A&M hoops enters AP's top 10 for the first time since December 2017

Buzz Williams has a top-10 basketball team.

On Monday, Texas A&M (12-2, 1-0) ascended to No. 10 in the Week 10 edition of the Associated Press Top 25, making the first time the Aggies have cracked the top 10 since the 2017-18 campaign.

The Ags also checked in at No. 9 in the latest USA Today Sports Coaches Poll.

Looking at their overall resume, it is hard to argue A&M does not belong in the current top 10.

Williams & Co. boast six Quadrant 1 and 2 victories, with the latest being a 20-point beating of conference newbie and long-time rival Texas on Saturday night.

Additionally, A&M had three wins over ranked opponents when the Ags defeated then-No. 21 Ohio State on Nov. 15, then-No. 21 Creighton on Nov. 21 and then-No. 11 Purdue on Dec. 14. Of those, the Boilermakers are currently No. 20, while the Buckeyes and Bluejays are not receiving votes.

With All-SEC first-teamer Wade Taylor IV leading the way, A&M receives contributions from a number of other standouts. From guards Zhuric Phelps, Manny Obaseki, CJ Wilcher, Jace Carter and Hayden Hefner to forwards Henry Coleman III and Pharrel Payne, the Maroon & White and their unique style of play has A&M off to one of — if not the — best starts in program history.

This ranking provides some historical context to that claim.

In 2017-18, A&M entered the top-10 with a No. 9 ranking on Nov. 27, 2017. Behind Tyler Davis, Admon Gilder, DJ Hogg and Robert Williams, A&M matched the program’s high-water mark of No. 5 on Christmas 2017 behind an 11-1 start. Despite tumbling out of the AP poll altogether late in the SEC slate, Billy Kennedy’s Aggies still reached the Sweet 16 that March.

A&M hasn’t been back to the NCAA Tournament’s second weekend since.

Further, top-10 rankings are pretty rare for Aggie hoops.

Including this one, A&M has only been included in the top 10 for a total of 21 weeks since the AP started issuing the poll continuously during the 1950-51 season.

In 2017-18, A&M spent five straight weeks in the top 10. A&M’s longest streak — six weeks — dates back to the 2006-07 campaign when Logan Lee donned the Maroon & White.

That March, the Aggies earned a No. 3 seed in the dance, which is what ESPN’s Joe Lunardi had the current Ags listed as on his Jan. 5 bracketology update.

While the infrequency of a top-10 ranking should be celebrated, A&M will have its status put to the test almost immediately. A road test at No. 17 Oklahoma is set for Wednesday before No. 5 Alabama comes to Reed on Saturday.

Indeed, these battle-tested Aggies will be tested again...and again...and again as the Southeastern Conference boasts nine spots in the top 25: No. 1 Tennessee (14-0), No. 2 Auburn (13-1), No. 5 Alabama (12-2), No. 6 Kentucky (12-2), No. 8 Florida (13-1), No. 10 Texas A&M (12-2), No. 14 Mississippi State (13-1), No. 17 Oklahoma (13-1) and No. 23 Ole Miss (12-2).

Associated Press Week 10 Poll

1. Tennessee (14-0)
2. Auburn (13-1)
3. Iowa State (12-1)
4. Duke (12-2)
5. Alabama (12-2)
6. Kentucky (12-2)
7. Marquette (13-2)
8. Florida (13-1)
9. UConn (12-3)
10. Texas A&M (12-2)
11. Kansas (10-3)
12. Houston (10-3)
13. Illinois (11-3)
14. Mississippi State (13-1)
15. Oregon (13-2)
16. Michigan State (12-2)
17. Oklahoma (13-1)
18. Gonzaga (12-4)
19. Memphis (12-3)
20. Purdue (11-4)
21. West Virginia (11-2)
22. UCLA (11-3)
23. Ole Miss (12-2)
24. Michigan (11-3)
25. Utah State (14-1)

Note: Southeastern Conference programs are italicized.