Texas A&M Strong SEC Start: 'Still Have Work To Do'
Since the beginning of SEC play for Texas A&M, every challenge that stood in its way was faced head on.
A road opener against Florida as 6.5-point underdogs? Handled. A home game against the No. 20 Missouri Tigers ? Passed with flying colors. A trip to South Carolina later that week? A 40-point win. A matchup against No. 15 Auburn on the road? A broken home winning streak for those Tigers.
The Aggies even beat Florida again to sweep the season series and move to 5-0 in the SEC, defying all odds after a rough non-conference open to the season.
Despite their only loss to Kentucky — another team that found its footing after a subpar start — the Aggies played a close game throughout and proved why they could hang with just about any team.
Now, the Aggies are tied for second place in the SEC at 7-1, and still have games against No. 2 Tennessee, No. 4 Alabama and formerly-ranked Arkansas.
“We still have work to do,” Aggies coach Buzz Williams said. “We’re thankful that we’re in the position that we’re in … and we want to try to keep that juju going, regardless of results because there’s a part of that togetherness that I think has led to [positive] results."
Williams stated earlier in the season that he felt responsible for the team’s 6-5 start, calling his coaching “immature.” Since then, his squad has cleaned things up and found success, still preparing to make a run in the postseason.
For the Aggies, that starts with winning games both at home and the road.
“We’re off to a good start,” Williams said. “We haven’t clinched a road season winning record, but I think our staff does a really good job of preparing our guys for what’s coming from the opponent, and I think our players are continuing to do a better job of only hearing our voices and trying not to get lost in the environment.”
“We’ve got to continue to find ways to be even better,” Williams added. “But if you’re looking at the entire picture, we’ve got to find ways to be even better at home. Thus far, that’s what has caused us harm.”
Williams laid the groundwork for his team’s success early — some of the key factors being out-rebounding opponents and limiting turnovers.
On the season, the Aggies have grabbed more boards and committed fewer turnovers than their opponents, including doing so in back-to-back games against Auburn and Vanderbilt.
The Aggies also showed their ability to keep their poise, especially in close games, which the players emphasize for each other.
“[Vanderbilt] is one of those games that prepares you,” junior forward Henry Coleman III said. “It helps you realize any game you play in the SEC, you can lose. We learned that last year.”
Doing so in the course of a game is one thing, however.
The next challenge for the Aggies will be is continuing to find success during arguably their toughest stretch of games ahead of the trip to Arkansas.
“Nine days of work in how we work is a lot of time,” Williams said of the team's recent game and practice schedule. “That does drain your emotion, and that does drain your brain because mentally, we try to hold our guys accountable … there’s some emotion in that.”
Playing in front of the home crowd at Reed Arena has helped.
"There's a groundswell of support because of how we're playing,” Williams said. “I think it resonates with people because we try so hard, but I thought [against Vanderbilt] that the ambiance of Reed completely changed the game."
“Our emotional gas tank was low," he added. "I honestly think that their energy replaced our emotional energy, and I think that they were the difference."
And Coleman couldn’t agree more. The forward expressed as much after the Aggies’ pink-out game that featured more than 12,000 fans.
“Those environments are what you dream for,” Coleman said. “Playing close games, no matter what league you're in, [is what] every kid is in the driveway shooting for. I thought the way the whole team handled it, the way the coaches handled it, and [how] nobody seemed very nervous towards the end — that’s just the kind of stuff that we do.”
And while the toughest part of their schedule is yet to come, a road win against Arkansas might be what the Aggies need to keep their “juju” going.
“We’re playing SEC basketball,” Coleman III. “Stuff happens. If you’re worried about what just happened on that last play, you're gonna stay on that last play, and then that play is gonna affect [the next] play. We talk about it all the time in the locker room during practice: ‘What's next?’ ‘What's your mentality?’ You have to be prepared for the next moment.”
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