McMillan introduced at TAMU: Here to win titles
COLLEGE STATION, Texas– The Bucky McMillan age tipped off Monday at Texas A&M with a lofty pledge from the coach who raised Samford basketball to brand-new heights.
“For me to leave that location, it would only be for some place that I understand I might not just win champions, but was a terrific location with great people,” McMillan said at his introductory news conference in A&M’s Reed Arena. “That’s why I’m here– we’re going to win champions here.”
Texas A&M’s men’s basketball team has actually never advanced to the Elite 8 of the NCAA tournament. The A&M women won a national title in 2011 under coach Gary Blair.The Aggies
employed the high-revving McMillan, 41, to change Buzz Williams, who left A&M for Maryland on April 1. Williams finished with a 120-73 record at A&M over six seasons and advanced to the NCAA tournament in each of the past three seasons.A & M hasn’t
advanced to the Sweet 16 considering that 2018 under coach Billy Kennedy– which is why Williams’ tenure was considered frustrating to A&M fans.Editor’s Picks
McMillan, a native Alabaman who has never coached in Texas and had checked out College Station just as soon as prior, has actually employed two previous assistants at A&M under Kennedy: Mitch Cole, who likewise assisted McMillan at Samford, and former Stephen F. Austin State head coach Kyle Keller, whom the Lumberjacks dismissed in January after a 1-7 start to Southland Conference play.McMillan led Samford to the NCAA competition a year ago, and the Bulldogs directly lost 93-89 to Kansas in the opening round. McMillan, who was 99-52 over 5 seasons at Samford in Birmingham, Alabama, previously coached Mountain Brook High School near Birmingham to 5 state titles in Alabama’s highest high school classification. “I’ve talked with a lot of folks about basketball, “stated A&M athletic director Trev Alberts, who made his most prominent hire considering that his arrival in College Station a little bit more than a year back.”And the important things about Bucky McMillan that kept coming up was, ‘This is one of the elite, emerging young minds in college basketball.’… He believes differently– he coaches outside the box. And players enjoy his style of basketball.” That design, very first called”Bucky Ball “during McMillan’s high school training days, is frenzied on offense and
defense. McMillan has consented to a five-year offer at A&M, sources informed ESPN, but precise agreement numbers were not offered Monday.”When we bring employees to games, and this place is filled up … and we’re leading the nation in scoring and it’s going
insane, people are going to say, ‘I wish to be a part of that,'”McMillan told about 500 fans collected in Reed Arena for his introduction.The Bulldogs ranked 13th nationally in scoring this season with 82.9 points per game, and completed in the top 10 in 3-pointers made and tried(356 of 978 for 36.4 %). The Samford defense’s 16.1 turnovers required per game ranked 4th nationally.”Any coach who wins 330-plus games as a high school coach with multiple state championships deserves paying attention to,” Texas A&M president Mark Welsh stated.
“Any coach who’s had the record he’s had more than the last 5 years at Samford University, which plays in a difficult basketball conference, is worth taking notice of.”And anybody who raises presence the way he has in every venue that he’s been a part of is worth focusing on.”A season ago, Samford won a school-record 29
games and swept the Southern Conference regular-season and competition titles for the first time in program history. The Bulldogs in 2024 also won a school-record 17 successive games and were 18-0 at home. This season, Samford finished 22-11 and lost in the preliminary of the National Invitation Tournament at George Mason.Williams coached a veteran team in his last season at A&M(23-11), and based upon expired eligibility and the transfer website, McMillan acquires a lone scholarship player in freshman
forward Chris McDermott, who played sparingly in his very first season.”We’re going to have to get to work right away,”McMillan said of cranking up his recruiting at A&M.”We do play an unique style, very up-tempo and busy.
We love to hire to that system, but we can’t run that system with four players. So we’re going to have to get players on board, and we have to get players on board quickly here. “The Associated Press contributed to this report.