Issue date: 1/23/09 Section: Sports

Media Credit: Jon Eilts Senior guard Josh Carter takes the ball to the board against North Carolina-Wilmington on Nov. 25. The Aggies won 84-65. [Click to enlarge]

Texas A&M Head Coach Mark Turgeon said the effort is not lacking but he is looking for some consistency out of his team.

"We haven't laid many eggs this year," Turgeon said. "We've competed every game. We could have quit against Oklahoma down 14. Nothing was going our way, but we competed."

The Texas A&M men's basketball team will face the No. 14 Texas Longhorns

Saturday in Austin. They will look to recover from two consecutive losses including a 20-point loss at Kansas, and a 69-63 loss to Oklahoma.

"That could have put us, maybe in the Top 25, coming off Baylor," Turgeon said. "That was disappointing. Our guys are really down and maybe a little embarrassed by the way we played Monday."

The Aggies are 1-3 in their first four Big 12 games and have started that way three of the previous four years.

After Texas, the Aggies will continue through the Big 12 South schedule with games against Texas Tech, Oklahoma State and No. 6 Oklahoma. Turgeon said the Aggies' backs are against the wall and he will wait to see how they respond.

"I think we know we can do it," said senior guard Josh Carter. "Things don't always start off the way you want it to but you have to keep fighting. It's not over until it's over."

Texas is coming off a 71-49 win at Texas Tech where junior guard Justin Mason recorded his first career double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds.

The Longhorns have won 13 consecutive conference home games, which is the longest Big 12 home win streak in school history.

The rivalry between the Aggies and the Longhorns is on the team's mind. Turgeon said he does not have to remind his team of the importance of the game.

"It's Texas, so we are going to be ready for the game," said junior forward Bryan Davis. "This is a must play-well game for us and we must execute within our team more than worrying about them and we will be successful if we do that."

Turgeon said he wouldn't talk about the team's slow starts but the players recognized the need for a faster start.

"If we start out games better then we have a better chance of winning but lately we just haven't been able to do that," said sophomore forward Chinemelu Elonu.

Senior guard Josh Carter, the Aggies leading scorer with 13.1 points per game, has struggled in the team's first two conference road games. In conference play, Carter is shooting 15 percent from the field on the road and posting a 59 field goal percentage at home.

"I want him to play on the road like he plays at home and he hasn't done that the first two Big 12 games," Turgeon said.

Texas leads the all-time series against the Aggies 130-83, including a 24-8 record at the Erwin Center. In 2008-2009 the Longhorns are 13-4 and 8-0 at home.

"Texas reminds me of us," Turgeon said. "I think they are further along defensively and I think they have a few more gifted scores than us. They play a little bit faster than what we have been playing, but I think they are going to hang their hat on defense every night."

In the previous meeting between the teams, the Aggies lost 77-50 in Austin. Carter said a win would boost his team's confidence.

"I think it's just a confidence issue," Carter said. "If we can find a way to get a win against Texas on the road, I think that will help us tremendously and that would mean that we could play with anybody."

2008-2009 By the numbers
1 start by freshman David Loubeau
2 blocks by junior Donald Sloan
3 Aggie losses on the road
4 Aggie wins on the road
5.5 points per game by junior Derrick Rolland
.655 field goal percentage by junior Chinemelu Elonu
.712 team free throw percentage
8 point victory at Alabama on Dec. 13

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