How Texas A&M basketball's seasonlong struggles cost the Aggies in March Madness
Much of what troubled Texas A&M basketball in Saturday's NCAA Tournament loss to Houston has been there all season long.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Texas A&M basketball went into Saturday's matchup against second-seeded Houston as a double-digit underdog, and all the reasons it was viewed that way coming into the game proved true. The Cougars controlled the boards, consistently found the shots they wanted and were bigger, faster and more talented than the scrappy Aggies. The result?
An 88-57 loss in the second round of the NCAA Tournament that ended A&M's season. It was the Aggies' worst defeat of 2025-26 and the largest NCAA Tournament loss in program history. "It's a dang good team," A&M's first-year head coach Bucky McMillan said of Houston.
"It was tough, well-coached, with high-level play and particularly high-level guards. " What was once a 25-24 score in the first spiraled into a blowout thanks to a game-defining 21-4 run. A&M went about a dozen possessions near the end of the first half without a point.
A Kingston Flemings layup made it a 20-point game and the Aggies never got any closer. Texas A&M guard Marcus Hill (0) goes up for a shot under pressure by Houston forward Chase McCarty (24) and forward Kalifa Sakho (14) during the first half in the second round of the NCAA college basketball tournament in Oklahoma City, Saturday, March 21, 2026. (Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle) MORE: Texas A&M basketball vs Houston: Aggies fall in Round of 32 Houston guard Kingston Flemings (left) blocks the shot attempt by Texas A&M forward Rashaun during the second half of a second-round NCAA Tournament game against Houston on March 21, 2026 at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City.
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