The No.2-seeded Oklahoma Sooners (27-7) and No.3-seeded Texas A&M Aggies (28-8) meet in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament at Honda Center. Action gets underway at 7:37 pm ET on Thursday, Mar. 24 and will air on TBS.
The Sooners beat VCU 85-81 in the Second Round. Buddy Hield led all scorers with 36 points on 11-for-20 shooting. The Aggies, meanwhile, are coming off a 92-88 win against Northern Iowa in the Second Round. Alex Caruso led the team in scoring by accumulating 25 points on 10-for-16 shooting.
Points could be at a premium in this matchup between two of the nation’s best defenses. Oklahoma ranks 12th in the nation in defensive efficiency (98.9), while Texas A&M is fourth (96.1). Also, the Aggies commit the 15th-fewest errors in the nation (TO% of 17.6%), while the gambling defense of the Sooners causes the 19th-most (opponents’ TO% of 17.9%).
Despite being 27-7 Straight Up (SU), the Sooners have struggled to cover the spread in most of their matchups, only managing a record of 12-20 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 7-3 ATS over their last 10 games. Opposing offenses have been stifled by the Sooners, allowing a field goal percentage of only .408.
In the other locker room, the Aggies have 28-8 SU and 17-13-2 ATS records. While Texas A&M has gone 2-8 ATS over its past 10 matchups, they’ve excelled SU with a record of 7-3. When it comes to making good decisions with the ball, not many are better than the Aggies. They have one of the top assist-to-turnover ratios in the country at 1.38.
Oklahoma won the last meeting this season between these two teams, but Texas A&M still leads the head-to-head record over their most recent games, 6-4 SU. Furthermore, Texas A&M leads the matchup ATS with a record of 7-3. Oklahoma and Texas A&M each held the advantage in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers once over the last five games.
Predictions: SU Winner – TexA&M, ATS Winner – TexA&M
Notes
Texas A&M averages 76.8 points per game (ranked 72nd). Oklahoma, on the other hand, allows 70.7 points per game (ranked 119th).
The Texas A&M Aggies have the best defense in the country, giving up just 96.1 points per 100 possessions. The Oklahoma Sooners rank 38th in offense, scoring 113.1 points in the same number of possessions.
On average, Oklahoma has 71.3 possessions per game and scores 1.131 points on each possession. Texas A&M has both fewer possessions (68.8) and scores fewer points during those possessions (1.116).
Ranked 21st in the nation, Oklahoma has an average effective field goal percentage of 54.7%. Texas A&M is 4-3 when opponents have a similar or higher effective field goal percentage.
On average, Oklahoma attempts 24.0 three pointers and Texas A&M attempts 22.0. Both teams have winning records when they have 20 or more three point attempts. The Oklahoma Sooners sit at 23-7 and the Texas A&M Aggies are 21-6.
Texas A&M ranks 37th in the nation with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 1.38. Oklahoma is ranked lower at 129th with an A/TO of 1.12.
Oklahoma ranks 62nd in rebounds per game with 38.5 and Texas A&M ranks 38th with 39.4 rebounds per game.
Oklahoma ranks 29th in defensive rebounding. When it comes to offensive rebounds, Texas A&M ranks 45th.
On average, Oklahoma forces a turnover rate of 17.9%, ranked 19th in the nation. When Texas A&M turns over the ball at a similar or higher rate, the team has a winning 11-7 record.
