No. 13 Texas A&M wraps up non-conference play vs. ACU on Saturday
...and a happy New Year?
Grinches of years past were replaced by Holly and Jolly Aggies on Christmas.
Now, one more festive fixture remains for Buzz Williams & Co.
No. 13 Texas A&M (10-2) seeks a successful end to its wildly successful non-conference slate when Abilene Christian (8-5) comes to Reed Arena on Saturday afternoon.
Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. CT.
With victories over Ohio State, Creighton, Rutgers, Texas Tech and Purdue, the Aggies are one of seven teams with five or more Quadrant 1 and 2 wins thus far.
Ranked 27th in the NET, Joe Lunardi’s Dec. 20 “bracketology” update listed A&M as a No. 3 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
A frustrating non-conference loss is noticeably absent from an already impressive resume.
Two years ago, the Aggies fell to Wofford during the holidays.
"It was Christmas. This is a Merry Christmas," Williams said after a 77-45 win over Houston Christian. "I remember that Christmas not being a lot of fun. ... I was for sure the Grinch at my house."
The success on Dec. 20 ensured Williams' merriment on Dec. 25.
A similar showing vs. the Wildcats might provide a similar sentiment come New Year's Eve.
ACU should serve as A&M's final tune-up before 2025 brings a challenging stretch to begin SEC play.
Tests vs. Texas (35th in NET), at No. 12 Oklahoma (41), vs. No. 5 Alabama (10) and at No. 10 Kentucky (19) await.
That's a Quad 2 rivalry bout followed by three straight Quad 1 dates.
Conversely, ACU is ranked No. 224 in the NET, which is 113 spots higher than A&M's most recent opponent.
The Aggies ran away from HCU without the services of leading scorer Wade Taylor IV and leading rebounder Andersson Garcia seeing limited minutes.
“I didn't like it at all,” Williams said. “Very uncomfortable. We're very reliable on (Taylor's) talent, for sure. ... Even practicing without him was different.”
Hampered by a groin injury suffered vs. Purdue, Taylor's status for Saturday remains unknown, but in his absence, four Aggies reached double figures behind Hayden Hefner's game-high 19.
“Some of that will come back to help us,” Williams said. “There were some extended minutes for some other guys.
“We hope that we're not in that position. Those guys are really important to our program and what we do every day in practice. For them to be able to play, they've earned that, but also, in case something undisclosed or something we don't want to happen does transpire, at least they have had some game pressure reps, which I think will be healthy.”
A by-committee approach could be needed vs. an ACU team that is 2-4 in true road games, including a one-point loss at East Texas A&M on Dec. 18. The Aggies blasted those Lions by 32 in early November.
That Nov. 8 victory was the first of A&M's four Quad 4 wins. Adding a fifth and thus avoiding a resume blot would mean any ACU acquaintance could be forgotten.
A&M's goal is to ensure Saturday's game is never brought to mind come March.
