Texas A&M basketball ranked No. 25 in Associated Press Rankings

For the first time in 14 weeks, Texas A&M has entered the Associated Press Top 25 following a pair of Quadrant I wins over Arkansas and Missouri.

Previously this season, Texas A&M spent just one week in the AP Poll at No. 24, dropping out of the rankings following a 1-2 showing at the Myrtle Beach Invitational in November.

Buzz Williams & Co. now hold five Q1 victories and sit one game behind No. 2 Alabama in the Southeastern Conference standings. With just four games left in the regular season, the two teams are on pace to battle for the conference title when they meet at Reed Arena on March 4.

Resiliency and pure grit powered the Aggies to a 62-56 comeback win against the Razorbacks last Tuesday. Despite being limited to just 21 points in the first half, A&M extended its home winning streak to nine games after sophomore guard Wade Taylor IV fronted a fierce rally with 18 points.

Registering his fourth consecutive double-figure performance (21), Taylor continued to run the show offensively in Saturday’s 69-60 series-sweeping win at Missouri. Dexter Dennis and Tyrece Radford provided ample support with 17 and 12 points, respectively. Unstirred by a season-high 21 turnovers, A&M still took care of business with relative ease as Mizzou never got closer than eight points in the final 20 minutes.

Dating back to last season, the Maroon & White are now 19-3 in their last 22 SEC games and are currently riding a program-best 12-2 start to conference play.

Besides A&M, only two other schools in the SEC are included in this week’s poll, with Alabama falling from the top spot to No. 2 and Tennessee coming in at No. 11.

Up next, the newly-minted 25th-ranked Aggies host the No. 11 Vols in a top-25 affair on Tuesday at Reed Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.

Associated Press Week 16 Poll

1. Houston (+1)
2. Alabama (-1)
3. Kansas (+2)
4. UCLA
5. Purdue (-2)
6. Virginia (+1)
7. Arizona (+1)
8. Texas (-2)
9. Baylor
10. Marquette (+1)
11. Tennessee (-1)
12. Gonzaga (+1)
13. Miami (+2)
14. Kansas State (-2)
15. Saint Mary’s (+2)
16. Xavier
17. Indiana (-3)
18. UConn (+2)
19. Creighton (-1)
20. Providence (+4)
21. Northwestern
22. San Diego State (-1)
23. Iowa State (-4)
24. TCU (-2)
25. Texas A&M

In: Northwestern, Texas A&M
Out: NC State, Florida Atlantic

Note: Southeastern Conference programs are italicized.