Perimeter defense critical against Marshall if Aggies want to continue win streak
Extending a basketball winning streak will be a 3-D project for Texas A&M. That is, the Aggies must play effective defense at the 3-point line.
A&M (5-4) has certainly accomplished that in its four-game winning streak. That defense will get its sternest challenge against Marshall (7-4) in a 1:00 pm clash at Reed Arena. The visiting Thundering Herd has accumulated 108 3-point goals. That ranks 34th in the nation among 351 teams.
Guard Jon Elmore, who averages 20.8 points, has hit 37 for the season and has made seven in two games. That includes a 76-64 victory over Morehead State on December 10.
Also, guard C.J. Burks, who averages 18.0 points, has hit 19 from behind the arc.
Elmore and Burks are two of four starters returning from Marshall’s team which last year reached the second round of the NCAA basketball tournament.
“They’re hard to guard,” A&M coach Billy Kennedy said on Friday. “They shoot from deep. They have five (players) that can make 3’s.”
That sets up an intriguing contest with A&M, which has limited its last four opponents to 27.1 percent shooting (25 of 92) from 3-point range. But the Aggies haven’t faced a team as accomplished from long-range as the Thundering Herd.
“We’ve been good defensively. They throw a lot of lobs and do a lot of things you don’t see often. It’s going to be interesting to see how we can defend on the perimeter. We’re going to have to have high hands on everything because they’re very capable of scoring the ball at different levels,” Kennedy said. Aggies will need to raise their game to a higher level to maintain their run of success.
“(We’re) playing well and getting better,” Kennedy said. “Obviously, we expect to win when we’re at home. We’re going out to play to win. We just need to play better and continue to get better as a team. If we do that we’ll give ourselves a chance to beat a good team.”
The Aggies have shown steady improvement. They got off to a slow start, which at least can be partially blamed on losing senior guard Admon Gilder, who has not played because of a blood clot.
Kennedy acknowledged Gilder isn’t likely to return this season. However, the Aggies have gotten a recent boost from junior guard Wendell Mitchell, who is now healthy after overcoming early-season tendonitis.
Mitchell has averaged 12 points and hit eight 3-point goals over the last three games. He’s also added a much-needed steadying influence to the backcourt. That’s been a major factor in the Aggies’ win streak.
“I think that’s part of it,” Kennedy said. "He’s a big part of it to have another guard that can play the point guard position.”
A&M has also gotten a boost from junior guard Brandon Mahan and junior forward Christian Mekowulu. They both scored 20 points in a 71-49 victory over Valparaiso on Wednesday night.
But the Aggies also need sophomore guard T.J. Starks to break out of a cycle of inconsistency.
Starks leads the Aggies with a 13.0 scoring average. Unfortunately, he also committed a team-high 38 turnovers and is hitting just 35.8 percent from the field and a mere 21.6 percent from 3-point range.
He converted just 2 of 8 shots against Valpo and was benched for much of the second half.
Kennedy, though, said Starks will be back on the floor and is confident he’ll respond positively.
“TJ’s good,” Kennedy said. “He’s going to play better than he played last game. He’ll have a better effort on both ends of the floor. I expect him to bounce back.”
