Alabama @ Texas A&M preview

Last Meeting ( Jan 12, 2019 ) Texas A&M 81, Alabama 80

Alabama has sustained some big hits to its NCAA Tournament resume and will try to avoid another damaging blow when it visits Texas A&M for an SEC contest Tuesday night. The Crimson Tide first fell by 19 points at Mississippi State last Tuesday before losing by 18 at home to Florida in a matchup of teams jockeying for position on the Big Dance bubble.

"I don't think the sky is necessarily falling but boy it's really cloudy right now," Alabama coach Avery Johnson told reporters after his team handed out a season-low six assists and shot 10-of-22 from the foul line Saturday. "I'm very disappointed in myself. I'm very disappointed with our effort." The Crimson Tide are also seeking a measure of revenge against the Aggies, who received a buzzer-beating 3-pointer by TJ Starks to steal an 81-80 win at Alabama earlier this season. That was the only conference victory in the first nine games for Texas A&M, which recovered to top Missouri and Georgia before dropping an 84-77 decision at South Carolina on Saturday. Sophomore guard Savion Flagg hit a career-high six 3-pointers en route to 24 points in the loss.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, SEC Network

ABOUT ALABAMA (15-10, 6-6 SEC): Freshman guard Kira Lewis Jr. leads the team in scoring (14.4 points per game) and is averaging 17.2 on 53.7 percent shooting over his last five contests. Senior forward Donta Hall has made 5-of-6 shots in consecutive games to boost his field-goal percentage to 64.2, second in the SEC. Hall also ranks third in the league in rebounding (8.5) and had a career-high 16 boards in the loss to the Aggies on Jan. 12.

ABOUT TEXAS A&M (10-14, 3-9): After allowing opponents to hit 11-of-50 from 3-point range in their back-to-back wins, the Aggies let South Carolina drill a school record-tying 16 in only 31 attempts Saturday. They tried to keep pace behind Flagg and junior guard Wendell Mitchell (3-of-5 from beyond the arc, 20 points), but the rest of the team was a combined 0-for-7 from long range. Starks is the team's leader in scoring (13.0) and assists (3.6), while Flagg averages 12.2 points and a team-high 7.5 rebounds.

TIP-INS

1. Hall has 219 career blocks, two shy of matching Jermareo Davidson (2004-07) for third on the school's all-time list.

2. Aggies junior F Josh Nebo scored a season-high 21 points on 10-of-12 shooting in the first meeting.

3. Texas A&M won the last two matchups on its home floor by a total of five points.

PREDICTION: Alabama 72, Texas A&M 70