Texas A&M Nashville-Bound for SEC Tournament
TEXAS A&M NOTES l SEC BASKETBALL l SEC TOURNAMENT BRACKET
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2016 SEC Tournament
#17 Texas A&M (24-7; 13-5 SEC) vs. Arkansas (16-15; 9-9 SEC ) /or/ Florida (18-13; 9-9 SEC)
March 11, 2016 • 12 PM (CT)
Bridgestone Arena (19,395) · Nashville, Tenn.
TV (Friday, March 11): SEC Network (For more info –12thMan.com/TV)
Brad Nessler, Play-by-Play
Sean Farnham, Commentary
Shannon Spake, Commentary
RADIO: Texas A&M Radio Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
John Thornton, Commentary
Local (Friday): KZNE 1150 AM / 102.7 FM (College Station/Bryan)
Satellite: Sirius (Ch. 145) / XM (Ch. 190)
LIVE AUDIO/STATS:12thMan.com
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS:tamustats.com
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COLLEGE STATION – After cutting down the nets to celebrate a share of the 2016 SEC Championship, the No. 17 Aggies are turning the page and looking toward this week’s SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Texas A&M (24-7) shared the league’s regular season crown with No. 16 Kentucky (23-8) but will be the SEC Tournament’s top seed by virtue of a 79-77 overtime victory over the Wildcats in College Station on Feb. 20. The Aggies will play their first game at the tournament on Friday at Noon against the winner of Thursday’s Arkansas-Florida matchup.
The SEC Tournament officially gets underway Wednesday night in Music City as Tennessee and Auburn face off at 7 p.m.Four more games are slated for Thursday, beginning with the Arkansas-Florida contest at Noon. Also on Thursday Vanderbilt will face the winner of the previous night’s Tennessee-Auburn game before two evening games featuring Ole Miss-Alabama and Georgia-Mississippi State.
Joining the Aggies with double-byes at the event and waiting until Friday to see their first action will be second-seeded Kentucky, No. 3 seed South Carolina and No. 4 seed LSU.
The appearance at the SEC Tournament will be the fourth for the Aggies since joining the SEC prior to the 2012-13 campaign, as well as A&M’s third trip to Bridgestone Arena for the tourney.
Nashville will serve as host to the SEC men's tournament nine times between 2015 and 2026. Under the terms of the new agreement, the men's tournament will be played in Nashville every year from 2015 to 2025 with the exception of 2018 (St. Louis, Mo.) and 2022 (Tampa, Fla.).
In program history, Texas A&M has advanced to a championship game of a conference tournament five times, most recently in 1994, and claimed two league postseason tournament titles, 1980 and 1987.
TEXAS A&M IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS
• The Aggies are 23-38 all-time conference tournaments, spanning previous affiliations with the Southwest Conference (1915-96) and Big 12 Conference (1997-2012) ... A&M held an all-time record of 16-19 in SWC Tournament games and a 6-16 mark in Big 12 Tourney games ... In three appearances at the SEC Tournament, A&M is 1-3.
• Texas A&M has claimed two postseason tournament championships - 1980 and 1987, both under the direction of former head coach Shelby Metcalf.
• A&M has advanced to the championship game of a postseason conference tournament five times - 1976, 1980, 1986, 1987 and 1994.
• Three seasons ago, the Aggies played in their first SEC Tournament at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena ... A&M defeated Auburn 71-62 in the opening round before falling to Missouri 62-50 in the second round.
• Last year, A&M earned an opening round bye before dropping a 66-59 decision to Auburn during the second round of the SEC Tournament inside Bridgestone Arena.
• In postseason conference tournament play, Texas A&M has faced Arkansas six times (2-4), Missouri five times (1-4) and Auburn twice (1-1).
• A&M head coach Billy Kennedy holds a 12-11 record in conference tournament play, including championships in 2005 (Southland Conference - SE Louisiana) and 2010 (Ohio Valley Conference - Murray State).
KENNEDY NAMED SEC COACH OF THE YEAR & USBWA DISTRICT VII COACH OF THE YEAR
After guiding the Aggie basketball program to its first regular season conference championship in 30 years and its second most regular season wins ever, fifth-year head coach Billy Kennedy was named SEC Coach of the Year by the league's coaches.
For the New Orleans native, it's his fourth coach of the year accolade after garnering Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 2010 and 2011 as well as the Southland Conference Coach of the Year in 2004.
Additionally, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association released its annual All-District Teams on Tuesday and Kennedy was honored as District VII Coach of the Year.
SEC CO-CHAMPIONS; FIRST LEAGUE TITLE SINCE 1986
It was a winding road that had no shortage of drama along the way, but this year's Texas A&M basketball team can do something that no other Aggie squad has been able to do in 30 years - call itself conference champions.
For the first time since 1986, Texas A&M cut down the nets as regular season conference champions, following the victory over Vanderbilt during the regular season finale. The Aggies shared the league crown with Kentucky, who also posted a 13-5 SEC mark, but A&M took the top seed at the SEC Tournament by virtue of a 79-77 overtime victory over the Wildcats on Feb. 20.
The Aggies' path to the title saw them earn seven straight victories to begin SEC play and climb to No. 5 in the national polls, the highest ranking in program history. A lull followed that saw A&M drop five consecutive SEC games, four by five or less points, before the Aggies got hot to close the regular season with six straight wins.
Overall, the league title stood out as the 12th in Texas A&M men's basketball history.
SIX AGGIES GARNER ALL-SEC RECOGNITION
Led by Coach of the Year Billy Kennedy and first-teamer Jalen Jones, six members of the Texas A&M basketball program received accolades at the end of the regular season as the SEC’s coaches announced their annual awards.
Joining the Texas A&M contingency on the coaches’ All-SEC list were Alex Caruso and Danuel House on the All-SEC second team as well as rookies Tyler Davis and DJ Hogg on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Caruso, meanwhile garnered a spot on the SEC All-Defensive Team.
Jones becomes the third Aggie to garner first-team All-SEC recondition following Elston Turner in 2013 and House last season. The Dallas native stood out as one of the league’s most consistent performance this season, ranking among the league leaders by averaging 16.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game during SEC play. Overall this season, Jones has contributed four double-doubles and reached the 20-point plateau on 11 occasions.
Caruso leads the SEC in steals with 65 this season, while ranking fourth in the league with 157 assists. The College Station native enjoyed a milestone season as he became Texas A&M’s career leader in both assists and steals while standing out as the SEC’s active leader in both categories. Offensively, Caruso saw his overall shooting percentage and 3-point shooting percentage rise for the third consecutive campaign.
For the second straight season, House is an All-SEC selection after garnering first-team accolades a year ago. The Fresno, Texas, native averages 15.3 points per outing this season, shooting 40.1 percent from the floor while compiling 71 assists, 18 steals and seven blocked shots.
A pair of the Aggies’ impressive rookie class, Davis and Hogg stood out as two of the SEC’s top freshmen while making an immediate impact on the court. Davis started 28 games this season, contributing 11.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per contest, while leading the Aggies with 30 blocked shots and a 65.4 field goal percentage. Hogg, meanwhile, chipped in 6.5 points and 2.7 boards while playing in 31 games and drawing three starts. The 6-foot-8 swingman shot just under 40 percent from the field while making 42 3-point baskets.
SECOND MOST REGULAR SEASON WINS IN SCHOOL HISTORY
Texas A&M's victory over Vanderbilt in the regular season finale gave the Aggies 24 wins during the regular season, a figure that stands out as the second most in program history, trailing only the 2006-07 squad's 25 regular-season victories. The note is particularly impressive given the difficult schedule Texas A&M has taken on this season, which stood out as the 29th toughest nationally at the end of the regular season according to ESPN.
Just seven Aggie squads have ever hit the 24-win plateau with the 2006-07 team setting the school record for victories in a season.
TEXAS A&M NOTES l SEC BASKETBALL l SEC TOURNAMENT BRACKET
--
2016 SEC Tournament
#17 Texas A&M (24-7; 13-5 SEC) vs. Arkansas (16-15; 9-9 SEC ) /or/ Florida (18-13; 9-9 SEC)
March 11, 2016 • 12 PM (CT)
Bridgestone Arena (19,395) · Nashville, Tenn.
TV (Friday, March 11): SEC Network (For more info –12thMan.com/TV)
Brad Nessler, Play-by-Play
Sean Farnham, Commentary
Shannon Spake, Commentary
RADIO: Texas A&M Radio Network
Dave South, Play-by-Play
John Thornton, Commentary
Local (Friday): KZNE 1150 AM / 102.7 FM (College Station/Bryan)
Satellite: Sirius (Ch. 145) / XM (Ch. 190)
LIVE AUDIO/STATS:12thMan.com
LIVE MOBILE LIVE STATS:tamustats.com
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COLLEGE STATION – After cutting down the nets to celebrate a share of the 2016 SEC Championship, the No. 17 Aggies are turning the page and looking toward this week’s SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Texas A&M (24-7) shared the league’s regular season crown with No. 16 Kentucky (23-8) but will be the SEC Tournament’s top seed by virtue of a 79-77 overtime victory over the Wildcats in College Station on Feb. 20. The Aggies will play their first game at the tournament on Friday at Noon against the winner of Thursday’s Arkansas-Florida matchup.
The SEC Tournament officially gets underway Wednesday night in Music City as Tennessee and Auburn face off at 7 p.m.Four more games are slated for Thursday, beginning with the Arkansas-Florida contest at Noon. Also on Thursday Vanderbilt will face the winner of the previous night’s Tennessee-Auburn game before two evening games featuring Ole Miss-Alabama and Georgia-Mississippi State.
Joining the Aggies with double-byes at the event and waiting until Friday to see their first action will be second-seeded Kentucky, No. 3 seed South Carolina and No. 4 seed LSU.
The appearance at the SEC Tournament will be the fourth for the Aggies since joining the SEC prior to the 2012-13 campaign, as well as A&M’s third trip to Bridgestone Arena for the tourney.
Nashville will serve as host to the SEC men's tournament nine times between 2015 and 2026. Under the terms of the new agreement, the men's tournament will be played in Nashville every year from 2015 to 2025 with the exception of 2018 (St. Louis, Mo.) and 2022 (Tampa, Fla.).
In program history, Texas A&M has advanced to a championship game of a conference tournament five times, most recently in 1994, and claimed two league postseason tournament titles, 1980 and 1987.
TEXAS A&M IN CONFERENCE TOURNAMENTS
• The Aggies are 23-38 all-time conference tournaments, spanning previous affiliations with the Southwest Conference (1915-96) and Big 12 Conference (1997-2012) ... A&M held an all-time record of 16-19 in SWC Tournament games and a 6-16 mark in Big 12 Tourney games ... In three appearances at the SEC Tournament, A&M is 1-3.
• Texas A&M has claimed two postseason tournament championships - 1980 and 1987, both under the direction of former head coach Shelby Metcalf.
• A&M has advanced to the championship game of a postseason conference tournament five times - 1976, 1980, 1986, 1987 and 1994.
• Three seasons ago, the Aggies played in their first SEC Tournament at Nashville's Bridgestone Arena ... A&M defeated Auburn 71-62 in the opening round before falling to Missouri 62-50 in the second round.
• Last year, A&M earned an opening round bye before dropping a 66-59 decision to Auburn during the second round of the SEC Tournament inside Bridgestone Arena.
• In postseason conference tournament play, Texas A&M has faced Arkansas six times (2-4), Missouri five times (1-4) and Auburn twice (1-1).
• A&M head coach Billy Kennedy holds a 12-11 record in conference tournament play, including championships in 2005 (Southland Conference - SE Louisiana) and 2010 (Ohio Valley Conference - Murray State).
KENNEDY NAMED SEC COACH OF THE YEAR & USBWA DISTRICT VII COACH OF THE YEAR
After guiding the Aggie basketball program to its first regular season conference championship in 30 years and its second most regular season wins ever, fifth-year head coach Billy Kennedy was named SEC Coach of the Year by the league's coaches.
For the New Orleans native, it's his fourth coach of the year accolade after garnering Ohio Valley Conference Coach of the Year in 2010 and 2011 as well as the Southland Conference Coach of the Year in 2004.
Additionally, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association released its annual All-District Teams on Tuesday and Kennedy was honored as District VII Coach of the Year.
SEC CO-CHAMPIONS; FIRST LEAGUE TITLE SINCE 1986
It was a winding road that had no shortage of drama along the way, but this year's Texas A&M basketball team can do something that no other Aggie squad has been able to do in 30 years - call itself conference champions.
For the first time since 1986, Texas A&M cut down the nets as regular season conference champions, following the victory over Vanderbilt during the regular season finale. The Aggies shared the league crown with Kentucky, who also posted a 13-5 SEC mark, but A&M took the top seed at the SEC Tournament by virtue of a 79-77 overtime victory over the Wildcats on Feb. 20.
The Aggies' path to the title saw them earn seven straight victories to begin SEC play and climb to No. 5 in the national polls, the highest ranking in program history. A lull followed that saw A&M drop five consecutive SEC games, four by five or less points, before the Aggies got hot to close the regular season with six straight wins.
Overall, the league title stood out as the 12th in Texas A&M men's basketball history.
SIX AGGIES GARNER ALL-SEC RECOGNITION
Led by Coach of the Year Billy Kennedy and first-teamer Jalen Jones, six members of the Texas A&M basketball program received accolades at the end of the regular season as the SEC’s coaches announced their annual awards.
Joining the Texas A&M contingency on the coaches’ All-SEC list were Alex Caruso and Danuel House on the All-SEC second team as well as rookies Tyler Davis and DJ Hogg on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Caruso, meanwhile garnered a spot on the SEC All-Defensive Team.
Jones becomes the third Aggie to garner first-team All-SEC recondition following Elston Turner in 2013 and House last season. The Dallas native stood out as one of the league’s most consistent performance this season, ranking among the league leaders by averaging 16.3 points and 7.2 rebounds per game during SEC play. Overall this season, Jones has contributed four double-doubles and reached the 20-point plateau on 11 occasions.
Caruso leads the SEC in steals with 65 this season, while ranking fourth in the league with 157 assists. The College Station native enjoyed a milestone season as he became Texas A&M’s career leader in both assists and steals while standing out as the SEC’s active leader in both categories. Offensively, Caruso saw his overall shooting percentage and 3-point shooting percentage rise for the third consecutive campaign.
For the second straight season, House is an All-SEC selection after garnering first-team accolades a year ago. The Fresno, Texas, native averages 15.3 points per outing this season, shooting 40.1 percent from the floor while compiling 71 assists, 18 steals and seven blocked shots.
A pair of the Aggies’ impressive rookie class, Davis and Hogg stood out as two of the SEC’s top freshmen while making an immediate impact on the court. Davis started 28 games this season, contributing 11.2 points and 6.0 rebounds per contest, while leading the Aggies with 30 blocked shots and a 65.4 field goal percentage. Hogg, meanwhile, chipped in 6.5 points and 2.7 boards while playing in 31 games and drawing three starts. The 6-foot-8 swingman shot just under 40 percent from the field while making 42 3-point baskets.
SECOND MOST REGULAR SEASON WINS IN SCHOOL HISTORY
Texas A&M's victory over Vanderbilt in the regular season finale gave the Aggies 24 wins during the regular season, a figure that stands out as the second most in program history, trailing only the 2006-07 squad's 25 regular-season victories. The note is particularly impressive given the difficult schedule Texas A&M has taken on this season, which stood out as the 29th toughest nationally at the end of the regular season according to ESPN.
Just seven Aggie squads have ever hit the 24-win plateau with the 2006-07 team setting the school record for victories in a season.
