FAYETTEVILLE -- Texas A&M is a basketball school now.
No Aggie joke.
The football program is reeling from the mass transfer of quarterbacks in recent seasons, Texas A&M's basketball team brings a No. 5 ranking in The Associated Press and USA Today coaches' polls into Wednesday night's game against Arkansas in Walton Arena.
It's the highest ranking for the Aggies, who were No. 6 during the 2006-2007 season when they finished 27-7 and reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 under then-Coach Billy Gillespie.
Wednesday's Ticket
No. 5 Texas A&M at Arkansas
When: 6 p.m.
Where: Bud Walton Arena, Fayetteville
TV: ESPNU
Texas A&M (17-2, 7-0 SEC) opened the season unranked, but the Aggies began getting national attention when they beat Texas and Gonzaga at a tournament in the Bahamas.
The Aggies have won 10 consecutive games since losing at Arizona State and have SEC road victories at Mississippi State, Tennessee and Georgia. They opened SEC play with a 92-69 victory over Arkansas.
"They're playing as good as anyone in the country," Razorbacks Coach Mike Anderson said.
Texas A&M is in position to make its first NCAA Tournament appearance under Coach Billy Kennedy, who has an 88-58 record in five seasons since replacing Mark Turgeon. The Aggies went to the NCAA Tournament in all four of Turgeon's seasons from 2008-2011 before he left to take the Maryland job.
Kennedy has gradually rebuilt the program and taken the Aggies from the Big 12 Conference into the SEC. They were 4-14 in conference play their final Big 12 season and won 7, 8 and 11 SEC games going into this season.
"I think they're playing with a great deal of confidence," said Missouri Coach Kim Anderson, whose Tigers lost at Texas A&M 66-53 last Saturday. "Experience certainly helps, and they've got a lot of it."
The Aggies start four seniors -- forwards Jalen Jones and Danuel House and guards Alex Caruso and Anthony Collins -- who have a combined 398 career starts for various NCAA Division I programs.
Caruso has spent his entire career at Texas A&M, but Jones transferred from SMU, House from Houston and Collins from South Florida.
"To have four seniors who started games as a freshman, and then to have a guy in Alex Caruso, who has been in our program for four years, it's definitely a big asset," Kennedy said. "It makes a coach's job a little easier because your locker room is guarded with guys who understand what winning is about and understand what doing the right thing is about.
"It's a voice from me without me having to be there all the time."
Caruso is averaging 7.6 points, 5.1 assists, 3.4 assists and 2.2 steals. He had 11 points, 8 rebounds and 7 assists with 1 turnover in the Aggies' 61-60 victory at Mississippi State, when House missed the game for personal reasons.
"I think Caruso is the heart and soul of that team," Mississippi State Coach Ben Howland said. "He makes all the plays when they need him. He's a guy that's a difference-maker."
Collins transferred to Texas A&M this season as a graduate student with immediate eligibility. He's averaging 5.2 points and 4.7 assists.
"Collins has made a huge difference because he really embraces his role and does a great job distributing the ball," Howland said.
Jones is averaging 17.5 points and 6.8 rebounds and shooting 47.4 percent from the field.
"Every year he's expanded on his game," Kennedy said of Jones, who scored 28 points against Arkansas earlier this season. "He's taking good shots.
"He's always been an athletic forward who could drive the ball and finish around the basket. Now he's making open threes. That's made him tougher to guard."
House is averaging 15.3 points and 5.1 rebounds.
"House can score 20 any given night," Mike Anderson said.
Texas A&M 6-10 freshman Tyler Davis, averaging 11.2 points and 5.8 rebounds, was held out of the Missouri game because of a foot injury, but Kennedy said he's expected to play against Arkansas.
"He's got great footwork, great hands for a big guy," Mike Anderson said of Davis. "He can pass the basketball. He gives them that option inside."
So does Tonny Trocha-Morales, a 6-10 sophomore averaging 7.2 points and 4.5 rebounds. He had 10 points and 10 rebounds against Arkansas in the teams' first meeting, which was the SEC opener for both teams.
Aggies freshman guard Admon Gilder is averaging 7.3 points.
"They've got great depth and a blend of youth and senior leadership, and then they're very, very well coached," Howland said. "That's why they're the best team in our league right now."
The Aggies are fourth in the SEC in scoring at 78.3 points per game and fifth in field-goal shooting at 46.4 percent, but they lead with 19.0 assists per game. They average an assist on 70 percent of their baskets.
"They share the ball," Mike Anderson said. "They do a great job on ball movement and they have more pieces to the puzzle now. They're playing efficient basketball."
Texas A&M is holding opponents to 39.4 percent shooting from the field and has a plus-4.0 turnover ratio to lead the SEC.
"If we play good defense and we take care of the ball, those two things have given us wins basically." Kennedy said. "When we shoot the ball well, we're difficult to beat."
Poor shooting hasn't stopped the Aggies in SEC play. They shot 30.1 percent at Mississippi State and 36.1 against Florida and Missouri.
"They just continue to play," Kim Anderson said. "They don't panic."
Sports on 01/26/2016