Jan. 4, 2009
COLLEGE STATION -
Texas A&M closes its non-conference schedule against the North Dakota Fighting Sioux on Monday at 7 p.m. at Reed Arena. The Aggies have won nine straight games, tying for the eighth longest winning streak in the nation.
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format 
GAME #15
Texas A&M Aggies (13-1, 0-0 Big 12)
vs.
North Dakota Fighting Sioux (8-5, 0-0 Great West)
Monday, January 5, 2009
7 p.m. (CST)
College Station, Texas
Reed Arena (12,989 cap.)
Television
Fox Sports Net Southwest
(aired across Texas except where Spurs game is shown)
Play-by-Play: Greg Lucas
Analyst: Jim Haller
Bryan- Suddenlink: Channel 25
Dish Network: Channel 416
Direct TV: Channel 676
Radio
Texas A&M Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Dave South
Analyst: Al Pulliam
Sirius Satellite Radio: 91
www.aggieathletics.com
Network Affiliates
Atlanta KPYN-AM 900
Athens KLVQ-AM 1410
Austin KJCE-AM 1370
Brenham KWHI-AM 1280
Carthage KGAS-AM 1590
College Station WTAW-AM 1620
College Station KZNE-AM 1150
Comanche KCOM-AM 1550
Dallas KFXR-AM 1190
El Campo KULP-AM 1390
Gonzales KCTI-AM 1450
Houston KBME-AM 790
Marshall KMHT-AM 1450
New Braunfels KGNB-AM 1420
San Antonio KSJL-AM 810
San Saba KBAL-AM 1410
Sulphur Springs KSST-AM 1230
Victoria KVNN-AM 1340
TEXAS A&M AGGIES
www.aggieathletics.com
Record: 13-1 (0-0 Big 12)
Ranking/RPI: RV (AP, Coaches) / 45
- Last Game: Beat McNeese State (57-52) at home on Saturday
Current Streak: Won nine straight
Head Coach: Mark Turgeon (Kansas `87)
Record: 191-131 (11th year)
at Texas A&M: 38-12 (2nd year)
vs. North Dakota: 0-0
PROJECTED TEXAS A&M STARTERS
No. Player P Ht. Wt. Cl-Ex PPG RPG APG
15 Donald Sloan G 6-3 205 Jr-2L 11.4 3.4 3.6
3 Derrick Roland G 6-4 185 Jr-2L 5.3 2.2 --
23 Josh Carter F 6-7 200 Sr-3L 13.6 4.2 --
0 Bryan Davis F 6-9 240 Jr-2L 11.1 6.7 --
41 Chinemelu Elonu C 6-10 235 Jr-2L 9.2 6.6 --
NORTH DAKOTA FIGHTING SIOUX
www.fightingsioux.com
Record: 8-5 (0-0 Great West Conference/NCAA Division II)
Ranking/RPI: UR / --
Last Game: Beat Minot State (97-93 in OT) at home on Friday
Current Streak: Won two straight
Head Coach: Brian Jones (Northern Iowa `94)
Record: 34-37 (3rd year)
at North Dakota: 34-37 (3rd year)
vs. Texas A&M: 0-0
PROJECTED NORTH DAKOTA STARTERS
No. Player P Ht. Wt. Cl PPG RPG APG
54 Darius Joseph G 6-2 190 Sr. 8.5 3.4 4.2
12 Daniel Harkins G 6-3 180 Sr. 14.0 3.6 --
30 O.J. Harrison F 6-5 205 Sr. 10.5 4.4 --
21 Travis Mertens F 6-5 225 Jr. 8.8 6.6 --
44 Derek Benter C 6-8 220 So. 4.5 3.3 --
Additional Information:
Big 12 Conference: http://big12sports.com/
Great West Conference: http://greatwestconference.cstv.com/
NCAA: http://www.ncaa.com/
Half Price Holiday Hoops
Series Notes
- A&M and North Dakota have never played.
Key Game Notes
- A&M closes out its non-conference schedule at home against North Dakota on Monday. The Aggies open Big 12 play at Oklahoma State on Saturday.
- The Aggies have won nine straight -- tied for the eighth longest winning streak nationally -- and are coming off a 57-52 win against McNeese State at home on Saturday.
- North Dakota has won two straight and is coming off a 97-93 overtime win against Minot State at home on Friday.
- A&M is 9-0 at home this season while North Dakota is 2-4 in true road games.
- The Aggies have won 55 straight regular-season non-conference games at Reed Arena. The last loss was to A&M-Corpus Christi on Dec. 13, 2003 (82-80). A&M is 76-9 all-time in non-conference games at Reed (.894).
- The Aggies are 76-10 (.884) at home in the last five years, the second most home wins in the country (Memphis has 81).
- Mark Turgeon's 38-12 record is the second best coaching start in Big 12 history through 50 games. Kansas' Bill Self was 40-10 in 2003-05.
- A win would make A&M 14-1 for the second straight season, matching the second-best record after 15 games in school history. The 1919-20 team finished with a perfect 19-0 mark. Other 14-1 starts were in 1921-22 and 2007-08.
About North Dakota
- Members of the NCAA Division II Great West Conference, the Fighting Sioux are in their third season under Coach Brian Jones.
- North Dakota rallied from a 16-point first-half deficit to beat Minot State, 97-93, in overtime on Friday. Senior guard Daniel Harkins led the Fighting Sious with a career-high 29 points and senior guard Darius Joseph added a career-best 18 points.
- Harkins (6-3) leads the team in scoring with a 14.0 average while senior forward O.J. Harrison (6-5) adds 10.5 points per game.
- Junior guard Travis Bledsoe is making 53.3 percent (24-45) from three-point range
- The Fighting Sious are making 48.2 percent from the field, including 40.0 percent from three-point range.
McNeese State Recap
COLLEGE STATION (AP) - Chinemelu Elonu scored 15 points and grabbed seven rebounds to lead Texas A&M to a 57-52 victory over McNeese State on Saturday night. The Aggies (13-1) went scoreless for more than six minutes late in the game and nearly gave back a nine-point lead. Josh Carter ended the drought when he sank a jumper with 2:29 left to lift A&M to a 54-52 lead. Carter then snared a crucial rebound with 49 seconds remaining to help preserve the victory. Elonu made two free throws with 15 seconds left to give A&M a four-point lead. A backcourt violation on Elbryan Neal on Cowboys' ensuing possession doomed McNeese State's final chance at an upset. Diego Kapelan and Kleon Penn scored 15 points each for McNeese State (5-7), while Carter added 13 for A&M. The Aggies have won nine consecutive games, while the Cowboys have lost four in a row.
Inside Dish
- Senior Josh Carter owns the school record for career three-point field goals with 252, which ranks eighth in Big 12 history. The old A&M mark was 232 by Bernard King (1999-03). Carter is the most accurate three-point shooter in school history, making 42.1 percent. He led the nation in 2006-07 by making 50.0 percent.
- Carter leads the Big 12 in free throw percentage (.869, 53-61), 13th-best nationally among players with at least 60 attempts. The school record for a season is .865 by Mike Floyd in 1974-75. A&M is 68-11 when Carter scores in double figures.
- Carter has had three 20-point games this season, and scored 19 in the win against LSU. He is averaging a team-best 13.6 points. A two-time honorable mention All-Big 12 pick, he was a second-team preseason selection.
- Carter has started in 84 straight games -- every game since the start of his sophomore season. He has played in 115 career games and is on track to break the school record of 132 by Dominique Kirk (2004-08).
- Junior Bryan Davis scored 18 points with 10 rebounds in the win at Rice. He has averaged 10.9 points and 7.5 rebounds in the last nine games while making 65.0 (39-60) percent from the field. He leads the team in rebounds (6.7) and is second in blocks (20). Davis was named to the all-tournament team at the South Padre Island Invitational. A&M is 20-3 when Davis scores in double figures.
- Junior Donald Sloan has started in 50 straight games since the start of his sophomore year (2007-08). He has scored in double figures in seven of the last 10 games and tied his career-high with 21 points against Florida A&M. Sloan leads the team in assists (3.6). A&M is 33-4 when Sloan hands out at least 3 assists.
- Junior Chinemelu Elonu has had a team-high three double-doubles this season and in the last six games has averaged 12.2 points, 8.5 rebounds and 2.8 blocks. Elonu's season field goal percentage of .675 ranks fifth nationally (min. 75 FGA). A&M is 18-0 when Elonu scores at least 6 points and is 20-0 when he has at least 5 rebounds.
- Sophomore B.J. Holmes has averaged 10.0 points in the last 11 games while making 42.6 percent (20-47) from three-point range. Holmes hit a rainbow three-pointer with two seconds left to send the Alabama game into overtime. He scored a career-high 16 points against Alabama and added 14 against Arizona. A&M is 9-0 in his career when he scores at least 8 points and is 19-2 when he makes at least one three-pointer. He's made a three-pointer in 12 straight games.
- Junior Derrick Roland had scored at least 7 points in four straight games before playing just 10 minutes against McNeese State because of an injury. Roland is regarded as one of the country's top defenders and held Arizona's Chase Budinger to just 3 points on 1-of-6 shooting in the second half of A&M's come-from-behind victory. A&M is 15-3 when he scores at least 6 points in his career.
- Sophomore Nate Walkup has become the Aggies' new "Mr. Clutch" for making big shots in tight games. His trey against Arizona with 20 seconds left proved to be the game-winner. He hit a three-pointer with 14 seconds left at Alabama, which set up B.J. Holmes trey at the end of regulation that sent the game into overtime. Walkup also hit key baskets late in close games against Stephen F. Austin, SMU and Rice.
- Freshman Dash Harris has handed out a career-high 5 assists in two straight games. In the last two games, he's had 10 assists with just one turnover. He played a career-high 23 minutes against McNeese State.
- The Aggies made just 64.5 percent from the free throw line through the first five games and ranked last in the Big 12 last season at .633. The Aggies are fourth in the Big 12 this season at 70.8 percent. A&M set Big 12 and A&M records for free throw percentage by making 20-of-20 against Florida A&M.
- The Aggies are 35-of-39 (.897) from the free throw line in the last two minutes of "close games," which are defined as games within 10 points. In the last seven games, the Aggies are 26-of-29 (.897) in "crunch time.
- A&M has posted an average scoring margin of +9.6 points per game. The Aggie are out-scoring their opponents by an average of 7.5 points per game from the free throw line.
- The Aggies rallied from 14-point deficits to beat Arizona and Alabama. A&M was five points down with 15 seconds left in regulation against Alabama, but came back to win in overtime.
- A&M had just 4 turnovers (16 assists) against Arizona, a school record for fewest in a game. A&M is averaging just 12.1 turnovers per game, third fewest in the Big 12. A&M is 10-0 when it has 15 or fewer turnovers this season.
- A&M's 76 home wins in the last four years are the second most in the nation in that period behind Memphis (81).
- A&M is 65-19 in the last three seasons, ranking it among the winningest teams in the country in that span.
- A&M is one of just nine schools to win an NCAA Tournament game in each of the last three seasons.
- A&M and Kansas are the only Big 12 schools to win at least 21 games in each of the last four seasons.
- A&M has scored at least 22 points in the paint in all 14 games, averaging 31.7 points in the paint per game.
- The Aggies are receiving votes in both major polls are ranked No. 45 in the RPI.
In the last six games, A&M's opponents are averaging just 56.0 points per game on 39.0 percent field goal shooting, including only 29.9 percent from three-point range.
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