Should Texas A&M Basketball Fans Start to Panic?

The Texas A&M Aggies are just one game over .500 five games into the season.

After building a sizeable lead against the Montana Grizzlies, the Aggies started to slip towards the end of the second half. The 19-point A&M lead was cut to just one with time dwindling. The Aggies locked in from the free-throw line, icing the game away in one that could have gone either way.

With the Bucky McMillan era off to a rocky start, is it time for Aggies fans to start panicking?

Why Texas A&M Fans Should Not Panic… Yet

Montana Grizzlies guard Money Williams (0) fouls Texas A&M Aggies guard Pop Isaacs (2) during the first half at Reed Arena. | Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

"If you told me before the game that [Montana] would go 16-of-31 from three, I don't know if we could win the game,” McMillan said after the game. ”That is such an astronomical number for that volume of 3-point shooting, so it was great for us to find a way to win the game… I was proud of our guys for being able to close it out. Overall, our team needs to be proud and happy with any performance where we can overcome a hot-shooting team."

There is a reason for non-conference games, and that is to act as a preseason of sorts, allowing for teams to work out their kinks before conference play starts and games start really mattering.

The Aggies should expect some turbulence as the year shapes up, especially considering this is a program that has a brand new head coach and a roster compiled of players from all over the country. A year ago, these players would never have imagined being on the same team. If the team did not experience some growing pains, it would be shocking.

On top of the new team getting to know itself and find its identity, TexAgs’ Luke Evangelist brought up a great point on X.

”I urge A&M fans to take a look around college basketball tonight,” Evangelist wrote. “Washington needed 2OT to beat Southern, 99-93. No. 21 Arkansas scored with 11 seconds left to beat Winthrop, 84-83. Syracuse nearly blew a double-digit lead to Monmouth, 78-73. It happens. That’s why college basketball is the best, most unpredictable sport. A&M found a way to win; they have plenty to work on, now learn from it. A Quad 3 win is better than a Quad 3 loss.“

No matter how ugly, a win is a win.

The Aggies get a chance to further mesh when they host Manhattan on Friday night at Reed Arena. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:00pm CT.