Texas A&M Basketball

The Aggies started the season ranked No. 20 in the opening AP poll and were also chosen by the Big 12 coaches poll in a tie for first place with Kansas for the Big 12 lead. 

Looking back, it seems that the praise was a little premature, but the 8-3 Aggies are in no way out of contention within the Big 12 Conference. 

It has been a tough road so far this year with the head coach's sickness, Roberson and Middleton's injuries and the first non-conference home loss (to Rice) in 67 games.  But, focusing on the positives, there is still a good deal of hope for this young Aggies squad.

Looking at the rest of the season, I am first optimistic about our freshmen in the program.  It is increasingly more important in big-time college basketball to have a great freshmen class that immediately impacts the team. 

Not only have freshmen Jordan Green and Jamal Branch played in all 11 games, but they are contributing quite a bit. Look for their contributions to continue to increase as the season gets longer. 

Together, the two guards are averaging 8.8 PPG, 5.1 RPG and 4.3 APG, which are not fantastic numbers, but as role players, they are helpful to the team.  Hopefully, they can develop quicker than most Aggie freshmen in the past as a result of their increase in playing time and the fact that they are putting positive numbers up in the stat book.

Another important factor in our future success will be to continue establishing a great defense from the get-go in every game we play.  Florida and Rice both jumped out to quick leads, and it hurt later in the game, as we do not have too much quick scoring potential. 

Under the previous two coaches, Gillespie and Turgeon, the Aggies were one of the best defensive teams in not only the Big 12, but the entire country.  That led the team to six consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (including six wins in those appearances) and competing well within the BIG 12. 

There is no reason to believe that Kennedy will not be able to do the same on defense.  Before Florida, Texas A&M was ranked Top 10 in most defensive categories, and Florida is currently ranked No. 10. 

With some injured players coming back, a little senior leadership (looking at you David Loubeau) and the backing of the 12th man, the Aggies can have at least one Wrecking Crew in College Station this year even if it isn't on the football field. 

The Texas A&M men's basketball team kicks off their season with a game against Liberty University as part of the Coaches vs. Cancer 2K Sports Classic. There have been a lot of changes in the program since the 2011 season ended in a loss to Florida State.

Mark Turgeon left the A&M program to take the job at Maryland when Gary Williams unexpectedly retired. Bill Byrne went out and hired Billy Kennedy from Murray State to replace Turgeon. Kennedy was recently diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and is on a temporary leave of absence to deal with his medical issues. Assistant coach Glynn Cyprien has taken over the head coaching duties during Kennedy's leave of absence.

The Aggies return three starters from a 2011 squad that went 24-9 overall and 11-5 in conference play. The Aggies lost to Florida State in the NCAA tournament and for the first time in six years did not win an NCAA tournament game.

The Aggies were young in the low post last year and really overachieved by simply making the tournament. The return more experience this year and more should be expected from them despite a much tougher schedule. A&M will play 18 conference games this year. They will face every Big 12 team at home and on the road. With the addition of Lon Kruger at Oklahoma and Billy Gillespie at Texas Tech, the conference will feature some of the best coaches in the country.

The A&M men are ranked as high as No. 19 in the preseason polls. They were picked by the conference coaches as the favorite to win the Big 12 along with Kansas. This team has a chance to be special but they will need to see continued improvement on the offensive end if they want to meet the preseason expectations.

Point Guard

Dash Harris returns for his senior year as the starter at point guard. He is the unquestioned leader of the team off the court. He is a team captain and does a good job of representing the team in the media. The issues with Harris are on the court. Harris struggled mightily during his junior year to shoot the ball. He does not break down teams off the dribble and at times can play out of control. He is an excellent defender, but was so poor on offense last year that opposing teams sometimes refused to guard him.

The Aggies need Harris to play like a senior. They just need him to play smart basketball. A successful season for Harris would be making all of his open layups and 70 percent of his free throws. If he can keep his assist to turnover ratio to two to one, then that will be a successful season for Harris. That should mean he will be scoring around six points per game and dishing out four assists. That is about all you can ask for from him.

Jamal Branch was ranked as one of the top 50 recruits in the nation. He is a 6'3" freshman point guard who will team with Harris to quarterback the Aggie offense. Branch will dribble penetrate and dish off to his teammates. He will break down teams off the dribble. Branch is also a better shooter than Harris. Do not be surprised to see Branch take some minutes from Harris as the season wears on. Aggies fans will have to be patient with Branch in the early going as he adjusts to the college game.

Shooting Guard

Elston Turner will get the start at the two. Turner is a 6'5", 220-pound junior who transferred from the University of Washington. He will replace the departed B.J. Holmes as the Aggies' biggest threat from behind the arc. Turner led all Aggies in scoring during the summer tour of Europe. Turner will keep teams from doubling Khris Middleton so much when the Aggies are on offense. Look for him to average eight to ten points per game.

Naji Hibbert returns for his junior season. Hibbert has a lot of potential, but at some point you just have to recognize that he is what he is. Hibbert does not consistently play the game with confidence. He has the ability to slash to the basket and break down defensive players off the dribble. Instead he appears hesitant out there all too often. Expect Hibbert's minutes to decrease as the season wears on.

Jordan Green is a 6'4" freshman from Flower Mound High School. He is a great athlete and should earn more minutes as the year goes on. Like most freshmen you should expect flashes of brilliance interspersed with silly mistakes. If his defense improves, expect Green to take minutes away from Hibbert.

Small Forward

Khris Middleton is the best basketball player on the A&M team and a potential lottery pick if they ever have another NBA draft. The 6'7" junior exploded onto the scene last year while leading the Aggies with 14 points per game. He can score inside and outside.

Middleton's one weakness is that he is not aggressive enough and does not demand the ball in crunch time. He has the ability to take over games, and needs to be more willing to do that as a junior. The Aggies need Middleton to be a consistent 16- to 18-point scorer this year.

Daniel Alexander is an interesting player. He redshirted last year and really does not have a true position. He was a tall win player in high school. Expect the 6'9" freshman from Dripping Springs to see time at the 3, 4 and 5 spot for the Aggies.

If he can play good defense and offer solid minutes off the bench in the post then his season will be a success. He is also someone that the Aggies can use in the high low game if the coaches desire. He has three point range which will make him a tough matchup for most opposing bigs.

Power Forward

This will be an interesting position for the Aggies. Chris Walker graduated and took a ton of toughness and clutch play with him. Walker got the maximum out of his ability and was the Aggies' most consistent player last season.

Senior David Loubeau will move back to his natural spot at the 4 and will start for the Aggies. Loubeau struggled last year playing the center position, especially on defense. He should be one of the best power forwards in the league for the Aggies. Look for Loubeau to average 12 to 14 points and to lead the Aggies in rebounding with around eight per game.

Expect a number of players to spell Loubeau at the 4. Alexander, Ray Turner and Kourtney Roberson will all see time as power forward.

Center

Junior Ray Turner started at center in the Aggies exhibition game. If his play has improved enough where he has earned a starting spot, then that will be an unexpected addition for the Aggies. Turner is an explosive athlete who struggled with injuries as a sophomore. If he can give the Aggies starters' minutes in the post, that would open up a lot of options. If Turner can give the Aggies six points and eight rebounds per game, that would have to be considered a huge success.

Kourtney Roberson was the backup center as a freshman. He or Turner will start in the post for the Aggies this year. Roberson averaged five points and four rebounds per game as a freshman. Expect to see a large jump in those numbers this year. Roberson should get close to a double-double every game. Expect him to score eight to 10 points and grab eight to 10 rebounds every game.

Keith Davis is the tallest player on the basketball team at 6'10." He is a true center and is the best natural shot blocker on the A&M team. Davis needs to develop his offensive game more and work on his footwork on defense. If Davis can give the Aggies a defensive presence in the post off the bench, and collect a couple of garbage baskets per game then that would be a plus for the Aggies.

Expectations

The Aggies should make the NCAA Tournament for the seventh year in a row. Where they are seeded in the tournament will be determined by how they manage a very tough conference schedule. In non-conference play the Aggies face Mississippi State, Arizona or St. Johns and Florida. If you take the conservative approach and assume the Aggies will win one of those three games then that should leave them at 10-2 in non-conference play.

The Aggies will play 18 conference games. If you assume losses at Kansas, Texas, Tech, Oklahoma State and a couple of home games you did not expect, that would leave the team at 12-6 in conference play, which may end up good enough to win the regular season conference title.

You have to assume that Billy Gillespie will have Tech playing well above their heads at home and Iowa State will be tougher with their multiple transfers becoming eligible. One of the biggest unknowns is how Kansas State will respond after the graduation of Jacob Pullen.

If Khris Middleton accepts his role as a team leader and plays like he is one of the top players in the country, then this team could win 25 or 26 games in the regular season and challenge for a No. 2 or 3 seed in the NCAA tournament. If not, then expect the Aggies to be a No. 7 or 8 seed and fight it out to advance to the Round of 16. Both Middleton and Loubeau should compete for First-Team All-Conference honors.

Even with a new coaching staff and with the head coach out for an undetermined period of time, anything less than an NCAA Tournament birth and an upper division finish in the Big 12 should be viewed as a disappointment.

The Texas A&M Aggies have made the NCAA Tournament six years in a row and even though they went through another head coaching change this offseason, they look well-equipped to extend that streak this season.

But the Aggies have run into some turbulence before they even took off this year, with new head coach Billy Kennedy being diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. He's not practicing with the team and won't be on the bench when they start playing games. So there's a large degree of uncertainty surrounding this program at the moment.

And that's too bad. Texas A&M won 24 games last year, went 10-6 in the Big 12 to finish tied for third in the conference, and with three returning starters and seven other lettermen back the Aggies are expected to contend for the conference title again this year.

The last thing they need is to be wondering about the well-being of their head coach.

2011-12 Texas A&M Basketball Outlook

A&M gets three starters back from last year. Six-foot-7 junior forward Khris Middleton averaged 14 points and five rebounds per game last year, and shot 78 percent from the free-throw line. Six-foot-8 senior forward David Loubeau averaged 12 points and five boards per game and shot almost 50 percent from the field, and quick-and-slick senior point guard Dash Harris has 64 starts under his belt. 

So Middleton and Loubeau form a nice combo up front, although Loubeau could improve his range. And Harris is a quality distributor at the point, although he's not much of a scorer.

Nonetheless, the Aggies are covered at the one, three and four spots.

Six-foot-9 sophomore Kourtney Robinson and 6-foot-9 junior Ray Turner will take up time and space in the frontcourt, as will 6-foot-9 redshirt freshman Daniel Alexander, a former Top-100 recruit. Turner was a bit of a disappointment offensively last year, but improvement is expected.

Sophomore C Keith Davis will try to provide a physical presence inside at 6-foot-10. And junior Naji Hibbert and transfer Elston Turner will play alongside Harris in the backcourt.

Texas A&M outrebounded opponents by better than six boards a game last year, held opponents to 41 percent shooting (32 percent from beyond the arc) and allowed just 61 points per game. And we're guessing the Aggies will put up similar numbers this year.

Big 12 coaches picked A&M, along with Kansas, as the co-favorites to win the conference this season, the last before the Aggies move to the SEC next year. A&M is also ranked No. 19 in the USA Today/ESPN preseason poll and No. 20 in the AP poll.

Additions/Losses

A&M loses guard BJ Holmes, who averaged 10 points per game last year, and F Nathan Walkup, who averaged nine points and six boards per game. But they now get the services of transfer Elston Turner, who shot 38 percent from three-point land in two seasons at Washington before sitting out last year. And they expect freshman Jamal Branch, a very good defender and Top-50 recruit, and Jordan Green, a shooter, to see minutes in the backcourt rotation.

2011-12 Texas A&M Basketball Schedule

The Aggies get an early taste of SEC play when they meet Mississippi State at the Coaches vs. Cancer tournament and Florida at the Orange Bowl Classic. And they could also run into either Arizona or St. John's up in New York City.

We don't know how much bettors might learn about A&M when they play the likes of Liberty, Southern, A&M-Corpus Christi, Alcorn State, Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston State, Louisiana-Monroe and Arkansas Tech, all in College Station. So bettors should pay attention when A&M plays those major-conference foes in the early-season tournaments.

The Aggies open Nov. 9 against Liberty, and start conference play with a road game at No. 12 Baylor on January 2.

2011-12 Texas A&M Predictions for College Basketball

BetOnline is listing Texas A&M at +450 to win the Big 12 regular-season title, behind Baylor at +135 and Kansas at +160.

The Aggies are also being offered at +5,000 to win the NCAA National Championship. 

Coach Kennedy inherited an outfit with enough pieces in place to contend in the Big 12 and return to the NCAA Tournament, but the uncertainty surrounding his health situation throws up question marks.

While Big 12 coaches picked A&M as a preseason co-favorite, that probably had less to do with the Aggies and more to do with the losses other contenders incurred. Still, if things go well, A&M has a good chance to reach the second weekend of the Big Dance.

Bettors might also want to note that the Aggies went 9-15 on the ‘over/unders’ last year, because they're patient on offense, solid on defense and they rebound well. And they'll carry over that style of play into this new coaching regime.

Doc Moseman is the owner of Doc’s Sports college basketball picks Web site.

The thing about sports is that its fans take it very seriously.

There's nothing wrong with that, but every now and again, something happens in the sports world that reminds us all of one thing: This is just a game.

Thursday, October 27 at 7:30 p.m. EDT

ESPN's Andy Katz reports that Texas A&M men's baskeball Coach Billy Kennedy has been diagnosed with early stages of Parkinson's disease.

While there is reason to be optimistic about his return, nobody knows exactly when that return will come.

This season is supposed to be Kennedy's first on the sidelines for the Aggies. He was the head coach at Murray State from 2006 through last season.

Kennedy, 47, notched a 107-53 record in his time at Murray State, making it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament in 2010.

Prior to that, Kennedy was an assistant at Miami for a year. That job came after six seasons at Southeastern Louisiana, where he made the NCAA Tournament once.

Before hiring Kennedy, Texas A&M's head coach was Mark Turgeon. Turgeon made the NCAA Tournament in all four of his seasons with the Aggies, but never made it out of the second round.

The Associated Press is reporting that assistant Glynn Cyprien will coach for the Aggies in Kennedy's absence. Cyprien had previously said that he didn't expect to be the head coach for a long time, but that was before the details behind Kennedy's absence became public.

The Aggies begin their regular season on November 9 against Liberty in the Coaches vs. Cancer Classic.

The Big 12 conference has already taken more than its share of lumps this offseason. The departures of Nebraska and Colorado, while not a huge blow to the conference’s basketball strength, have left it weakened and ripe for plunder by the rest of the country.

Last weekend, the conference felt what might prove to be the first tremors of another major shakeup. Texas A&M, looking to improve its football fortunes, has started investigating a move to join the football superpowers of the SEC.

While football and its associated dollars are inevitably the driving force for the Aggies’ possible move, basketball would inevitably feel the effects as well. Who would be the winners and losers, in basketball terms, if Texas A&M switched leagues?

Although every sport would feel the potential damage to the Aggies’ rivalry with the Texas Longhorns, that issue wouldn’t really be a priority where basketball is concerned. No sport can match the intensity of the football rivalry between those schools, and basketball doesn’t have all that much history behind it, given what an afterthought hoops had been until recently in College Station.

The move from the Big 12 to the SEC would have little effect on the Aggies’ on-court fortunes. Both are power conferences deep in tournament-worthy teams and featuring a single 500-pound gorilla (Kansas or Kentucky) at the top.

As for the SEC, it would be similarly indifferent to whether the Aggies come or not. For basketball purposes, they’re a solid team, but wouldn’t have that much effect on the conference’s long-term fortunes.

The big loser in all of this upheaval, though, would be the Big 12.

The departures of Nebraska and Colorado have already reduced the league to 10 teams, the smallest of the power conferences. Texas A&M’s departure, if it happens, could trigger the demise of the conference as other teams bolt from what looks increasingly like a sinking ship.

The last major conference upheaval (also motivated primarily by football concerns) turned Conference USA from a substantial basketball power into a joke. The last thing college basketball needs is a repeat performance, but unless the Big 12 can find a way to bolster its dwindling cachet, that appears to be the direction things are headed.

Unfortunately for all concerned, Texas A&M may well have good reason to depart the Big 12. Texas’ new TV network is likely to leave them as the lone power players in a waning conference, and if the Aggies stay around, they may suffer if another team triggers the breakup of the Big 12.

If, however, Texas A&M makes the first move, they be able to join a new conference on their own terms instead of having to scramble to escape if (or when) the Big 12 collapses.

The Texas A&M Basketball Team defeated the AMW Elite 80-78 in Paris, France. With the win, the Ags concluded their European Tour with a 2-2 record. A&M lost their first two games of the tour 62-51 and 85-73 to the Swiss National Team. The Ags rebounded with two wins over AMW Elite by the scores of 90-61 and 80-78. AMW Elite is made up of players from two French professional teams. The trip to Europe gave the team a chance to get an early look at Coach Billy Kennedy's system. Kennedy was a late hire in the spring when Mark Turgeon left for Maryland, and this was the first time these players have played a game for Kennedy.

The surprise of the trip was easily the strong play from junior guard Elston Turner. The 6'5" transfer from the University of Washington led the Ags in scoring averaging 13.7 points per game for the four-game trip. Turner did most of his damage from the outside, hitting 8-14 shots behind the arc. If Turner can keep up his scoring during the season, it will be a big boon to the Ags who need an outside threat to make opponents pay when they double Khris Middleton.

Senior PG Dash Harris appears to be fully recovered from a wrist injury that nagged him last year. Harris averaged seven points and five assists per game. Harris is the unquestioned leader of this team. If the Aggies are going to make their seventh straight trip to the NCAA Tournament then Harris is going to need to make a quantum leap in his play from last season. Harris was so poor on the offensive end last year that defenders often sagged off of him on offense, and doubled Khris Middleton. A&M does not need Harris to be a scorer, he just needs to set up his teammates and make layups and free throws when they are available. His performance the last four games appear to be a nice step in that direction.

Sophomore Kourtney Roberson seems to be adjusting well to his spot in the post. The Ags need Roberson to play the 5 this year so David Loubeau can remain at his natural position of power forward. Roberson had 11 points and 11 rebounds in the Ags 80-78 win over AMW.

The trip was a nice introduction to the college game for freshmen guards Jamal Branch and Jordan Green. It is doubtful that the two freshmen will see any teams more physical than the Swiss National Team and AMW Elite this year. It also gives the young guards a chance to bond with their teammates and coaches.

Billy Kennedy came to A&M from Murray State with the reputation as a defensive coach. Judging from this trip, the Ags could use some work on that end of the court. The team allowed 68.5 points per game during the tour on 38 percent shooting from the floor. While the shooting percentage is acceptable, the PPG are not. When taking into consideration the fact that A&M only had one week to practice before the trip, the numbers are not too bad. The coaches now have had an early look at their team and know what to concentrate on before the season begins. This was the Ags first foreign trip since 2003 when the team toured Italy.

Make no mistake about it. Nobody is talking about the implications of the Aggies departure from the Big 12 in terms of sports like volleyball, softball or track.

Texas A&M's consideration to leave for the SEC is driven by one thing: football.

But if the Aggies switch conferences, their exit would create a huge hole in the Big 12 men's basketball world.

From 1990-2004, the program stumbled to an overall record of 145-260 under Tony Barone and Melvin Watkins. In Watkins' last season, the Aggies finished dead-last in the Big 12, not winning a single game in conference play.

However, life has been much better recently for Texas A&M basketball.

In fact, the Aggies' hoops program has won as many games in the last six seasons as they did in the previous 14.

Billy Gillispie brought basketball back to life in Bryan-College Station. Gillispie took the Aggies to the NIT in his first season as head coach. Their two wins in the 2005 National Invitational Tournament were the school’s first postseason victories in 23 seasons.

In his three years as head coach, Gillispie (pictured) went 70-26, going three-for-three in the postseason, including a trip to the Sweet 16 in 2007.

After Gillispie, Mark Turgeon kept things going by leading the program to a 73-31 record and three more NCAA appearances.

The torch has now been passed to Billy Kennedy (107-53 the last five years at Murray State), who hasn’t coached a game but is already making his mark on A&M basketball.

This summer, the first-year coach has received commitments from a pair of elite-level guards in senior J-Mychal Reese and now junior Kendrick Nunn.

ESPN's Andy Katz thinks a move to the SEC would not cause major trauma for Kennedy, based on his past assistant coaching assignments at New Orleans, Northwestern State and Tulane and head coaching stops at Southeastern Louisiana and Centenary.

In terms of competition, SEC basketball, unlike SEC football, would be no more than a lateral move for A&M.

In the SEC, the Aggies would have to go up against perennial powerhouses Kentucky and Florida. But after that, SEC hoops is up and down.

The Big 12 not only has Kansas and Texas at the top of the conference, but also has other Top 25 programs such as Missouri, Kansas State and Oklahoma State with which to contend.

Texas A&M basketball will be in good shape whether they move to the SEC or stay put in the Big 12.

But the hit the conference would take if they left would be painful. 

Texas A&M has hired Murray State coach Billy Kennedy, according to an article on espn.com. Kennedy will replace Mark Turgeon who took the Maryland head coaching job, following Gary Williams' retirement.

Kennedy was not the first choice for Texas A&M, as athletic director Bill Byrne flew to Fargo, ND on Saturday to meet with Northern Iowa head coach Ben Jacobson. Last season, Jacobson's Panthers upset Kansas in the NCAA Tournament, making him a hot coaching target.

Jacobson decided to stay at his current job, which left Kennedy as the most likely candidate to accept the Texas A&M job.

In five years at Murray State, Kennedy accumulated a 107-53 record. In the 2009-2010 season, the Racers upset four seed Vanderbilt in the first round of the NCAA Tournament before losing to Butler.

This previous season, Murray State went 23-8 but were unable to win their conference tournament, sending them to the NIT Tournament where they lost in the first round.

Before being the head coach at Murray State, Kennedy spent time as a head or assistant coach at 10 different universities, including being an assistant at Texas A&M in the early 1990s.

The Aggies are reportedly offering Kennedy $1.3 million to $1.5 million, quite a significant pay raise from the $225,000 he was guaranteed at Murray State.

Kennedy will be faced with the tough task of keeping the Aggies' two current signees committed to Texas A&M. There is a possibility that both of them will follow Turgeon to Maryland or go else where.

Texas A&M was considered to be a preseason top 25 team next year and it will be interesting to see if any of there current players transfer.

The coaching carousel was rocked a week and a half ago when Gary Williams' announced his retirement out of the blue and Maryland was forced to hire a replacement. This hiring is one less job that is open but, of course, also opens the Murray State job.