Texas A&M (25-9, 15-3 SEC) was overlooked for much of the regular season and they were arguably disrespected when handed the No. 7 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. But any casual college basketball fan knows that the Aggies are a team not to be trifled with.
As you fill out those March Madness brackets, you may want to think twice about counting out the Maroon and White early on.
USA Today unveiled the teams that could bust your men’s NCAA Tournament bracket, and the first name on the list should come as no surprise: No. 7 Texas A&M.
The Aggies were criminally under-seeded considering they’ve won 10 of their last 11 games and finished second in the SEC during the regular season. Yes they got blown out by overall No. 1 seed Alabama in the SEC tournament championship — and that’s exactly why they’ll be poised to make a run, to get that bad taste out of their mouth.
The selection committee flexed their agenda after seeding the Aggies as low as seventh, whether as a result of punishing head coach Buzz Williams or trying to set up a box-office matchup in the Round of 64.
Whatever the reason may be, the stats prove that the Maroon and White are poised to make a run deep into March.
Of all the seven seeds in the tournament, Texas A&M holds the highest NET ranking (19) while sitting 25th in KenPom and 17th in the final AP and USA TODAY Coaches polls. They’ve bested the likes of Alabama, Tennessee, and Arkansas at home and have beaten Auburn and Missouri on the road. The math adds up to a battle-tested resume.
Simply put, the lights won’t be too bright come Thursday evening.
This is a team that overcame a 6-5 start to the season while playing through adversity, which means bouncing back from a title game loss should be child’s play. It helps to know that the Aggies shot 29.7% from the floor while their best player Wade Taylor IV went 3-for-11. Think of it as “ironing out the kinks.”
This team has the formula to make a deep run in March with their roster posing a matchup nightmare to anyone in their path. Of course, the most successful teams take it one step at a time, focusing their time and energy on who awaits them now.
For the Aggies, their path begins Thursday with an opening-round matchup versus No. 10 Penn State. Tip-off is set for 8:55 p.m. CT and will air on TBS.
Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Pete on Twitter: @PeteThreee
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