No. 6 Tennessee basketball travels to Reed Arena on Saturday for its fourth top-10 meeting of the season against No. 7 Texas A&M. Read more for a full Tennessee vs Texas A&M prediction and preview.
Having won four of their past five games, the No. 6 Tennessee Volunteers will meet the No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday afternoon, looking for their first road victory over a ranked opponent this season.
The Aggies are tied for fourth place in the SEC, and the Vols are tied for sixth place.
Although offense has been difficult to come by at times, Tennessee and Texas A&M have two of the finest defenses in the SEC, ranking first and sixth nationally in adjusted defensive efficiency.
General Information:
Teams: No. 6 Tennessee (21-5, 8-5) and No. 7 Texas A&M (20-6, 9-4)
Tip-Off: Noon EST
Watch: ESPN
Latest on Texas A&M basketball:
The Aggies won five consecutive games in late January and early February but their winning streak was interrupted on Tuesday with a 70-54 loss to No. 21 Mississippi State.
In the program’s worst game of the season, the Aggies scored 54 points, shot under 40% from the floor, and committed 19 turnovers.
A&M is 3-1 this season after a loss, a fact that head coach Buzz Williams attributes to the team’s experience.
“[We have a] mature group. You don’t have time to linger, even if the results are good,” Williams told reporters Friday. “We better get going because we’re playing a top-three team on Saturday. And so that was fun that we won however many in a row. I know, but we better get right.”
Guard tandem Wade Taylor IV and Zhuric Phelps lead the team’s offensive efforts. Taylor IV leads the group with 14.9 points and 4.5 assists per game, while Phelps is a close second with 14.4 points and five rebounds.
The Aggies are an elite rebounding group, particularly on the offensive end. Texas A&M is first in offensive rebounding percentage, collecting 41.9% of its misses.
A&M is the SEC’s second-lowest scoring team, with an average of 73.7 points. They are the league’s lowest 3-point shooting squad, converting 31.3% of their attempts.
Buzz Williams’ squad will try to break past Tennessee’s stout defense to produce quality looks and put the ball in the basket.
Latest on Tennessee basketball:
Tennessee basketball has won four of its previous five games, and this will be just the fourth time this season that it has entered as an underdog.
Tennessee routed Vanderbilt 81-76 on Saturday afternoon at a sold-out Food City Center, rallying from a 16-point deficit in the final minute of the first half and a 13-point lead at halftime.
Senior guard Zakai Zeigler, who reached the top five on the SEC’s career assists leaderboard in the victory, led the Vols with a season-high 22 points, all in the second half, and a game-best eight assists in front of a sold-out Food City Center.
Zeigler is averaging 13.4 points and 7.5 assists per game, making a solid case for All-American consideration.
“I can’t imagine there’s not a coach in the country that would [not] want Zakai Zeigler,” Vols head coach Rick Barnes said. “When you think about what he does to impact winning basketball games, it’s truly, it’s phenomenal. I don’t know of anyone that does it better.”
Standout transfer Chaz Lanier also contributed to the Vols’ success, posting 21 points and eight rebounds on 9-of-16 shooting.
Tennessee starting center Felix Okpara is listed as questionable on the availability report but is expected to be available.
The Volunteers will aim to win a tough road game against Texas A&M.
Tennessee vs Texas A&M prediction: Volunteers by 4 (66-62)
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