Sloan Is A&M's Rock as Aggies Roll

Ask anyone in the Big 12 and they'll be quick to tell you the heart and determination Texas A&M senior guard Donald Sloan plays with is almost uncanny.

Sloan will tell you he's learned from the best.

He had the privilege of watching some of the most poised basketball players in the college game lead the Aggies during his first three years: Acie Law, Joe Jones, Dominique Kirk and Josh Carter.

Sloan was there that night soaking it all up as Law fired the buzzer-beat 3-point shot against then No. 6 Kansas in Feb. 2007 that gave the Big 12 South its first win in Allen Fieldhouse.

"Those guys played within themselves, they played poised," Sloan told FanHouse recently. "I go back looking at film and these guys don't get rattled. When we were at Kansas, Acie never once looked like he was nervous.

"Back then I wondered how those guys were able to do it, but now being a senior leader I guess it's kind of rubbed off on me. I've been through those situations before and seen from the best how to get through it."

He's taken what he's learned and come up huge for the Aggies, sparking a relatively inexperienced team onto an unbelievable run. No. 23 Texas A&M has won four straight and six of its last seven to set up huge showdown Monday against No. 1 Kansas at Reed Arena.

A&M, which moved back into Top 25 polls Monday, is 18-6 overall and 7-3 Big 12 and is 13-0 at home and 5-0 in league play.

Just as Sloan has been the catalyst in much of the Aggies latest run, they will likely need the 6-foot-3 guard to be the driving force if they have any hopes of knocking of the Jayhawks (24-1, 10-0), who've won 10 straight in Big 12 play.

It's a role and responsibility Sloan doesn't shy away.

"This is my last year and I'm one of the leaders on the team," said Sloan, who is the third highest scorer in Big 12 games with 19.5 points per contest. "There is no longer a Joe Jones, Acie Law, Josh Carter or Dominique Kirk. Those guys are no longer around so somebody had to be that guy, who goes out every game with that type of determination."

It's been a role that Sloan has seemingly wanted to fill since first stepping foot on A&M's campus as one of Billy Gillispie's prized recruits in 2006. But it's a role he's only become ready for after four years of learning from the older players and Gillispie's replacement, Mark Turgeon.

Sloan has developed into that player who can take over a game at the critical moments with a rare mid-range game, as well as an ability to drive to the basket and draw fouls. He has also added enough of a 3-point shot to make teams have to respect the shot to make his game that much more complete.

"When you look at his body, his strength, his makeup, somebody said he was a boxer and you can see that toughness that he exudes," said Missouri coach Mike Anderson, who watched Sloan blister his Tigers for 17 points and eight rebounds in a stunning road win on Feb. 3. "He plays with a confidence and toughness that helps him become the player that he is."

Texas Tech coach Pat Knight agrees, despite the fact Sloan had his worst game of the Big 12 season Saturday in a 67-65 road win against the Raiders, scoring just 14 points on 4-of-11 shooting while turning the ball over seven times in 30 minutes.

"The guy is a winner," Knight said. "He's a clutch player, a kid you have to key on. As an opposing coach, I don't like the way he has improved but I know Coach Turgeon has got to be happy with the way he has improved each year. He's got to be considered one of the best players in the league right now."

You certainly will get no argument from Turgeon, who has pushed Sloan to grow from a player with enormous potential to one who is complete on both ends of the floor.

Sloan leads the Aggies in scoring for the season with 18.3 points per game, while also averaging 4.0 rebounds and 2.1 assists as a combo guard in the backcourt. Even bigger, his speed and determination has made him one of the toughest players to guard in the league as evidenced by the 81 free throws he's attempted in 10 Big 12 games.

"He's been great," said Turgeon. "Obviously he's scoring the ball for us in a variety of ways. Defensively, he's gotten better and he's been a better leader for us. I don't think there is anybody in the league that can guard him.

"He's just become a much smarter basketball player and we need him to score and it's quite obviously he loves it. He's always wanted to score more and it's his time to do it and he's taken full advantage of it."

Sloan's play has helped position the Aggies for a fifth straight NCAA tournament bid as one of the top three teams in the Big 12,the league widely considered the best in the nation this season. But the success hasn't come without a price.

One of Sloan's biggest motivations in league play has been the loss of his close friend and teammate Derrick Roland, who suffered a career-ending broken leg at Washington in December. The two came to Texas A&M together from Seagoville High School in Dallas.

Their closeness was obvious from the moment they stepped on campus and it only grew as their roles on the team grew. Sloan was the scorer, while Roland aka D. Ro developed into the Aggies defensive stopper.

"It's been hard and draining at the same time. This is a guy I've suited up with since the eighth grade and now he's not here at one of the most critical time of both of our careers, our senior year in college and now he's out. That hurts a lot.

"We miss him because not only is he our best defender, but he's one of our leading scorers and a leader on this team. We lost a lot losing D.Ro."

Sloan lost even more.

"He's meant a lot," Sloan said. "Over the past couple years we had a lot of heated open gym battles. Having one of the best defenders in the country guard you every day in practice or be around you 24-7, it helps you grow as a player physically and mentally because you learn a lot from playing against great defenders in practice and pickup games.

"I wouldn't be nowhere near where I am in my game right now if it wasn't for facing defender like D-Ro. He's the reason why I'm able to get to the spot on the floor I want to get to. He's really essential to the growth I've had the past couple years."

That growth has caused every coach in the Big 12 to take notice and have some extra film sessions to try to limit Sloan's effectiveness. Many regard Sloan as one of the best guards in the league this season, a distinction Sloan once coveted but now just seems flattered others see him in that light.

"I don't really too much think about it," Sloan said. "I just go out and try to represent myself, my school and my family every time I step out on the court. My actions and the way I play on the court kind of speaks for itself. If I am or if I'm not, I really don't know.

"I just know every time I go out on the court I kind of prove myself in some type of status."