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NEW YORK – Kerwin Roach II has been with Shaka Smart from the beginning. Four seasons of ups and downs, some extraordinary highs and gut-wrenching lows.
Dylan Osetkowski arrived one year after Smart and Roach, a once-unheralded transfer from Tulane who believed Texas was the best possible fit.
That trio’s time together is now nearing an end.
No. 2 seed Texas (20-16) will face No. 5 seed Lipscomb (29-7) Thursday night in the NIT championship game at Madison Square Garden. For Roach and Osetkowski, it’s a chance to go out on top.
“You don’t see that very often with seniors getting to go out, win their last game, win a championship,” Smart said Wednesday. “That’s something we’ll talk about a lot tonight.
“I told our guys going into the NIT, this is the last time we’ll be together with this team as this specific team. So it’s a chance to really embrace being together and going out the right way.”
This isn’t the title Texas set out to win when this season began. And NIT runs certainly weren’t what Smart and the school had in mind when he came over from VCU in 2015.
But the reality is, Texas is still playing basketball in April. And Osetkowski and Roach have been vital during this four-game winning streak.
Osetkowski is averaging 14.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals in the NIT. Roach has put up 17.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and four assists per game.
The senior duo combined for 35 points, 11 rebounds and four assists in UT’s 58-44 win over TCU in the NIT semifinals.
“I get to play another game at Madison Square Garden,” Osetkowski said. “That’s pretty cool.
“But to be able to have the opportunity to actually leave something permanent for the university, I think that would be pretty cool.”
Texas took down Lipscomb early last...
View the full article
Dylan Osetkowski arrived one year after Smart and Roach, a once-unheralded transfer from Tulane who believed Texas was the best possible fit.
That trio’s time together is now nearing an end.
No. 2 seed Texas (20-16) will face No. 5 seed Lipscomb (29-7) Thursday night in the NIT championship game at Madison Square Garden. For Roach and Osetkowski, it’s a chance to go out on top.
“You don’t see that very often with seniors getting to go out, win their last game, win a championship,” Smart said Wednesday. “That’s something we’ll talk about a lot tonight.
“I told our guys going into the NIT, this is the last time we’ll be together with this team as this specific team. So it’s a chance to really embrace being together and going out the right way.”
This isn’t the title Texas set out to win when this season began. And NIT runs certainly weren’t what Smart and the school had in mind when he came over from VCU in 2015.
But the reality is, Texas is still playing basketball in April. And Osetkowski and Roach have been vital during this four-game winning streak.
Osetkowski is averaging 14.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.8 steals in the NIT. Roach has put up 17.3 points, 4.3 rebounds and four assists per game.
The senior duo combined for 35 points, 11 rebounds and four assists in UT’s 58-44 win over TCU in the NIT semifinals.
“I get to play another game at Madison Square Garden,” Osetkowski said. “That’s pretty cool.
“But to be able to have the opportunity to actually leave something permanent for the university, I think that would be pretty cool.”
Texas took down Lipscomb early last...
View the full article
