It won't be hard for Texas A&M men's basketball coach Mark Turgeon to get his players' attention when it comes to being ready for the Samford Bulldogs.
The respect Turgeon shows for the Bulldogs' coach will be enough to keep the 2-0 Aggies from looking past 0-3 Samford.
"They'll execute better than any team we play all year," Turgeon said. "This guy Jimmy Tillette of Samford is a good friend of mine. We were in the same league when I was at Jacksonville State and I swore I'd never play him again."
Turgeon broke his promise, scheduling the Bulldogs and Tillette for a Friday night contest at Reed Arena that should help the Aggies down the line.
"They'll execute better, they'll stretch us better, run the Princeton offense, which helps us for Colorado down the road or maybe NCAA tournament if we run into a team that runs it," Turgeon said. "It's a good schedule for us. They won't have the most talent [in comparison to Big 12 teams] but they will be the best coached team we will play all year. This guy can flat out coach."
Tillette's first task will be slowing down the Aggies, who have averaged 84 points in their two games -- at home against Angelo State and at Southern Methodist.
Despite the numbers, Turgeon believes the Aggies have much more to offer offensively, having worked primarily during the preseason on defense.
"To be quite honest we don't have a lot of offense in, we've been concentrating on defense, our fast break and motion," Turgeon said. "We don't have a lot of sets in at all."
The Bulldogs have three losses by a total of eight points, going 0-3 in the Hispanic College Funds Classic in Kent, Ohio.
"They've had tough breaks early in the season," Turgeon said. "They have a veteran team that will be good for them. They'll be right there, them and Davidson for a [Southern Conference] championship.
*
NOTES -- Turgeon said Wednesday that the Aggies may redshirt guard Jeremy Adams. Turgeon has talked with Adams and his father and will likely make a decision by Christmas. ... The Aggies had their first-ever basketball yell practice Thursday night at Reed Arena. Turgeon hopes to start a tradition with three or four yell practices a season. ... Samford, located in Birmingham, Ala., has two starters from Texas -- Josh Davis of Lubbock and Bryan Friday of Grapevine.
TEXAS A&M BASKETBALL
* Friday's game: Samford (0-3) at Texas A&M (2-0), 7 p.m.
* TV/radio: None/WTAW, 1620 AM and Sirius Ch. 125
SAMFORD-TEXAS A&M LINEUPS
SAMFORD (0-3)
NAMEPOSHT.WT.CL.PPGRPG
Trey MontgomeryG6-4190Sr.16.0*3.8
Jeffrey MerrittG6-6195So.6.74.0
Josh DavisG6-4195Jr.9.73.7
Bryan FridayF6-6230Sr.9.03.7
Andy KingC6-8230Jr.10.33.3
TEXAS A&M (2-0)
NAMEPOSHT.WT.CL.PPGRPG
Dash HarrisG6-0175So.6.0*2.5
Donald SloanG6-3205Sr.19.04-0
Derrick RolandG6-4190Sr.16.52.5
Nate WalkupF6-7210Jr.3.54.5
Bryan DavisF6-9250Sr.13.06.0
*assists
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