Aggies Aim to End Slide At No. 22 Tennessee
It doesn't get any easier for Texas A&M, which takes a four-game losing streak to Knoxville on Tuesday to take on No. 22 Tennessee.
The Aggies (15-6, 4-4 SEC) have suffered four consecutive single-digit losses in the last two weeks, with the most recent coming in a nine-point setback Saturday at home against South Carolina.
The Volunteers (13-7, 5-3) are coming off of a one-point defeat at Texas and should be fired up for another matchup against a Lone Star State opponent.
“Tennessee has the fifth-best defense in the country," Texas A&M coach Buzz Williams said. "Great players, great depth, and can beat you from the perimeter and inside.”
Offensive rebounding was a major positive for the Aggies in Saturday's loss. Despite going up against the third-best rebounding team in the conference, Texas A&M out-hustled the Gamecocks 20-13 on the offensive glass.
As he has all season, forward Henry Coleman III was a huge part of A&M's rebounding success. The sophomore leads the team in boards per game (six), but managed to snag a game-high 15 rebounds, which included seven on the offensive end, against South Carolina.
“Henry was phenomenal,” Williams said. “Seven of his offensive rebounds led to the three times that he was fouled. He was hard to take off the floor.”
Statistically, the Volunteers aren't a great rebounding team, but Williams isn't focused on numbers. Combined with Tennessee maintaining the 12th-best defensive efficiency rating in the country, a win certainly won't come easy for the Aggies.
"They’re excellent on the glass," Williams said. "Not quite as fast as South Carolina, Arkansas, or Kentucky, but in that range particular when they play both point guards at the same time.”
Rick Barnes' team boasts a terrific backcourt led by Santiago Vescovi (14.0 points), Kennedy Chandler (13.2 points, 4.7 assists) and Zakai Zeigler (7.3 points, 2.4 assists).
Chandler is second in the SEC in steals per game (2.3), and has proved himself as a dynamic playmaker on both ends as a freshman.
Senior guard Quenton Jackson is the Aggies' leading-scorer (12.9 points) and, at 6-5, should be able to take advantage of a potential matchup with 6-foot Chandler.
Jackson has averaged 15 points over his past three games and will look to improve after a missing eight of 10 shots against the Gamecocks.
"We'll have to be at our absolute best," Williams said.
The game is set for 6 p.m. C.T. at Thompson-Boling Arena.
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