Texas A&M (17-5, 7-2 SEC) is coming off a close road loss, falling 100-97 to Alabama on Wednesday night, dropping its second conference game, and will now return to Reed Arena to face No. 17 Florida, is replaced the Aggies as the No. 1 team in the SEC standings.
Led by senior forward Rashaun Agee’s 21 points, followed by senior guard Marcus Hill’s 18-point performance, the Aggies shot 47% from the field and 45% from beyond the arc with 13 three-pointers, but the defense failed to secure enough stops, while several questionable calls from the referees led to several buckets in the second half that could, and should have been avoided.
Either way, Texas A&M is still in a good position to earn a bid to the NCAA Tournament amid head coach Bucky McMillan’s first season at the helm, likely needing three more wins in conference play to secure a spot in the postseason, but knowing the competition ahead, including road test against Vanderbilt and Arkanasas, defeating Florida would go a long way towards accomplishing these goals.
However, if the Aggies lose on Saturday, defeating Missouri at home and Vanderbilt might be necessary to avoid a massive drop-off. On Friday, ESPN Bracketology expert Joe Lunardi released his Bracketology tiers for every Power Five program, including the SEC, projecting ten bids for the conference, but did not list Texas A&M as one of the “likely” NCAA Tournament teams.
Instead, Lunardi listed the Aggies as his “Sleeper Team,” predicting that, even after falling to Alabama, Texas A&M is in a good position to win more than former head coach Buzz Williams’ 2024-2025 team, which finished 23-11 with a second-round exit in the NCAA Tournament.
“Now that the Aggies have reluctantly dropped out of first place, losing 100-97 at Alabama, we can call them the SEC sleeper. Bucky Ball has been a huge hit in College Station, and Texas A&M is in position to blow past last season’s win total.”
Texas A&M’s intense and relentless play style, elite shooting, and Rashaun Agee’s ability to take over late in games and control the tempo are just a few of the reasons the Aggies could make some serious noise in the postseason if they finish out the regular season strong.
Texas A&M will host Florida on Saturday night at 7:30 p.m. The game will air on the SEC Network.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: ESPN’s Joe Lunardi names Texas A&M an NCAA Tournament ‘sleeper’
Reporting by Cameron Ohnysty, Aggies Wire / Aggies Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
