth in the league in rebounding (8.1 rpg).
• As a team, Alabama is outscoring the competition by 3.9 points per game (69.5-65.6) and outrebounding opponents by 6.2 rebounds per game (39.7-33.5). The Tide is shooting .422 from the field and .314 from beyond the arc as a team. Alabama ranks second in the league and 42nd in the nation in scoring defense.
• Alabama owns a record of 7-5 when playing in all road contests this season. The Tide is 5-4 in true road games and 2-1 when playing in a neutral site. In SEC play, Alabama owns a record of 5-2 in road contests.
ALABAMA-TEXAS A&M - SERIES NOTES
• The contest between Alabama and Texas A&M on Saturday night will mark the 15th meeting in series history and the sixth time the two teams will meet as SEC rivals.
• Alabama owns a 10-4 edge in the previous 14 games, including having won three straight and four of the last five in the series.
• The Tide secured a season series sweep of the Aggies during the 2014-15 season, as the teams played the first and last league games against one another. Alabama first claimed an impressive 65-44 victory in the conference opener on Jan. 6, 2015 in Tuscaloosa. In the final game of the regular season, the Tide came from behind to take a 61-60 win in College Station, Texas on March 7, 2015. Alabama claimed the lone meeting a year ago, winning 63-62 on Feb. 10, 2016 in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
• This marks just the sixth time Alabama has played Texas A&M in College Station, and the third time the teams meet at Reed Arena as SEC rivals. The Tide has an all-time record of 2-3 when playing at Texas A&M.
• Nine of the 14 contests in the series have been decided by single digits, including one overtime contest (12/13/08). Each of the last two games between the two teams have been decided a a single point, both of which the Tide has won. Alabama claimed a 61-60 decision on March 7, 2015 in Reed Arena, followed by a 63-62 victory a year ago in Coleman Coliseum.
• The first game in the series was played in 1958-59.
ALABAMA-GEORGIA: AN INSIDE LOOK AT THE NUMBERS
• What Won The Game For Georgia: The Bulldogs led from start to finish, but that didn't mean it was an easy victory. Georgia was able to build as big as a 14-point cushion in the first half, but Alabama responded to a 12-point halftime deficit to cut the lead to one point on five different occasions in the final nine minutes of the contest. However, despite twice having the ball down by one, the Tide never was able to take a lead.
• The Difference Makers: J.J. Nelson. The Bulldogs point guard scored a game-high 28 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field and 7-of-10 from the charity stripe. Seventeen of Frazier's points came in the second half of play, as he made 6-of-8 shots from the floor to help Georgia hold on for the win.
• The Wow Stat: Alabama dominated the offensive glass, outrebounding Georgia in the category by a 17-3 margin. However, the Crimson Tide was not able to take advantage of the board work, as it only held a 17-7 edge in second chance points.
• Coach Avery Johnson Quote: "We had a very lethargic first half on offense, it's been something that we've been snake-bit by all year. We were able to come back, we find ourselves in the second half and then fight uphill all game. We cut the lead to one point several times down the stretch, but then we didn't take care of the ball, had a couple of turnovers; but the game didn't come down to those turnovers or the second half. We just didn't have a good first half by any stretch of the imagination, especially offensively."
