Men's basketball: Aggies' first time around

[Jimcs50]

Men's basketball: Aggies' first time around

Web Posted: 03/21/2007 01:36 AM CDT

Mark Wangrin
Express-News

In December 1979, the British rock group Pink Floyd released a concept album. It told the fictional story of Pink, an alienated young man who built a wall around himself to protect him from the pain and suffering society inflicted.
The quartet called the album "The Wall." It quickly rose to No. 1.




At the same time in bucolic College Station, a place where Pink Floyd was far from a household name, an unheralded basketball team was putting together a season that would stand for more than a quarter-century as the best in school history. It boasted a versatile and talented front line that inflicted it's own brand of pain and suffering on opponents.

A Dallas newspaper reporter, apparently influenced by the Pink Floyd album, nicknamed that frontline — center Rudy Woods, forwards Rynn Wright and Vernon Smith and super-sub Claude Riley — "The Wall."

Though that quartet never reached No. 1, it took the Aggies to the Sweet 16, a ride that hadn't been duplicated until this season.

At the time, Woods didn't know Pink Floyd from Floyd the Barber, but he didn't care — the nickname fit.

"It was coined by a sportswriter and was kind of comical to me," said Woods of the trio that averaged 39.9 points, 22.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocks a game. "We didn't think of that. We just believed that if you came in our house, came in our square, then God bless you — you had a price to pay."


Wright was the best athlete, a 6-foot-6 junior whose build and physical play would later remind his teammates of Charles Barkley. The 6-8 Smith, who like Wright was a junior from Dallas, was a smooth outside shooter and team joker, whose tendency to lace their jock straps with analgesic balm belied his always serious court demeanor.

Woods was an agile, shot-blocking 6-11 sop re, a Parade All-America pick at Bryan High and one of the top recruits in the country. Kentucky wanted him, but Woods listened to his grandfather, Alex McMurray, who had raised him and had recently had a heart attack. McMurray asked him to stay close so he could see him play.

"That meant more to me than any accolade," said Woods.

In the fall of 1979, Riley — "The Crockett Rocket" enrolled. His arrival inspired the Dallas writer — whose iden y the players can't recall — to invoke the le of the No. 1 single from the Pink Floyd album — "Another Brick in the Wall."

The nickname was born.

"There was no 3-point line then, so there was no incentive for teams to bomb away," guard Dave Goff said. "Teams tried to work the ball inside. If you had good interior defense, you could go places."

The Aggies' backcourt provided the perfect complement. Goff led the team in free-throw shooting and assists. Point guard David Britton was a junior-college transfer from New York City who added the right grittiness to the mix of Texans.

"You had a street baller with country bumpkins, but we could play," Woods recalled. "If you can play, respect is automatic, no matter if you're from Timbuktu."

The year before, the Aggies had gone 24-9, finished third in the Southwest Conference and reached the NIT's third round.

The Aggies, again coached by Shelby Metcalf, began the 1979-80 season with back-to-back losses to Iona and Lamar in Alaska. They were 5-4 in December when they headed to Las Vegas, where they beat the host Rebels in a tournament.

Once SWC play began, A&M lost only twice, at Texas Tech and at Arkansas on a last-second half-court shot by Scott Hastings.

The Aggies beat Bradley 55-53 in an NCAA tournament first-round game in Denton, then faced North Carolina to advance to the Midwest Regional in Houston.

Woods remembers hearing all about Dean Smith and the vaunted Tar Heel tradition.

"All the people were saying that the Southwest Conference was a football conference," Woods said. "That tripped me out because it wasn't like that. We had basketball talent."

"We saw we're as talented as they were, if not more so," said backup guard Steve Sylestine, now the girls' basketball coach at Stevens High. "We saw we belonged there."

A&M won 78-61 in double overtime — each team used the four corners in the first overtime and combined for one possession each and zero points — and advanced to play Louisville.

Britton and Cardinals star Darrell Griffith traded dunks to start the game, and the Aggies forced overtime, but Louisville pulled away to win 66-55.

"That was a game we should have won but didn't" Goff said. "It was nice to get there, but it left a sour taste. We'd have like to have played them best three out of four. I think we had a better team."

Goff wasn't the only player from the 1980 team to note that the 2007 Aggies got some revenge against Louisville.

"I'm proud of the Aggies," Riley said. "It brings me back. I think they have the team to do it."

Woods can't contain his pride.

"I have my chest out proudly," he says, almost yelling. "Not just out, but way out. I don't care what else they do this season, I'm proud of them. They brought back déjà vu."



* * *
WHERE ARE THEY NOW?

F Rynn Wright: In management for a beer distributorship in Dallas.

F Vernon Smith: Shot to death in his car in Dallas in July 1992 by a man who allegedly mistook him for someone with whom he had argued over a dice game.

C Rudy Woods: Equipment operator for Schlumberger in Bryan.

G David Goff: Vice President for OB Sports, a golf course management firm in Scottsdale, Ariz.

G David Britton: Believed to be living in New York City.



RC Buford was on that team as well, for all you Spurs' fans out there.

[Jimcs50]

Men's basketball: Law's lunch-pail work ethic helps Aggies soar

Web Posted: 03/21/2007 12:29 AM CDT

Brent Zwerneman

Express-News

COLLEGE STATION — Between the cheers on game day, the roars following the clutch shots and the thousand pats on the back, a patter that fans never heard often echoed through a barren Reed Arena during Texas A&M's taxing practices.
The steady drumming of Acie Law's sneakers hitting stairs — a rhythmic pounding far from the pageantry of the Sweet 16, where the Aggies face Memphis at 6:27 p.m. on Thursday in the Alamodome.






"Acie — touch the top!"

The cry from Texas A&M coach Billy Gillispie pierced the air this season — as it has for the past three seasons — more than most might expect toward a highly touted senior point guard, likely All-American and probable NBA first-round draft selection.

Each time, Law, in trouble again for a perceived misdeed or slight misstep during practice, headed for the stands, where he ran the bleachers until Gillispie ordered otherwise.

Each time, Law, A&M's leader, held his head high, a resolute expression void of even a hint of disgust at why, after four years in the program, he was treated like a walk-on by his demanding coach.

"There's not a bit of prima donna or superstar in Acie," said teammate Logan Lee, a Marshall High graduate. "He's just like everyone else. If coach says to go touch the top, he's going to go touch the top. He knows it makes you mentally and physically tougher — and he does it all.


"Every single bit."

Law said he learned from a predecessor at A&M, current NBA player Antoine Wright, that Gillispie was going to push the good ones as hard — or harder — than everyone else. Gillispie was hired following Law's freshman season, when A&M finished 0-17 in the Big 12.

The Aggies since have made two consecutive NCAA tournaments.

"I admire coach for not treating anybody differently," said Law, who leads the Aggies with 18.2 points per game. "When Antoine was here, he was getting a lot of attention and a lot of press, and coach would be the first to tell him, 'You're not anything. You're not bigger than this team.'

"You feel good inside when you're playing for someone who believes in you, won't let you settle and continues to push you and push you to get better."

Finally — finally — after years of Gillispie getting in Law's head, the stoic guard finally got in Gillispie's. It happened the night before A&M's final home game of Law's career, a 94-78 victory over Missouri on March 3.

"I had a nightmare that Acie got mad, and he wasn't going to play today," Gillispie said after the game.

"I'm serious. I was thinking, 'Man, alive, what have I done now?'"

Had Gillispie really upset or run off Law — and not just in his peculiar dream — the 27-6 Aggies certainly wouldn't be on the cusp of their deepest run in the NCAA tournament.

"There's no question," Memphis coach John Calipari said of A&M's offense, "that it's going through Law."

Especially late in the game — earning him the nickname "Captain Clutch." Law, who's averaged 23 points in the tournament's first two games, made six consecutive free throws in the final four minutes of the Aggies' 72-69 victory over Louisville on Saturday.

Earlier this season, he hit a game-winning 3-pointer at Kansas, earning the first victory for a Big 12 South team at Allen Fieldhouse in 32 tries.

In a double-overtime loss at Texas, he sank 3-pointers at the end of regulation and the first overtime. Last year, he defeated the rival Longhorns on a last-second 3-pointer in Reed Arena.

All leading to Thursday, when the Aggies expect a tough, tight game against the 32-3 Tigers — and are prepared to turn to their Captain Clutch in crunch time.

"You have to believe in yourself — you have to have confidence," Law said. "I'm not afraid to fail."

Law said, despite the accolades and adulation during his senior season, "I really haven't done anything yet."

The Aggies have reached the Sweet 16 twice in school history — but not since 1980. They've never advanced to the Elite Eight.

"We're in the Sweet 16, (but) I want to win a national championship," Law said. "I want to be the first person to say he led (the Aggies) to the national championship.

"I feel like I've only done what others before me have done. I want to be the first person to take the team to the Final Four. I want to be able to leave a legacy.

"There's still work for me to do."

And in quiet arenas far from the glory of a game day, still stairs to climb.

[johngateswhiteley]

RC Buford

[Jimcs50]

Tigers hope feeling of deja vu fades against Aggies
By James Crisp/Associated Press

Texas A&M coach Billy Gillispie appreciates that his Aggies are playing the University of Memphis close to home, but he knows the advantage is slight.

March 21, 2007
A year ago, the University of Memphis played an Elite Eight game against a lower-seeded opponent in that team's home state.
In the game, the top-seeded Tigers were defeated as much by No. 2 UCLA's stifling defense and their own inept shooting as by the pro-Bruin atmosphere inside The Arena in Oakland.



The stakes may not be quite as high Thursday when Memphis faces Texas A&M in a South Regional semifinal inside San Antonio's vast Alamodome. But the scenario facing the No. 2-seeded UofM looks familiar:
Having to play a de facto road game against a lower seed?

Check.

Third-seeded Texas A&M's College Station campus lies roughly 200 miles northeast of San Antonio, a mere three hours away.

Having to play against one of the country's stingiest defenses?

Check.

Texas A&M is ranked No. 15 nationally in scoring defense, allowing 59.3 points per game.

Having to play on less rest than its opponent?

Check.

Like UCLA last season, the Aggies will enjoy an additional off day ahead of the regional-semifinal round. Memphis, on the other hand, must again make a quick turnaround after playing its second-round game on a Sunday.

"I'm mad about it," junior point guard Andre Allen said of being sent so close to an opponent's home for the second year running, "but we've just got to go play. It's out of our hands."

Making matters more difficult for the Tigers (32-3) is the injury concern surrounding sop re guard Chris Douglas-Roberts. The left ankle sprain Memphis' leading scorer (15.4 points per game) suffered against Nevada on Sunday has left his availability against the Aggies in some doubt.

Senior guard Jeremy Hunt and freshman Doneal Mack both figure to play more prominent roles if Douglas-Roberts is limited or unable to go.

Hunt, however, doesn't think the tournament's selection committee intended to put Memphis at a disadvantage against the Aggies.

"When they did the brackets, they didn't know Texas A&M was gonna make it to San Antonio," Hunt said. "It's cool. We've been underdogs all year long. There's nothing wrong with being the underdog one more time."

Tigers coach John Calipari said the Aggies "deserve" to play what will essentially be a home game after beating Louisville last week in Lexington, Ky.

"We had 7,000 fans in New Orleans against 400 from Nevada," he said. "Now we've got to go on the road."

San Antonio has been good to Texas teams in the past. In 2003, Texas won Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games at the Alamodome en route to the Final Four.

The Longhorns were a No. 1 seed that year, playing even closer to their Austin home than the Aggies will be Thursday. Texas A&M is hoping for a similar boost against the Tigers and, should the Aggies advance, against either No. 1 Ohio State or No. 5 Tennessee on Saturday for a spot in the Final Four.

"If there is an advantage, I would think your fans are gonna try to make it an advantage for you," Aggies coach Billy Gillispie said. "But it doesn't ensure success."

Texas A&M learned that firsthand last week at Rupp Arena, where Louisville's "home" support couldn't quite manage to help the Cardinals past the Aggies in the second round.

"We were not gonna let that be a factor," Gillispie said.

The Tigers head to San Antonio with a 10-1 record in NCAA Tournament games played in Texas, including 10 straight wins. Two of those victories came last year, against Oral Roberts and Bucknell, at the Dallas sub-regional.

Memphis, however, is also just 1-3 in NCAA games when playing in an opponent's home state. The Tigers beat Wake Forest in Charlotte, N.C., in 1982, but lost to LSU in Baton Rouge in '86 and to Purdue in South Bend, Ind., two years later. Then came UCLA in Oakland or, as Calipari says sarcastically, "Pauley Pavilion North."

The Tigers, however, are more concerned with finding a way to get the better of the Aggies' big, physical defenders than with where the game is being played.

Asked if Thursday's game might be stylistically similar to last year's Elite Eight game against the Bruins, Calipari said it "could be."

"They bump you on drives when they step up to meet you. They're a really physical bunch, maybe more so than UCLA," Calipari said. "Their (post) duck-ins, they're like football blocks. It's like two guys smashing into each other. ... They're gonna bump and grind and stop you on drives. We've got some things to figure out in the next couple days."

Calipari said the way in which the game is refereed could have a major impact on the outcome. If the officials call a loose game, he suggested, it would likely be to the Aggies' benefit.

"You look at the crew and hope like heck they're saying, 'You can't play this way,' " Calipari said. "I'm not saying they're dirty, they just play really hard in a league (the Big 12 Conference) that plays really, really hard."

Faced with resistance more aggressive and physical than anything they'd seen before, the Tigers fell to UCLA last year amid a hail of fouls and missed shots.

Memphis shot just 2 for 17 from 3-point range, and a mere 31.5 percent from the field in all, while at the same time sending the Bruins to the free-throw line 39 times. The Tigers were held 36 points below their season average in a 50-45 defeat.

"If we do that again," Calipari said, "we lose."

The Tigers could well be in for a similarly frustrating day against the defense-minded Aggies.

Texas A&M has limited opponents to 60 or fewer points 18 times in 33 games, and the Aggies have allowed just three teams to surpass the 80-point mark this season. Texas, behind all-world freshman Kevin Durant, did it twice.

Tigers assistant coach Derek Kellogg points out, however, that "there's also been a couple games where (the Aggies) have scored 100."

"They've been a top-10 team the majority of the year," Kellogg added. "They can make it ugly but, at the same time, they can play up and down and score points. Good teams will be able to play all different styles."

The Tigers' players don't see any connection between the team that ousted them last year and the one standing in their way Thursday.

"UCLA and Texas A&M are two different teams," Allen said. "We've got a whole different team this year. We ain't worried about last year at all."

[johngateswhiteley]

Jimcs50-
...why does everyone on this site hate me?

[Jimcs50]

Jimcs50-
...why does everyone on this site hate me?

I do not hate you.




I do think that you need to lighten up a tad though....

[johngateswhiteley]

I do not hate you.




I do think that you need to lighten up a tad though....

i wasn't being serious, it was actually a setup question...but you probably knew that.

interesting though, what do you mean lighten up?

[Jimcs50]

i wasn't being serious, it was actually a setup question...but you probably knew that.

interesting though, what do you mean lighten up?

lose some weight...you have added a few holiday lbs, I think.

[johngateswhiteley]

lose some weight...you have added a few holiday lbs, I think.

good! i am trying to gain weight. another 5-7 pounds and i will be where i want to be for rugby.

thanks for the compliment!

[samikeyp]

I don't hate you JGW....we don't always agree but you are good people.


Steve Sylestine also coached Marshall High in SA for a bit.

[RonMexico]

everyone is ignoring rod strickland's return to the alamodome as a memphis assistant coach... probably the biggest story of all

[Doug Collins]

everyone is ignoring rod strickland's return to the alamodome as a memphis assistant coach... probably the biggest story of all

I'm sure he's made inquiries regarding cocaine availability...


JGW we dont hate you, we like you in the same manner as Capt. Mike. Tough love is what they call it.

"why does everyone hate me" that made me think if this girl who is stalking my ex-roommate...eerie.