Looking to build upon a 25-10 showing in the 2022-23 season, the Texas A&M men’s basketball team will earn a tune-up with a tropical twist from August 6-12. The Aggies will travel to the Bahamas, where they will take on three international teams in competition at the Atlantis resort on Paradise Island.
The team will be allotted 10 additional days of practice in preparation for the foreign tour, a right entitled to college programs every four years. A&M last faced international competition in 2019 with a tour of Costa Rica before coach Buzz Williams’ first season at the helm of the program.
The action will begin on Monday, August 7, with a 5 p.m. matchup against the Bahamian National Team before a noon tipoff on Wednesday, August 9, against Lithuanian pro team Zalgiris. The Aggies will take on Argentinian pro team Obras Basket at noon on Thursday, August 10, to round things out. Each game will take place in the Atlantic Imperial Ballroom.
The trip to the islands isn’t all about basketball, though. There, the maroon and white will take part in team-building exercises and cultural activities, while also lending a charitable hand to those in need.
“Obviously, the international competition and the extra days of practice are important, but the biggest benefit of a foreign tour is broadening the experience for the student-athletes,” Williams told 12thMan.com. “This is a unique opportunity for our guys to experience another culture. We will also get to serve those less fortunate than us while we are there. Our program is grateful to our administration and the 12th Man for their support of our Bahamas tour and [we] look forward to making some great memories.”
The three contests will offer fans the first glimpse of the team’s three newcomers in an A&M uniform. Williams and his staff recruited Bryce Lindsay, a guard from IMG Academy in Florida. Additionally, guard Eli Lawrence of Middle Tennessee State and guard Jace Carter of Illinois-Chicago joined the Aggies as transfers.