Missouri Game Review

Well, we needed a win against Missouri to punch our ticket into the Big Dance, and we got that win. On Senior Day, on Josh Carter's last game at Reed Arena, the student section was wild and crazy, the team was pumped, and Missouri was reeling in the first half. A 22-point halftime lead helped spur the Aggies on to a decisive 96-86 win over Missouri.

A&M's Achilles' heel all season long has been turnovers on offense, and a Missouri team that plays a frenetic pace and traps all over the court seemed the exact opposite of what we wanted to play on Saturday. However, after a horrific, turnover-filled game in our last outing against Colorado, the Ags turned the tables on Missouri, using strong guard play to consistently break their halfcourt trap in the first half. Sloan, Harris, and Holmes were able to navigate that Missouri defense with ease, breaking their trap and pushing the tempo of the game, leading to many transition baskets for A&M.

Nathan Walkup hit three treys in the first half, giving Missouri another long-range shooter to worry about, besides Carter, Holmes, and Sloan. Bryan Davis was dominating inside, David Loubeau was tearing it up, and our bench gave Missouri fits. Our bench outscored our starters in the first half, a completely unexpected development. Even Dash Harris got into the act, going 3-4 from the floor for 6 points for the game.

Missouri made a run to get back into the game in the second half, just like I expected them to. There is a reason Missouri is ranked #15 in the nation, they are a very good team. However, the Aggies were able to weather the storm, keep their compsure, and win the game.

I really have to hand it to the students; they were into the game from the beginning, and never let up. Every time the cameras panned to the crowd, they were jumping, just keeping a crazy, electric atmosphere going, and keeping the team up. (The only exception was one student who gave the camera the 'horns down' sign before a commercial break, but one idiot who doesn't know what game he's watching doesn't ruin it for everyone else.) The students were out in force, and they made sure Josh Carter had a proper send-off.

More after the jump...

I rip into Turgeon a lot when the team is underachieving, but I give him credit for the game yesterday. The team obviously spent a lot of time in practice working on ball security and it showed in their ability to break Missouri's trap. Kudos to Turgeon and staff.

Our next game is against Texas Tech on Wednesday in the opening day of the Big 12 Tournament in Oklahoma City. Now that we've beaten Missouri and are in the Big Dance, we're just playing for seeding. Let's keep it going, and hope we get a shot at playing Missouri again.