The Texas A&M men’s and women’s basketball teams tipped off their seasons on Thursday night with Maroon Madness.
Last year, the men’s team had a somewhat disappointing 16-15 season, missing out on the NCAA tournament, while the women’s team went 22-12, falling to UCLA in the second round after a miraculous comeback against Penn in the first round.
Maroon Madness began with player introductions, alternating men’s and women’s players, starting with the freshmen, and ended with the high-profile players for both teams. Each player came out to the song of their choice, adding their own spin on their entrances.
Next, a three-point contest was held between men’s junior guard Admon Gilder and a female student pulled from the crowd, and women’s junior guard Danni Williams and a male student pulled from the crowd, with Gilder and the female student taking the win.
Both teams then held short five-minute scrimmages that looked similar to the NBA All-Star game in which no defense was played whatsoever, with the men’s team throwing down dunk after dunk.
In the middle of the two scrimmages, Houston dunking performers Acrodunk did a performance for the crowd.
To finish things off, junior men’s center Tyler Davis and senior women’s center Khaalia Hillsman thanked the crowd for coming out and encouraged them to cheer them on in their upcoming seasons.
The men’s team will start their season with an exhibition against Tarleton State at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 3 at Reed Arena. The women’s team will start their season with an exhibition against Oklahoma City University at 7 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 6 at Reed Arena.