What the Longhorns must do to make a deep run in March Madness

The Longhorns wrapped up the 2023-2024 regular season with a 94-80 win over the Oklahoma Sooners. That served as their 7^th straight win over the Sooners, which is quite a streak. The offense was rolling, scoring 80 or more points in four straight games, but that came to a halt in the first round of the Big 12 Tournament last weekend.

After winning 3 of 4 to end the regular season, Texas blew a 10 point second half lead in a disappointing loss to Kansas State in their first and only game in the Big 12 Tournament. It was a disappointing first-game exit, but as the Longhorns saw in 2021, conference tournament success does not equate to NCAA Tournament success. In fact it can be argued that the extra rest for graduate forward Dylan Disu is more valuable than anything Texas would have gained by winning a couple of games in the conference tournament. Let’s dive into what needs to happen in order for Rodney Terry and Texas to make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

A Third Scorer Must Emerge

Everyone that has watched Texas play this year knows that they have two great offensive players in Max Abmas and Dylan Disu. However, in order for the Longhorns to beat teams as good as or better than them, they need a third scorer to step-up. Every team Texas plays moving forward will be as good as, if not better than them, which makes a third scorer a necessity.

At times they have received that from Tyrese Hunter, Chendall Weaver or Dillon Mitchell, but none of them have provided that consistently. Hunter had a great game in the regular season finale against the Sooners, finishing with 30 points. He followed that up with no points on an 0-7 shooting effort against Kansas State. Hunter struggled against most of the good teams Texas played this year with the exception of UCONN and Baylor at home. With the success Hunter had at Iowa State before transferring to Texas and playing the last two years in Austin, it’s surprising that he seems to lack confidence. It is easy to tell when Hunter is playing timid and with no confidence, which is something that cannot happen in the NCAA Tournament or Texas will be lucky to get out of the first round.

Dylan Disu Must Stay On the Floor

The 2022-2023 Texas Basketball season may have ended significantly different had Dylan Disu not suffered an injury in the Sweet 16. Disu had won Big 12 Tournament MVP and followed that up with a career game against Penn State in the round of 32. He finished with 28 points, shooting 10-14 from the floor while grabbing 10 rebounds. Disu looked like the best player on a very good Texas team and then his injury changed the season. The Longhorns finished with a crushing loss in the Elite 8 to Miami. There is a good chance if Disu had been healthy Texas would have made their fourth Final Four in program history.

Disu’s play is even more critical this season. He and Max Abmas are clearly the two best players on Rodney Terry’s team and the Longhorns will go as far as Disu and Abmas take them. It was clear when he returned from injury in December that Disu was a difference-maker on this team. Not only does he need to remain healthy, but he also needs to stay out of foul trouble. He spent most of the game against Kansas State in foul trouble and it made things extremely difficult for the Longhorns’ offense.

Max Abmas Needs to Show Out

Before Max Abmas transferred to Texas, he made a name for himself dominating at Mid Major Oral Roberts University. Abmas introduced himself to the country during a Sweet 16 run with ORU in 2021. In an upset over #2 seed Ohio State, Abmas dropped 29 points, shooting 5-10 from three. He followed that up with 28 points against Florida and another 25 points in a Sweet 16 loss to Arkansas. He then lead the Summit League in scoring the next two seasons with 22.8 PPG and 21.9 PPG. Abmas can clearly score and Texas will need plenty of that in this year’s NCAA Tournament.

Abmas averaged 17 PPG at Texas this year which was a slight step back from his production in the Summit League. He is a microwave scorer and can drop 30 anytime. The issue is that many teams tje Longhorns faced in the Big 12 would double him and force someone else to beat them. Besides Disu, nobody has been able to make the defense pay. That is why a 2^nd guard like Tyrese Hunter or Chendall Weaver stepping up is critical moving forward. If Abmas gets that support he can show the country just how great of a three-level scorer he is.