Texas welcomed back Rick Barnes to the Erwin Center on Saturday night. The former Texas coach received plenty of recognition prior to tip off and was warmly welcomed back by Longhorn fans. In typical Barnes fashion, the game itself turned into a defensive battle with both teams having extended scoring droughts. In the end though, Texas was able to squeak out a 52-51 victory to secure a big home win over a ranked opponent on an emotional night. Here are some thoughts and takeaways.
- It was the first home sellout for Texas since 2016 and the environment was excellent. The crowd was engaged from the opening tip and Chris Beard’s motto of uniting the Texas basketball family was on full display as they welcomed home Barnes.
- The game itself was ugly at times. Texas appeared poised to run away with things as they opened up a 17 point lead in the second half but scored one (!!!!) point in the last 5:30 of the second half as Tennessee came storming back. Ultimately, that point proved to be the difference as a Timmy Allen free throw with 6 seconds left was enough to give Texas the victory.
- Texas had an uncharacteristically awful night from the free throw line. The Longhorns repeatedly missed free throws down the stretch as they attempted to put the game away and finished the evening 5 for 12 from the charity stripe.
- Courtney Ramey led all Texas players with 18 points and connected on 4 three pointers. Ramey’s ability to connect from deep has shown up for most of the season and he has proven to be the most reliable three point shooter for Texas right now.
- It was a rough night for Marcus Carr, who finished with 3 points and 2 assists despite playing 34 minutes. Carr looked to be hesitant for much of the evening, which was something that plagued him early in the season. Chris Beard will need to get his point guard back on track with a brutal stretch of Big 12 play coming up.
- As a team, Texas had 18 turnovers after having 20 turnovers against Oklahoma State a week ago. Somehow, Texas won both games. It is certainly not a trend they can keep up. The Longhorns have to do a better job of protecting the basketball or it is going to come back to bite them in a big way.
- On a brighter note, the defense for Texas continues to be outstanding. Tennessee shot 35.8% from the field and 27.8% from deep. Texas also forced 11 turnovers and made the Volunteers force shots on a lot of possessions.
What’s Next?
The long anticipated trip to Lubbock is finally here. Texas travels to face Texas Tech on Tuesday. The Longhorns currently sit at 5-3 with 10 conference games remaining. The next two weeks will go a long way in determining what seed line Texas will be looking back come March.
