The Aggies are 16-2 (3-1) with wins over Temple (in Lake Buena Vista, FL), Washington, Oklahoma State and Missouri and losses to Boston College (in Lake Buena Vista, FL) and at Texas. The Aggies return 3 starters from last season (a squad that posted a 24-10 overall record, including a 11-5 mark in the Big XII Conference). The Aggies were projected to finish 6th in the Big XII Conference.
The Aggies are lead by F's Khris Middleton, David Loubeau and Nathan Walkup. Middleton is averaging 16 points/game, 5 rebounds/game and 3 assists/game. Walkup is averaging 10 points/game, 6 rebounds/game (leads the team) and 1 assist/game. Middleton and Walkup are two of the team's six big men that return and were regulars in the rotation a year ago.
Loubeau is averaging 11 points/game, 5 rebounds/game and 1 assist/game. Loubeau was sporadically awesome while averaging 23 minutes per game last season. He produced 19 points and nine rebounds against Texas Tech, 17 points and nine boards against Kansas, 17 and eight against Missouri and 20 and nine in the season opener against Angelo State. He scored at least 12 points in nine of A&M's final 15 games. Loubeau is the first Texas A&M big man in a couple years you might call "skilled." Not since Joseph Jones in 2006 has A&M had a forward who could do much outside of dunk and make the occasional hustle basket. Loubeau has a soft touch and one of the only decent hook shots in the Big 12 -- another one of note belongs to Curtis Kelly -- which makes him a legitimate threat on the block.
G's Dash Harris and B.J. Holmes co lead the team in assists with 4 assists/game. Harris is the team's "creator". Harris functions best as an on-ball defender and a lightning-quick penetrator off the dribble, making him an ideal true point guard for a team that has weapons around him. He led the team in assists last season with 3 per game and was second in minutes (27). Holmes shot just 38% from the field last year and 37% from three-point range, solid, but a dip from his first two seasons in College Station, when he made at least 40% of his threes. His scoring last year also was wildly inconsistent -- 18 points one night, zero the next; 14 points, then six, then 17 -- making it difficult to tell if Holmes is ready to take on a more prominent offensive role, especially after his performance dropped off significantly after a promising sophomore season in which he shot it well (42% 3PT) and handled it well (2.7:1 assist-to-turnover ratio). Holmes has never been much of a threat from inside the three-point line, though, and functions best as a scorer when he is being set up by teammates.
The Aggies play pretty good defense, take care of the ball and they're 4th in the conference in rebounding. They've also been tested by playing Boston College, Wisconsin, Washington and Arkansas. A&M has one skilled big man, two solid guards and plenty of big bodies, which is usually enough to finish in the middle of the Big 12, at least. Obviously as their performance this season shows they're capable of much more.
