Texas A&M vs. West Virginia preview: Aggies shorthanded in Germany

All offseason, there has been a common theme among many college basketball analysts when it comes to discussing Texas A&M:

This is a potential Top 10 team that has all the pieces needed to win the SEC outright.

Unfortunately, all those pieces won’t be present when the Aggies head to Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany to take on West Virginia on Friday.

Robert Williams, a preseason pick for SEC Player of the Year, was recently suspended for three games after a violation of school policy. He didn’t play in the team’s exhibition game against Tarleton State, and will miss this showdown with the Mountaineers and the Aggies’ home opener against UC Santa Barbara.

But that’s not all that Texas A&M will be missing.

Do-it-all point guard J.J. Caldwell is serving a five-game suspension to start the season after a violation of his own, leaving Billy Kennedy and company without two likely starters to open the season.

That might not be a recipe for success against a West Virginia team that starts the year at No. 11 in the AP poll and features one of the best backcourts in the Big 12.

Players to Watch

Duane Wilson (Texas A&M)

The Marquette transfer will likely carry the bulk of the load at point guard with Caldwell on the sidelines.

Of course, Wilson and the rest of the Texas A&M backcourt won’t be facing your typical defense.

Bob Huggins will have his pressure style out in full force knowing that the Aggies are without their best point guard, and that could result in a difficult challenge for Wilson and anyone else that handles the ball.

The good news is that Wilson is the most experienced guard on the roster, so he’ll be able to use that to try and combat the tenacious Mountaineers.

He’ll also have help from Admon Gilder, who despite being a natural shooting guard, was forced to play at the point a lot last year.

Jevon Carter (West Virginia)

While Texas A&M is dealing with backcourt issues, West Virginia is flying high with Carter and fellow senior Daxter Miles.

Carter scored 37 points in a recent exhibition against Purdue, showing that he’s more than just a tremendous on-ball defender.

Considering that Carter helped the Mountaineers force 23 turnovers against the Aggies in last year’s game in Morgantown, he’ll be just as big of an asset this time around.

It shouldn’t surprise anyone if he earns All-American honors this season.

How Texas A&M Can Win

It starts and ends with taking care of the ball.

The Aggies won’t be able to repeat their 23-turnover performance from last season and win. It’s just not gonna happen.

Wilson and Gilder will likely be the ones handling the ball the most, and they must be efficient in attacking West Virginia’s defense. Freshman guards T.J. Starks and Jay Jay Chandler could also be called upon to provide minutes in the backcourt.

But no matter who is on the court, limiting turnovers is the biggest key to victory for the Aggies.

How West Virginia Can Win

Obviously, by doing the opposite and forcing Texas A&M to play out of its comfort zone.

That’s how West Virginia wins games, and leading the nation in turnover margin (+7.7 in ’16-17) yet again is is more likely than not for Huggins’ squad.

The Mountaineers will also need to make a dedicated effort to keep Tyler Davis and Tonny Trocha-Morelos from dominating the offensive glass and giving the Aggies extra scoring opportunities.

Davis had 19 points and 18 rebounds in the previous meeting, with nine of those rebounds coming on the offensive end of the floor.

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