Texas A&M Basketball went from total joy to agonizing deflation in four days as the visiting Memphis Tigers (7-2) came into Reed Arena on a mission, leaving Sunday’s matchup with an 81-75 victory behind forward David Jones’ 29 points, while the Aggies struggled from three and failed to find any offensive consistency late.
Now sitting at 7-3, senior point guard Tyrece Radford’s triumphant return was met with struggles from the field (3-9, 0-5 3-point), but star junior guard Wade Taylor IV had one of the worst shooting nights in his career (3-14, 0-9 3-point), but credit to Memphis strategically limiting his ability to find a rhythm throughout the night. As a team, A&M shot 18.2% from beyond the arc.
Senior forward Julius Marble’s continued absence due to a cryptic “University Process” hinders the Aggies from reaching their full potential. Things need to change before taking on No. 3 Houston on Saturday afternoon.
On Monday, the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll released its updated men’s basketball poll. The Aggies dropped out of the rankings for the first time this season but did receive 56 votes, placing them at number 27 overall. Here are the complete Top 25 rankings:
| 1 | Arizona | 8-0 | 796 (28) | – |
| 2 | Kansas | 9-1 | 739 (1) | +1 |
| 3 | Houston | 10-0 | 734 (3) | -1 |
| 4 | Purdue | 9-1 | 712 | – |
| 5 | UConn | 9-1 | 675 | – |
| 6 | Baylor | 9-0 | 642 | – |
| 7 | Marquette | 8-0 | 614 | – |
| 8 | Creighton | 8-1 | 529 | +3 |
| 9 | North Carolina | 7-2 | 486 | +1 |
| 10 | Tennessee | 6-3 | 462 | +3 |
| 11 | Clemson | 9-0 | 426 | +9 |
| 12 | Oklahoma | 9-0 | 422 | +10 |
| 13 | Gonzaga | 7-2 | 418 | -5 |
| 14 | Florida Atlantic | 7-2 | 359 | -5 |
| 15 | Kentucky | 7-2 | 317 | +2 |
| 16 | Illinois | 7-2 | 288 | +2 |
| 17 | BYU | 8-1 | 261 | -4 |
| 18 | Colorado State | 9-1 | 238 | -6 |
| 19 | Duke | 6-3 | 194 | +2 |
| 20 | James Madison | 9-0 | 181 | +4 |
| 21 | Virginia | 8-1 | 160 | +2 |
| 22 | Texas | 7-2 | 148 | -6 |
| 23 | Wisconsin | 7-3 | 92 | +3 |
| 24 | Miami (FL) | 7-2 | 82 | -9 |
| 25 | Ole Miss | 9-0 | 79 | +8 |
Schools Dropped Out
No. 19 Texas A&M; No. 25 Ohio State
Others Receiving Votes
Northwestern 68; Texas A&M 56; Auburn 32; Colorado 31; Alabama 30; Memphis 26; TCU 21; Iowa State 21; Ohio State 18; San Diego State 10; USC 8; Princeton 8; New Mexico 5; Grand Canyon 5; Utah 3; Cincinnati 2; Indiana 1; Drake 1;
Texas A&M will travel to the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, to take on the No.3-ranked Houston Cougars on Saturday, Dec. 16. The game will air on ESPN2 at 1:30 p.m. CT.
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