Texas A&M Basketball (8-4) finally got back into the win column after demolishing Houston Christian 79-52 last Friday night behind a career-high 24 points from guard Hayden Hefner. At the same time, forward Andersson Garcia grabbed a career-high 19 rebounds in the win.
Playing one of the most demanding non-conference schedules in the country, the Aggies may have lost more than won, but they stayed competitive and gave themselves a chance to win, including almost defeating the 3rd-ranked Houston Cougars, ultimately falling 70-66.
Interestingly enough, the Aggies have only two to three fewer losses than the rest of the Top 25. Still, due to consecutive losses to Memphis and Houston before the Christmas break, it looks like A&M will need to prove their worth further once SEC play begins on Saturday.
Senior guard Tyrece Radford’s return against the Panthers (20 minutes, 11 points) was encouraging. Still, for the Aggies to reach their full potential as the season rolls on, the impending return of senior forward Julius Marble (University Process) hangs in the balance.
On Tuesday, the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll released its updated men’s basketball poll. The Aggies are still out of the rankings and only received one vote compared to three last week, placing them at 38th overall. Here are the complete Top 25 rankings:
A look at the complete Coaches Poll powered by USA TODAY Sports:
| Rank | Team | Record | Points | Change |
| 1 | Purdue | 12-1 | 789 (23) | – |
| 2 | Kansas | 12-1 | 758 (1) | – |
| 3 | Houston | 13-0 | 757 (8) | – |
| 4 | UConn | 11-2 | 674 | +1 |
| 5 | Tennessee | 9-3 | 642 | +2 |
| 6 | Kentucky | 10-2 | 594 | +4 |
| 7 | Marquette | 11-3 | 580 | +1 |
| 8 | Illinois | 10-2 | 527 | +1 |
| 9 | North Carolina | 9-3 | 501 | +1 |
| 10 | Arizona | 10-3 | 495 | -6 |
| 11 | Oklahoma | 12-1 | 426 | +2 |
| 12 | BYU | 12-1 | 421 | – |
| 13 | Duke | 9-3 | 378 | +2 |
| 14 | Colorado State | 12-1 | 359 | – |
| 15 | Memphis | 11-2 | 342 | +3 |
| 16 | Clemson | 11-1 | 338 | +1 |
| 17 | Florida Atlantic | 10-3 | 273 | -11 |
| 18 | Baylor | 10-2 | 265 | +1 |
| 19 | Ole Miss | 13-0 | 198 | +3 |
| 20 | James Madison | 13-0 | 193 | +1 |
| 21 | Wisconsin | 9-3 | 172 | +2 |
| 22 | Texas | 11-2 | 167 | +2 |
| 23 | Providence | 11-2 | 130 | +2 |
| 24 | Auburn | 10-2 | 92 | +2 |
| 25 | Gonzaga | 9-4 | 72 | -9 |
Schools Dropped Out
No. 20 Creighton;
Others Receiving Votes
Creighton 45; San Diego State 37; Michigan State 26; Utah 25; Colorado24; Ohio State 19; Iowa State 19; Nevada 15; TCU 14; Grand Canyon 9; Miami (FL) 8; Villanova 5; New Mexico 5; Princeton 2; Nebraska 2; Texas A&M 1; Indiana State 1;
Texas A&M will host LSU (8-5) on Saturday, Jan. 6. The game will air on the SEC Network at 7:30 p.m. CT.
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 Cameron on Twitter: @CameronOhnysty.