Sutton latest to deem Aggies Final Four worthy

[Jimcs50]

February 22, 2007
Sutton latest to deem Aggies Final Four worthy


While Texas A&M coach Billy Gillispie continues to avoid the whole NCAA Tournament conversation, the number of people who think the Aggies will make a deep run in the Tournament keeps growing.

The latest is Oklahoma State coach Sean Sutton, who watched A&M humiliate his Cowboys 66-46 at home Wednesday night, which gave the Aggies their first sweep in the season series.

"Texas A&M is a terrific basketball team," Sutton said. "They've got all the ingredients to make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament, and in my opinion, they have a great chance to go to the Final Four."

Gillispie has been unwilling to admit he believes his team is even in the Tournament, despite the fact the eighth-ranked Aggies have an RPI of 13, share the lead in the Big 12 standings with Kansas, and stand at 23-4.

On Wednesday night, an Oklahoma reporter tried to get Gillispie to bite on the NCAA Tournament talk with no success. Here is how the brief Q&A went:

Q: You look like you are possibly in line for a No.2 or No.3 seed.

Gillispie: "You want me to expand on it?"


Q: Have you talked to your players about the Tournament?

Gillispie: "That's so far away. We're trying to win the next game. We'll enjoy this victory, and we'll get back to work tomorrow in anticipation of a very, very hard team to guard on Saturday (Baylor), who we have a very difficult time playing against. That's as farsighted as we are."

Q: Can you talk about the momentum you have going into your final three games?

Gillispie: "There are three games left; we are 13 games into it. These folks who see us all the time can answer that question for me. We are going to try to play our best the next game and continue to play our best as we go. I don't know about momentum. I will use a baseball deal: Momentum is the next day's starting pitcher. It's kind of the same way in basketball. You catch a team at the wrong time, and you lose momentum."

Interestingly, Gillispie eagerly took on the issue of the fading NCAA hopes of Oklahoma State after its 20-point loss to the Aggies. The Cowboys started the year 15-1 but have been in a free fall of late.

"I know people would think because of the result of this game that Oklahoma State's NCAA Tournament chances are squashed, but they are not," he said. "They are still an NCAA Tournament team that can get in and do some damage.

"All of that talk is nonsense to me. They are good. They just missed a bunch of shots."


Posted by Terrance Harris at 07:16 PM | Com

[Jimcs50]

Feb. 23, 2007, 2:38AM
COLLEGES
Aggie pair, Durant, Almond up for hoops awards


By TERRANCE HARRIS
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

Not only is Texas A&M having a special season, but the Aggies also could have some special hardware at the end of it.

A&M senior point guard Acie Law and head coach Billy Gillispie were named finalists for three prestigious postseason awards Thursday. Law, the Aggies' leading scorer and emotional leader, was among 30 finalists for the Naismith Trophy and one of 10 finalists for the Lowe's Senior Class Award.

Texas Tech's Jarrius Jackson also is up for both awards, while Rice's Morris Almond and Texas' Kevin Durant are Naismith finalists.

Gillispie, who has guided A&M to a 23-4 record, a No. 8 ranking in the AP poll, and a tie for the lead in the Big 12 standings in his third season, is among 15 finalists for the 2007 Jim Phelan national coach of the year award. The Aggies broke into the national rankings this season for the first time since 1981.

Law, meanwhile, has gained national acclaim after hitting several game-winning shots, including the 3-pointer that upset Kansas at home earlier this month. Law is the only player in the country averaging at least 17.0 points and 5.5 assists, while shooting 50 percent or better from the field.

The Naismith Trophy is given annually to the men's college basketball player of the year. The list will be narrowed down to four in mid-March, and the winner will be announced April 3 in St. Louis.