Billy Kennedy
Alex Caruso
Texas A&M Basketball
No. 8 Aggies face latest tough test on the road at Vanderbilt
Above: Watch Billy Kennedy and Alex Caruso's comments after Wednesday's practice.
Vanderbilt lost to Texas, Baylor and LSU — opponents that Texas A&M has defeated.
Therefore, by transitive properties, the eighth-ranked Aggies (18-3, 7-1 SEC) logically should prevail when they face Vanderbilt (12-9, 4-4) in Southeastern Conference basketball on Thursday night in Nashville.
Of course, transitive properties don’t necessarily apply in college basketball.
Instead, the Aggies figure to be counting heavily on their other transitive properties — former transfers Danuel House and Jalen Jones — to capture their first victory at Vanderbilt’s Memorial Gymnasium.
House has broken out of a shooting slump by shooting 56 percent and scoring 44 points in the past two games.
Meanwhile, Jones, who leads A&M with a 16.8 scoring average, has scored in double figures in a dozen consecutive games. He also did yeoman’s work on defense in holding Iowa State’s Georges Niang to 15 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a 72-62 A&M victory on Saturday.
“They’re playing really well and doing other things,” A&M coach Billy Kennedy said of House and Jones. “Jalen had 14 rebounds the other day, guarded Georges Niang and did things defensively for us. He didn’t shoot it as well and missed some shots he usually makes. Danuel’s all-around game has really picked up. He’s sharing the ball and taking better shots. He’s much more efficient in everything he does now.
Matt Sachs, TexAgs
Danuel House has suddenly heated up again, which could be key for the Aggies heading into the season's decisive stretch.
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“When those two play well and we get a little support from everybody else scoring-wise, we’re a tough team to beat.”
House and Jones, the emergence of freshman Tyler Davis — who has averaged 15.7 points in his last three games — the all-around play of Alex Caruso and contributions of a productive bench are major factors in A&M being projected as high as a No. 2 seed for next month’s NCAA Tournament.
History indicates the Aggies will need to be at their best to post their first victory over the Commodores in Nashville.
A&M is 1-4 all-time against Vandy with the most recent loss a 57-54 setback in overtime in 2014.
Last season the Aggies did manage a 69-58 win over Vandy — their only victory in the series — but that was at Reed Arena in a game in which Jones, House and Caruso combined for 42 points.
The Aggies haven’t been as proficient on the road. In fact, they are just 3-2 in true road games, which includes narrow victories over Mississippi State and Tennessee and a loss at Arkansas in their most recent road trip.
Vanderbilt is 9-2 on its home court. That includes a current three-game win streak against Florida, Alabama and Auburn.
However, the Commodores are coming off a 72-58 loss at Texas, in which they were outrebounded 37-25 (15-8 offensively) and converted just five of 10 free throw attempts.
Damian James, a 7-0 junior center, scored 26 points in that losing effort and has had back-to-back 20-point performances.
However, sophomore guard Wade Baldwin is the Commodores’ leading scorer with a 14.3 average. Also, native Texan Luke Kornet, a 7-1 junior forward who missed five games because of a knee injury, has scored in double figures in three of the last four games.
Despite having great height, Vandy relies heavily on three-pointing shooting. The Commodores are second in the SEC with 172 three-point goals.
Vanderbilt lost to Texas, Baylor and LSU — opponents that Texas A&M has defeated.
Therefore, by transitive properties, the eighth-ranked Aggies (18-3, 7-1 SEC) logically should prevail when they face Vanderbilt (12-9, 4-4) in Southeastern Conference basketball on Thursday night in Nashville.
Of course, transitive properties don’t necessarily apply in college basketball.
Instead, the Aggies figure to be counting heavily on their other transitive properties — former transfers Danuel House and Jalen Jones — to capture their first victory at Vanderbilt’s Memorial Gymnasium.
House has broken out of a shooting slump by shooting 56 percent and scoring 44 points in the past two games.
Meanwhile, Jones, who leads A&M with a 16.8 scoring average, has scored in double figures in a dozen consecutive games. He also did yeoman’s work on defense in holding Iowa State’s Georges Niang to 15 points and grabbed 14 rebounds in a 72-62 A&M victory on Saturday.
“They’re playing really well and doing other things,” A&M coach Billy Kennedy said of House and Jones. “Jalen had 14 rebounds the other day, guarded Georges Niang and did things defensively for us. He didn’t shoot it as well and missed some shots he usually makes. Danuel’s all-around game has really picked up. He’s sharing the ball and taking better shots. He’s much more efficient in everything he does now.
Matt Sachs, TexAgs
Danuel House has suddenly heated up again, which could be key for the Aggies heading into the season's decisive stretch.
{"Module":"photo","Alignment":"left","Size":"large","Caption":"Danuel House has suddenly heated up again, which could be key for the Aggies heading into the season\u0027s decisive stretch.","MediaItemID":63608}
House and Jones, the emergence of freshman Tyler Davis — who has averaged 15.7 points in his last three games — the all-around play of Alex Caruso and contributions of a productive bench are major factors in A&M being projected as high as a No. 2 seed for next month’s NCAA Tournament.
History indicates the Aggies will need to be at their best to post their first victory over the Commodores in Nashville.
A&M is 1-4 all-time against Vandy with the most recent loss a 57-54 setback in overtime in 2014.
Last season the Aggies did manage a 69-58 win over Vandy — their only victory in the series — but that was at Reed Arena in a game in which Jones, House and Caruso combined for 42 points.
The Aggies haven’t been as proficient on the road. In fact, they are just 3-2 in true road games, which includes narrow victories over Mississippi State and Tennessee and a loss at Arkansas in their most recent road trip.
Vanderbilt is 9-2 on its home court. That includes a current three-game win streak against Florida, Alabama and Auburn.
However, the Commodores are coming off a 72-58 loss at Texas, in which they were outrebounded 37-25 (15-8 offensively) and converted just five of 10 free throw attempts.
Damian James, a 7-0 junior center, scored 26 points in that losing effort and has had back-to-back 20-point performances.
However, sophomore guard Wade Baldwin is the Commodores’ leading scorer with a 14.3 average. Also, native Texan Luke Kornet, a 7-1 junior forward who missed five games because of a knee injury, has scored in double figures in three of the last four games.
Despite having great height, Vandy relies heavily on three-pointing shooting. The Commodores are second in the SEC with 172 three-point goals.
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