Texas refused to let a shaky shooting performance from 3 prevent them from picking up a key win against TCU at home Wednesday night, 75-66. Here are some quick thoughts as the Longhorns moved to 20-8 overall and 9-6 in conference play.
- TCU controlled about the first 28 minutes of the game. The Horned Frogs were making pretty much everything and Texas wasn’t doing themselves many favors with how they were defending the three point line. Once the Longhorns made some adjustments, Texas took over the game in a hurry.
- Timmy Allen having a good night usually means Texas came out on top, and tonight was no different. The Utah transfer scored 17 points and pulled in 7 rebounds, including 5 offensive rebounds. He is the glue that holds this team together right now.
- Marcus Carr shook off a bad performance against Texas Tech and scored 19 points while only turning the ball over once. When Carr is able to get into the paint, good things happen. He does an excellent job of getting to the free throw line and showed good feel around the basket tonight.
- Christian Bishop stepped up in a big way, scoring 10 points while also blocking 5 shots and pulling down 7 rebounds. Bishop will be counted on for heavy minutes over the next few weeks assuming Tre Mitchell does not return this season.
- Alright, time for the elephant in the room. Texas went 1 for 14 from three point range. If the Longhorns continue to put up horrific numbers from beyond the arc, it’s tough to see this team doing any damage in the NCAA Tournament. Marcus Carr, Courtney Ramey, Jase Febres and Andrew Jones are all streaky shooters who are much better from beyond arc than they have shown over the last few weeks. At some point, Texas needs 2 or 3 of these guys to get hot.
Big Picture
- Texas has three games remaining: a road game Saturday against West Virginia, a Big Monday contest at home against Baylor and the season finale in Lawrence next Saturday against Kansas. If Texas somehow finds a way to go 2-1 in this 3 game stretch to wrap up the season, they will likely be a lock for a top 4 seed for the NCAA Tournament. A 1-2 performance likely means the Longhorns will need to win at least one game in the Big 12 tournament to be in the conversation for a 4-seed. A 0-3 performance and it’s hard to see any path where Texas gets a 4 seed.
