Taylor: SEC Tournament showed healthy Aggies ahead of Selection Sunday

Joni Taylor's Aggies finished the 2023-24 regular season 19-12 with a 6-10 conference record, losing in the quarterfinals to the SEC Tournament champions South Carolina. With Selection Sunday approaching, Joni Taylor joined TexAgs Radio to discuss A&M's postseason position.

Key notes from Joni Taylor interview

• Spring break comes at the perfect time for us. We let our players get out of town. We’ll let them rest their minds, go home, see family, and come back refreshed on Thursday night and start preparing. 
   
• We doubled our win total from last year. We have a different type of drive, resilience and focus for what we want this program to be. In year two, I’m super proud of where this team is and where this program is moving. You wonder what this season would’ve looked like if we had stayed healthy this year.
   
• I definitely think we are taking steps in the right direction. I’m proud of how the talent we brought in has adapted, and I’m excited for the future.
   
• We look at Bracketology. Charlie Creme is usually spot-on with who’s in and out, but in terms of our seeding, he’s been pretty spot-on these last few years. I think we are in.
   
• Our job was to beat Mississippi State in the SEC Tournament, who was ahead of us on the bubble, and we did that. That head-to-head gave us a chance to prove who we are with a healthy roster.
   
• We played South Carolina pretty close and well, and what’s important is the committee knows we have Endyia Rogers back. Knowing she’s back and healthy will be beneficial for us. 
   
• I think our men are super talented. Buzz Williams does a great job. I don’t know anyone in the country who’s better than Buzz at having his team motivated. They’ll be ready to go. 
   
• We talked about not letting South Carolina do what they want to do. We were passive when they came to College Station. We never adjusted and fought back. We wanted to come out swinging with our aggressiveness and defense. We had to make it tough for them, and that’s what we did.
   
• We forced them to commit a season-high 24 turnovers. They never got settled, but a lot of that had to do with our defense. That gave us confidence and showed us and the committee what we are able to do when fully healthy.
   
• We talk about it all the time, and we’ll talk about what happened in the South Carolina-LSU game. It’s very easy to say what you wouldn’t do in that situation. In all my 21 years of coaching, I’ve never been in that situation, thankfully.
   
• Any time there’s something worth talking about, we talk about it. We talk about the consequences. Kamilla Cardoso now can’t play in the next game, the first round of the NCAA Tournament. It’s about being able to think of long-term consequences and not the short-term team getback. It’s about controlling your emotions.
   
• Janiah Barker and Endyia Rogers are incredible. Endyia is one of the best point guards in the country. Janiah’s ability to pass defend, and make an impact by just being on the floor makes such a difference for our team. They are impactful in so many ways.