Let’s skip the Good and the Bad, and get straight to the point…
The Ugly
Granted, the West Virginia player flopped on that Flagrant 2 foul that Jonathan Holmes “committed”, but Holmes still threw an elbow at the head of a player. You can’t do that and expect the referees to ignore it.
Demarcus Holland was the Longhorns the team’s leading scorer with 14. Let that sink in for a moment.
Texas trailed 45-40, when West Virginia went on an 8-0 run. The Mountaineers never looked back. I would say I was shocked but I would be lying.
Epilogue
The Longhorns knew this was going to be a very tough game in Morgantown. Credit the team for trying hard but tonight was another tough lesson. Sometimes your best effort is just not good enough, nor does it prevent failure – that was what Texas was taught tonight.
The pattern of each game is laughably predictable at this point…
First Half:
Texas takes bad shots, gets caught in transition and allows easy buckets. That trifecta is couple with an absurd amount of turnovers, and result is the opposing team having a comfortable lead at the half.
Second Half:
Texas comes out stronger with better focus, makes smart plays, passes the basketball, and makes shots. The lead subsequently dwindles to single digits.
However, Texas gets lazy, starts turning the ball over again, doesn”t rebound well, and goes through a scoring drought. “Suddenly” the Horns are down by double digits again.
Then the Longhorns make a desperate attempt at the end of the game, which results in a score that looks competitive – or better yet is narrowed to a one possession margin. But, having exhausted themselves in the comeback effort, they fail to capitalize and lose the game.
If you watched tonight’s game against WVU, you saw this scenario played out. At this late juncture, the pattern seems completely predictable.
After a promising start to the season and otherworldly expectations, at 17-11, the Texas Longhorns men’s basketball team has failed their fans.
The next game for the Longhorns is this Saturday in Lawrence, KS against the Jayhawks. I will be live in Lawrence covering the game for HornSports. Based on the West Virginia game, I already know what is going to happen.
