http://www.bevoball.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/ff.jpgA poor Texas first half ultimately doomed the Longhorns in their bid to pull off a massive come-from-behind win over 6th seed Cincinnati today in Nashville. Texas couldn’t buy a bucket let alone put one on layaway in the first half, scoring only 17 points and shooting only 16% from the field. Julien Lewis scored the first points for Texas at 17:48 and then, more than 10 minutes later, Texas added its next points on two free throws made by Lewis. For Longhorn fans it was a nightmare that looked like it would never end. Yancy Gates and Cincinnati took a 31-17 lead at halftime leaving Rick Barnes and Texas scratching their heads in disbelief. First half scoring by player looked like this for Texas:
- J’Covan Brown – 9 points
- Julien Lewis – 4 points
- Clint Chapman – 2 Points
- Myck Kabongo – 2 points
- Johnathan Holmes – 0 points
- Sheldon McClellan – 0 points
- Jaylen Bond – 0 points
We aren’t sure if Coach Barnes brought Coach Garrido or Dr. Lou in for the halftime speech but whatever was discussed made Texas realize just how dire the current situation was. Texas eventually was down by as many as 19 points before mounting a fierce attack, courtesy of junior guard J’Covan Brown and freshman guard Julien Lewis. At the 9:54 mark Julien Lewis hit a 3 pointer to cut the Bearkat lead to single digits, 46-37. 6 minutes later Texas tied the game up 52-52 after great play from Brown, Lewis and Clint Chapman. Cincy’s Yancy Gates then took over and scored a couple of key baskets within the 2 minute mark while Texas missed several errant 3 point attempts. The Longhorns were forced to foul immediately after trailing 61-56 with 36 seconds left and Cincinnati hit 5 of 6 from the line to send the Longhorns packing with a 65-59 loss.
Items of Note
- 5th Year Senior Clint Chapman scored 10 points and pulled in 14 rebounds in his final game as a member of the Texas basketball team.
- J’Covan Brown led the team in scoring with 19 points. The biggest question about the program will revolve around J’Covan’s potential to return for his senior year.
- Myck Kabongo struggled, finishing 0-6 from the floor and 0-4 from the three point arc.
- Freshman Julien Lewis is a bright spot on the team. He finished behind Brown with 14 points.
