Photo by Matt Sachs, TexAgs
Texas A&M Basketball
Texas A&M shoots up to No. 18 in AP basketball poll
If you're looking for a way to take your attention off of football ... well ... Billy Kennedy's Texas A&M basketball program now has just about everyone's attention.
An exceptional showing in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament that included wins over Texas and then-No. 10 Gonzaga paid dividends for the Aggies (6-1) on Monday, when the most recent Associated Press poll listed A&M at No. 18 — up seven spots from last week's No. 25 tie with SMU.
With LSU's consecutive losses during the week, the Tigers dropped out of the polls to leave only A&M, No. 16 Vanderbilt and John Calipari's No. 1-ranked Kentucky Wildcats among the SEC's currently ranked teams.
Syracuse, which took down Charlotte and then-No. 18 Connecticut on its way to defeating the Aggies in the B4A championship game, moved from unranked up to No. 14.
Gonzaga, for its part, landed at No. 13 after recovering to defeat UConn in the third-place game.
In the USA Today/Coaches Poll, the Aggies jumped from unranked up to No. 20.
A&M began the year in the 'others receiving votes' category in both polls, but it wasn't long for that life.
The 2-1 showing in the Battle 4 Atlantis followed a 4-0 start to the season with the wins coming by an average margin of more than 30 points per game. By that point many were already bullish on the Aggies, who entered the week ranked for the first time since Dec. 2011, but it was the 62-61 victory over Gonzaga that had talking heads in attendance and elsewhere taking notice.
"Well now," ESPN's Andy Katz wrote. "That was an NCAA type game. Aggies defended Kyle Wiltjer and Zags well on last possession. Expect Texas A&M to be a major factor all season. Daniel House and Co. are going to be tough to matchup with during the season."
CBS Sports moved the Aggies up to No. 14 in its own rankings.
The Aggies next host Florida Gulf Coast (4-3) at 7 pm at Reed Arena on Wednesday night. Following that, they'll take a trip to Tempe, Ariz. to face the 4-2 Arizona State Sun Devils.
Hoops is back. Gig them.
An exceptional showing in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament that included wins over Texas and then-No. 10 Gonzaga paid dividends for the Aggies (6-1) on Monday, when the most recent Associated Press poll listed A&M at No. 18 — up seven spots from last week's No. 25 tie with SMU.
With LSU's consecutive losses during the week, the Tigers dropped out of the polls to leave only A&M, No. 16 Vanderbilt and John Calipari's No. 1-ranked Kentucky Wildcats among the SEC's currently ranked teams.
Syracuse, which took down Charlotte and then-No. 18 Connecticut on its way to defeating the Aggies in the B4A championship game, moved from unranked up to No. 14.
Gonzaga, for its part, landed at No. 13 after recovering to defeat UConn in the third-place game.
In the USA Today/Coaches Poll, the Aggies jumped from unranked up to No. 20.
A&M began the year in the 'others receiving votes' category in both polls, but it wasn't long for that life.
The 2-1 showing in the Battle 4 Atlantis followed a 4-0 start to the season with the wins coming by an average margin of more than 30 points per game. By that point many were already bullish on the Aggies, who entered the week ranked for the first time since Dec. 2011, but it was the 62-61 victory over Gonzaga that had talking heads in attendance and elsewhere taking notice.
"Well now," ESPN's Andy Katz wrote. "That was an NCAA type game. Aggies defended Kyle Wiltjer and Zags well on last possession. Expect Texas A&M to be a major factor all season. Daniel House and Co. are going to be tough to matchup with during the season."
CBS Sports moved the Aggies up to No. 14 in its own rankings.
The Aggies next host Florida Gulf Coast (4-3) at 7 pm at Reed Arena on Wednesday night. Following that, they'll take a trip to Tempe, Ariz. to face the 4-2 Arizona State Sun Devils.
Hoops is back. Gig them.
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