Three Things to Know about the Texas A&M Aggies

Kentucky picked up a big win over No. 25 Vandy on Saturday which followed up a brutal stretch where Kentucky fell to Auburn and Georgia, but were able to bounce back against South Carolina. As for the first two, they were bubble teams, desperate to get that win over Kentucky. Now, the Wildcats are getting set to hit the road again to face another team that is looking for a win to remain in the NCAA Tournament field.

With Texas A&M, not many people saw this coming, as they were looking like world beaters through the month of January as they were 17-4 overall and 7-1 in the SEC, but things have slipped since then. The Aggies followed up the first few weeks of SEC play by losing four-straight and have even lost six of their last eight games since Jan. 31. Right now, ESPN has them slotted in the "Last Four Byes" category, so a win over Kentucky would do wonders to keep their hopes alive and give them a better chance to stay in.

As for Kentucky, the possibility of a double-bye is there, but they would need a win over Texas A&M to help make that happen, given the fact that they have Florida coming to town on Saturday. As we get set for a matchup with plenty at stake, here are three things you need to know about Bucky McMillan's squad.

Best three-point defense in the SEC

This is an area where Texas A&M has had very consistent success in. Through their 16 games in the conference, the Aggies are the best three-point defense, holding teams to an average of 30.4 percent per game from there. Also, just recently, they held the best three-point shooting team in the SEC, Oklahoma, to 36 percent shooting from three. Not only that, but they also held Ole Miss to 7-25 in their win over them. Those two teams have given the Aggies their two most-recent wins and a big thanks is to their defense. They'll look to continue leaning on that.

High-tempo offense with a lot of threes

Kentucky will need to slow down an Aggies offense that has been known to put up points and make them inefficient, although they have slowed down over the last month. Even through their struggles, Texas A&M is still one of the fastest offenses in the country, getting up and down the court quickly. They also rank 2nd in the conference for percentage of points coming from three. They are not very efficient overall, but that volume of threes could turn deadly for the Wildcats if they are not careful. Texas A&M is getting 37.8 percent of their points from three, shooting it at a 35 percent clip. Ball movement is key for their offense, along with pace. They are ranked 14th in the country in assists on field goals made, as 57 percent of their made buckets are coming from assists.

Rebounding has been a struggle in SEC play

With Texas A&M's tempo and ball-movement, Kentucky can't let them get any more extra looks than they are going to have and the rebounding category can really work in their favor on Tuesday. The Aggies are 13th in the SEC on the defensive glass, while also being 11th on the offensive end. In their most recent 76-70 loss to Texas, they gave up 29 defensive rebounds. Then, in the loss to Arkansas before that, the Aggies were absolutely crushed once again on the offensive glass. They also let the Hogs get 37 percent of their misses as well. It's worth noting that big man Rashaun Agee is a big part of the success that they do have there, as he is 23rd nationally in defensive rebound percentage.

Kentucky may have to do some damage inside with Texas A&M's excellent three-point defense and it starts with rebounding and being physical down low. Defensively, the Wildcats are going to have to channel their aggressiveness there too and make them uncomfortable, which they have been known to make happen this season.