Following its second consecutive trip to the Sweet 16, Texas A&M women’s basketball is a favorite to top the SEC in the spring.
The league’s head coaches chose the Aggies as the forerunner for the 2020 SEC Championship in a vote released Tuesday.
The Aggies have only been picked to finish at the top of their conference once before, prior to the 2007-08 season when they were in the Big 12.
Earlier this month, the NCAA ranked A&M No. 4 in its preseason poll, behind Oregon, Baylor and Stanford.
A&M is returning six starters from a 2018-19 season in which they went 26-8, with a run to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The Aggies fell to then-No. 3 Notre Dame 87-80.
Three of the returning Aggies have earned preseason accolades. Junior guard Chennedy Carter was named the SEC Preseason Player of the Year and First-Team All-SEC, while junior center Ciera Johnson and junior guard Kayla Wells received Second-Team All-SEC honors.
In the 2018-19 season, Carter led the SEC with an average 23.3 points per game, with an average 30.7 points throughout the NCAA Tournament. After the season, she earned First-Team All-SEC and was named AP All-American for the second time in her career.
Johnson averaged 12.0 points and 8.4 rebounds last season, while Wells averaged 15.1 points for 10th place in the conference.
A&M will kick off the 2019-20 season at home against Oklahoma City University at 6 p.m. on Nov. 1.