Image provided by: Texas A&M University
About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 22, 1993)
C/3 Jh mm 0> O 0> S O 3 ^ Jm M ^ QJ 2 1-1 o 03 O bb £i •£ cu t2 ^ ex r C ^ ^ r TJ c/3 Qj o| 2 |^« O X c.2 § ! X bO - ^ bD ’iu > o t— 1 bO O >—3 <C cr> i—3 v-. m3 o ^3 ^ m-« >—. C > c b ^ c -O V - D c' 2 § p 'G < O ^ . cr <u G C ^ co •_-! U f— 1 p- ^ — .y ^ CD i-, : T3 ex Aggies and Lady Ag # Thc5 T^xas A.&:]V[ IM^n^s Baskotfoall Team A&M men begin by picking up the basics of practice, discipline T he rebuilding of the Texas A&M basketball program continues on a daily basis. We must be constantly aware of all the issues that affect the process. Last week, we discussed attitude and the im portance of developing a fami ly atmosphere within a basket ball program. We are attempting to devel op a tradition of how to play basketball at Texas A&M. Fre quently I am asked if we have a system. The answer is no, but we do have a philosophy, we devel op that philosophy through repetition, constant attention to the game's fundamentals, preparation for every eventu ality, meticulous execution and an instantaneous com mand of an array of offensive and defensive schemes. To build good habits, we simply repeat. I believe our players will improve from year to year because their knowledge of how to play the game continues to grow. We must require a peculiar, internal balance, a contradiction that embodies our most dominant be lief: The only free person in society is a disciplined person. Discipline usually invokes a negative reaction from young people today. We are talking about a mental discipline that is integral to the mind set of any goal-oriented person. We begin our approach when players arrive for practice. When they enter the locker room, they will find the emphasis of the day flashing on a message board, such as "Be Physical Without Fouling." That thought is emphasized throughout the practice ses sion. On another bulletin board, the players will find a thought for the day: "When two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers." Just imagine the interesting comments that we get when we ask our guys to eval uate the thought of the day. We also ask the players to complete a goal card each day. We keep involved statistics based on effort plays. Our players believe in the philosophy that hard work gives us a chance to be successful. We try to create as many game situations as possi ble in our practice sessions. In games, new situations frequently arise: Foul trouble will force substitutions. Calls may go against you. A team might be extremely "hot." If the players learn to deal with these obstacles in practice, then they'll be able to deal with them in a game. We want our guys to be able to identify their own mistakes and try to correct them individually. Our players know we have set high standards for them. The team also knows what our methods are in terms of trying to reach those standards. I'd like to invite you to our practices - they are open - to see our philosophy at work, and how we practice what we preach. ; 1 Point Guard Edwards : Senior point guard David Edwards returns to lead the team after aver aging 13 points and six assists as a junior...Two true freshmen, Antho ny Burks and Jimmy Smith, will provide something the Aggies have not had-depth...Burks led Ft. Worth Dunbar to the 1993 Class 5A state |f championship, averaging 16 points and eight assists along the way...Smith was named the state's Class 5A Player of the Year in , 1993...Senior Michael Smith dished out 24 assists in '92-'93...Ed wards III registered A&M's first ever triple-double against Texas on Feb. 22. : v v; : . : . . ' - « « H HI rttMIttimi ftr< I Shooting Guard III Henderson I Junior Corey Henderson anchors one of the deepest positions on the - - A&M team..;Henderson averaged two points and two rebounds last §T!|| season...Senior Chuck Henderson,a former walk-on, averaged nine i points and two rebounds for the Aggies in '92-'93...Junior Tony Barone, Jr. had six points and six assists against Baylor...Chuck and • Corey are brothers...Chuck is a career 40 percent shooter behind the f ' three-point arc, and he is just percentage points behind Lynn Suber's | school record...Corey had 18 points and 11 rebounds against Baylor. —-—*— wmm i Itii McGinnis \ Junior Tony McGinnis started all 27 games and averaged nine points \ and three rebounds per game...Former Bryan star Joe Wilbert trans- . ,: ferred from Tyler Junior College where he was averaged 19 points and nine rebounds...Freshman Chris Pulliams, who transferred from Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy, played his high school basketball in San | Antonio...McGinnis had 14 points and eight rebounds in A&M's 86-84 | , loss to UNLV...Wilbert is the first Bryan player to sign with A&M since Rudy Woods in 1978...Pulliams was first team all-state in 1992. 1111 I -i Johnson Mm. Junior Damon Johnson led the team in scoring and rebounding for the second year in a row by averaging 15 points and six rebounds...Junior John Jungers is a walk-on transfer from Rockhurst College in Kansas City...Sophomore Lance Broderson was named to the Southwest Con ference All-Newcomer team...Johnson was honorable mention All- SWC...Johnson has scored in double figures in 38 of 44 career games...Broderson had 24 points and 15 rebounds against Southern Methodist...Johnson's 15 points as a freshman was a school record. ; ■; : '> Center lUlgllf : —M : . Murry Senior Brett Murry was second on the team with 67 assists...Junior Roy Wills, a transfer from Seward County (Kan.) Community College, scored 45 points in one game last season...Murry averaged" 10 points and five rebounds a game...Tyler Junior College transfer Joe Wilbert might also see action at this spot along with Johnson...Murry scored 16 points in back-to-back games against Texas Tech and Texas...Wills helped his high school, Murry Bergtraum, to a 23-3 record and a berth in the New York state final four in 1990. //As",*/,/?/// , W '*;/// , ' ^ j < >. , V