Texas A&M’s new-look basketball roster wasted no time showing what it can do.
In the Aggies’ season opener Tuesday night at Reed Arena, a 97-66 win over Alabama State, the transfer class supplied most of the offense and gave Bucky McMillan exactly the kind of early return he was hoping for. Four newcomers combined for nearly two-thirds of Texas A&M’s points, with Kansas State transfer PJ Haggerty setting the pace at 22 points on 8-of-14 shooting.
Haggerty came to College Station with a scoring résumé already in hand after averaging 23.4 points per game last season, and he looked every bit like the featured weapon McMillan needs. Jordan Pope, the former Texas guard and one of the Aggies’ biggest offseason additions, chipped in 17 points and gave the backcourt another reliable scorer.
Jalen Shelley turned in the most complete line of the night. The Loyola Marymount transfer finished with 14 points and 12 rebounds, notching a double-double in his first game in Maroon & White. Tyshawn Archie, who arrived from McNeese, added 11 points to round out the group of double-digit scorers from the transfer haul.
That kind of production mattered for a roster that brought back only five players from last season. McMillan added seven transfers over the offseason as part of a major reset, and Tuesday’s opener offered a clear glimpse of how quickly those pieces can fit together. The challenge gets tougher from here, but the Aggies already have evidence that their newcomers can carry real weight on offense.
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