Longhorns show grit on the road, and other Texas notes
Down by 11 points at half to 7th-ranked Kansas State on the road, the Texas basketball team stormed back to defeat the Wildcats, 69-66.
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Christian Bishop played perhaps his best game of the season, finishing with 14 points, including the go-ahead score with about a minute remaining on a sweet reverse-pivot move underneath the basket.
The Longhorns defense smothered a crafty Wildcats offense to end the game.
It was a tough road win.
Any doubt about the mental and physical toughness of this team should be laid to rest.
They are playing as hard as I’ve seen any Texas team play in years, and what’s more, when the chips are on the line, they are playing together.
On Saturday, the Horns repeatedly showed grit and savvy in my opinion. That’s just a rare combination reserved for special teams.
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The Horns are executing extremely well at the end of games.
On offense, on defense, and at the charity stripe.
Examples:
On offense, down by one-point, the Horns ran a set play that got the ball to Bishop in the low post who was a mismatch for his man much of the game. Bishop made a great move and put the ball off glass to give Texas a one-point lead.
On defense, K-State, who can be prolific on offense, could not get a ball to the rim in the final 30 seconds. Bishop blocked one shot and then a swarming defense caused a turnover.
The K-State turnover led to a quick Wildcat foul. Rice went to the free throw line and drained both free throws, just as he had approximately a minute earlier in a see-saw finish to the game.
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Texas sits atop the Big 12 standings with an 8-2 record in conference and 19-4 overall record. Iowa State is second in conference at 7-3.
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The women’s basketball team is also atop the Big 12 standings after beating Kansas in Lawrence yesterday afternoon. Ever since Rori Harmon returned to the lineup, the Horns have been a different team. They’ve taken the conference lead with a 9-2 record and have won five straight.
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The Texas baseball alumni game was held yesterday, ending in a 4-4 tie. But that game is never about the score. It’s always about the reunion.
I did not attend but seeing some of the pictures on Twitter brought back a ton of memories, and it was particularly appropriate that Brooks Kieschnick was the alumni coach the year that Cliff Gustafson, who started the alumni game, passed away.
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We’re still hearing positive things on Red Oak safety Warren Roberson. He’s still set to announce his decision on Tuesday.
And Duce Robinson is very much still in play for the Horns.
