4-Point Play: Pregame thoughts (not) from College Station

Good day fine folks of Big Blue Nation. This is me not typing this from College Station, as planned. I was supposed to be there right now, jotting some thoughts down during my three-plus hours worth of flights starting at 5:30 AM. My plane from Louisville to Dallas had other plans.

First it was no flight crew — I’ve heard those are important. Then they said the plane was too cold, needed to wait for the heat to kick on so we’d be comfortable. Another few minutes there, but hey, at least we got on the plane.

And then the lights go out, plane shuts off completely — so much for that heat! — and we’re told maintenance was on its way to figure out what’s wrong. Yeah, this trip is cooked. After telling me I’d miss my Dallas connection, they offered a flight that’d get me to College Station by 5 PM, just in time for Coach Cal’s postgame presser to wrap up. As intriguing as that sounds, consider my losses cut.

My dreams of celebrating a win over the Aggies with the Johnny Football bar crawl are over. The good news? We can say with confidence the sold-out Reed Arena won’t be 100% full — my butt certainly won’t be occupying a seat.

In lieu of in-person thoughts, take these instead. Please. It’s been a rough morning.

The curious case of Wade Taylor IV

One way or another, Wade Taylor IV is going to get his shots up. Whether he makes them or not is a different story. The 6-foot guard is now 10-36 overall and 3-20 from three in his last two matchups — both in SEC play — and shooting an abysmal 36.4% from the field overall and 25.4% from three with over three turnovers per game. A unanimous first-team All-SEC selection and preseason SEC Player of the Year, he just hasn’t turned the corner to become anything more than a high-volume, low-efficiency chucker overall.

Among DI players with multiple games vs. AP Top 25 teams, though, he ranks No. 5 nationally with a 25.7 scoring averaging, highlighted 35- and 34-point outings vs. No. 19 FAU and No. 4 Houston, respectively. He joins Villanova’s Eric Dixon as the only DI players with multiple 30-point games vs. ranked teams. Out of four total games shooting at least 45% from the field, those were two of them.

Taylor is due and he thrives against elite competition. For a team desperate to salvage the season after a ho-hum start, Texas A&M needs this one. And it needs the junior guard at his best to do it.

Will Adou Thiero play?

The strong and athletic forward has missed three straight games for the Wildcats due to “general soreness,” but actually a lingering back issue that flared up back in December. “Day-to-day” with missed practices are the only real update we’ve gotten regarding his return-to-play timeline, nothing ahead of this matchup, either.

I’m not in College Station to see with my own two eyes, but smoke signals off in the distance indicate Thiero is likely to miss his fourth consecutive game. It’s not ideal for the kid, obviously — he was hooping on both ends of the floor before injury. Using his body for tough finishes while emerging as a legitimate shot-blocking and rebounding threat, he’s the perfect small-ball four on a roster of basketball players. Just gives this team a little something extra it doesn’t have anywhere else.

It’s the same concern we had going into the Florida matchup — tough, hard-nosed and physical, a force on the glass. His absence once again puts the pressure on Tre Mitchell, Aaron Bradshaw and Ugonna Onyenso to neutralize A&M on the glass, arguably the top key to a road win.

Breakthrough time for Justin Edwards

I nearly included the 6-7 wing in that previous grouping, but Edwards deserves his own subheading. It just feels like it’s time, a true fork in the road in his journey where things really start going one way or the other. He continues to shine in spurts, but refuses to put together complete performances. And for the first time since he arrived in Lexington, we saw the emotion, that weight finally pressing down on his shoulders. He hit the side of the backboard on a corner three attempt vs. Missouri, immediately went to the bench and threw a towel over his head. Tyler Ulis swapped seats to wrap his arm around, hoping to keep him out of any dark place his mind might take him.

Calipari played through him to open the second half, which led to back-to-back layups, one for an and-one. It’s because he believes his time is coming and will do whatever it takes to help him get there. But he can’t speak it into existence.

That has to come from Edwards and Edwards only.

“We stuck with him and I want him to try to play through it,” Calipari said. “It’s not what I’m saying. It’s what he is saying to himself. What is the inner talk? You are not making every shot, so stop. If you missed, just keep playing and get a back force and block a shot and defend. … He is playing good but in a month from now you will all say wow, this is what they were talking about.

“He is working really, really hard. But the stuff doesn’t happen on our time, or his time. It doesn’t. Sometimes you have to go three months, four months, and all of a sudden you start breaking through and then you go. Most of the stuff they have to work through.”

He’s got it in him and now is his time. Something tells me we see it today in College Station.

Don’t expect freebies in transition

As underwhelming as A&M has been offensively this season, its games have been won by mucking things up on the defensive end of the floor. The Aggies have done a solid job slowing things down and forcing teams to execute in the halfcourt, switching and throwing different looks at you.

“They press a little bit, very active and hansy,” Orlando Antigua said of the Aggie defense. “We have to take care of the ball, value the ball a little bit.”

Sean Vinsel of HoopsInsight.com threw an interesting stat out there to keep an eye on: Kentucky scores 35% of its points in transition while A&M allows just 20% of opponent scoring there.

Rebounding and keeping Wade Taylor IV in check are top priorities on the road today, but don’t discount the importance of the Wildcats’ ability to do what they do best. If they can control the pace, you’ve got to feel good about their chances.