ADVERTISEMENT

Big Monday: Texas @ #15/#13 Baylor

Win or lose, Shaka has me sold. He is what we thought he was.

Has this team gelling and overcoming a pretty big injury to Cam who was becoming a big focus of our team on both ends. We are just playing a brand of basketball that is fun to watch. And he is using these kids talents and developing them.
 
This game is really entertaining. Both teams will not quit. Good to see us be tenacious on the road. BU keeps trying to gain momentum and we won't give it up.

Foul trouble for both teams will be big here in the last few minutes.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dogged Horn
Damn. The "blond bomber with the dagger 3" to put UT up by 6 with under 40 seconds to play. And BU comes right back with a quick 3 of their own.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dogged Horn
Man, if you foul before the ball is inbounded with under a minute left.......there should be a time run off on the clock. Or at least give an extra free throw. These games can last forever if you do that. Its even worse in the NBA with the hack a Shaq that goes on against bigs on an out of bounds play to lock them in to the line. Hell people do it vs Houston and Howard at the end of each quarter if they are in the bonus.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dogged Horn
Now that was a f***ing big boys' game! Awesome to see us play with such intensity but also such discipline.

And Ibeh! Imagine if Shaka could have had another year with him. It's both thrilling and depressing to see him develop more in one half of a season than he did in three years under Barnes.

Man, I could ramble on for an hour about how much our coach and this team are impressing me. Ten months later, and I'm still in giddy disbelief that we landed Shaka.
 
So how many ranked teams do we have to beat before we get some respect?

We have respect. We have RPI. We have BPI. We have bracketology. If you're wanting a poll ranking, first... who cares? And second... it's just the awkward thing about how many losses we have, and nothing more. There are a couple of ranked teams with 5 losses and the rest all have less than that. We have 7. Our wins outweigh that when it comes to seeding and things that actually matter, but a bunch of voters trying to pick a list of 25 teams are going to fumble with the idea of putting us in there. Not a big deal.
 
Yeah the polls value # of losses. We lost several games early. And then a couple right after cams injury. Not a huge deal.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dogged Horn
I had no idea the game was tonight. Damn! Lucky we have LHN.

For what it's worth, Texas has a game every Saturday through the end or the regular season, and 2 of the remaining 3 regular season Mondays... with a Tuesday instead one week. So just look for UT basketball on Mondays and Saturdays and you'll be all set (since you'll be ready for that one Tuesday too).
 
  • Like
Reactions: Dogged Horn
We have respect. We have RPI. We have BPI. We have bracketology. If you're wanting a poll ranking, first... who cares? And second... it's just the awkward thing about how many losses we have, and nothing more. There are a couple of ranked teams with 5 losses and the rest all have less than that. We have 7. Our wins outweigh that when it comes to seeding and things that actually matter, but a bunch of voters trying to pick a list of 25 teams are going to fumble with the idea of putting us in there. Not a big deal.


I care. Like it or not, that little number next to the name actually does mean something. It creates more buzz, more Sportscenter highlights, and results in improved home attendance. This just shows how lazy the pollsters are. It's obvious by now this is a different team than the one that started the season, or the one that lost Cam.
 
I care. Like it or not, that little number next to the name actually does mean something. It creates more buzz, more Sportscenter highlights, and results in improved home attendance. This just shows how lazy the pollsters are. It's obvious by now this is a different team than the one that started the season, or the one that lost Cam.

UT is looking better and better, and could do some serious damage in March Madness. But they do not deserve to be ranked, at least not yet. The teams in the top 25 with the most losses only have 5. With a couple of more big wins (especially if one is against OU), and no more bad losses, UT can easily get in the top 25 before the Big 12 tournament. But right now Texas has more work to do before they earn a top 25 ranking. Texas has good wins, but they also has some not so good losses. You have to take the losses into account as well.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HornosaurusRex
UT is looking better and better, and could do some serious damage in March Madness. But they do not deserve to be ranked, at least not yet. The teams in the top 25 with the most losses only have 5. With a couple of more big wins (especially if one is against OU), and no more bad losses, UT can easily get in the top 25 before the Big 12 tournament. But right now Texas has more work to do before they earn a top 25 ranking. Texas has good wins, but they also has some not so good losses. You have to take the losses into account as well.


Your reasoning is exactly why the polls are flawed. Only looking at number of losses is a lazy way to do it. They should take into account the circumstances and how much a team has improved. Texas is one of the best 25 teams in the country right now, which should be all that matters. Their record against the top 25 speaks for itself.
 
  • Like
Reactions: HornosaurusRex
So how many ranked teams do we have to beat before we get some respect?
Metcalf, I would say that I'm more than cautiously optimistic that as the season progresses, other teams are going to go from a "whistling past the graveyard" mentality when they play us, to full on "Oh sh!t, Texas is coming to town". We're not there yet, but we are WELL on our way. If we can get Cam back and he manages to stay in "game shape" during his layoff, we very well could be a wrecking ball come tournament time.
 
Did anyone else notice last night during the broadcast when they showed the "tournament resume" and showed the win over West Virginia as the best win of the season? If I remember correctly, didn't we beat #2 North Carolina at home? I figure that would be the better win considering that UNC is #2 and has the name recognition over West Virginia.

Also, one thing that I noticed that we are missing on this team is a knock down shooter. Outside of Lammert, there wasn't anyone on the floor last night that I had any confidence in knocking down a big three when we need it. If Smart can bring in a top flight shooter, somewhere in line with the kid from Baylor last year and the kid from Michigan a couple years ago, he could build this program into a national title contender really quickly. I was super impressed with this team's ability to defend on the perimeter and defend on the interior without picking up fouls. The transformation of Prince Ibeh has been nothing short of spectacular thus far. He has always been a +defender, but now he is taking that to the next level and that is giving him a huge confidence boost to take to the offensive end. If we had some shooters, he would be even tougher to contain.
 
The transformation of Prince Ibeh has been nothing short of spectacular thus far. He has always been a +defender, but now he is taking that to the next level and that is giving him a huge confidence boost to take to the offensive end. If we had some shooters, he would be even tougher to contain.
This. Unbelievable this is the same guy who couldn't get on the floor the last 3 years. Now he is a force. He was too much for Gathers and Motley to handle. What was the stat they flashed - I think it was 3-21 on free throws, followed by 10-12? That is nothing but hard work.
 
Good win for your horns! What do you guys think about the OU game in Norman next monday?

Going to be an exceedingly tall order to beat OU on their home court. I'm just hopeful that we can end their win streak against Texas when they come to Austin.
 
Did anyone else notice last night during the broadcast when they showed the "tournament resume" and showed the win over West Virginia as the best win of the season? If I remember correctly, didn't we beat #2 North Carolina at home? I figure that would be the better win considering that UNC is #2 and has the name recognition over West Virginia.

Also, one thing that I noticed that we are missing on this team is a knock down shooter. Outside of Lammert, there wasn't anyone on the floor last night that I had any confidence in knocking down a big three when we need it. If Smart can bring in a top flight shooter, somewhere in line with the kid from Baylor last year and the kid from Michigan a couple years ago, he could build this program into a national title contender really quickly. I was super impressed with this team's ability to defend on the perimeter and defend on the interior without picking up fouls. The transformation of Prince Ibeh has been nothing short of spectacular thus far. He has always been a +defender, but now he is taking that to the next level and that is giving him a huge confidence boost to take to the offensive end. If we had some shooters, he would be even tougher to contain.


We already have 2 shooters coming in our next class. Jacob Young in particular can fill up the hoop.
 
  • Like
Reactions: swVAHorn
We already have 2 shooters coming in our next class. Jacob Young in particular can fill up the hoop.
We need them for sure. I think we need some rebounders to. Someone who can go get it. Any Forward/Center guys we are looking at now?
 
We need them for sure. I think we need some rebounders to. Someone who can go get it. Any Forward/Center guys we are looking at now?
I haven't followed basketball recruiting all that close. Although I'm now involved with an AAU program in Kansas City so I will follow more. If you are a big man though you ought to be looking at Texas. Look what they did with ibeh
 
  • Like
Reactions: swVAHorn
Your reasoning is exactly why the polls are flawed. Only looking at number of losses is a lazy way to do it. They should take into account the circumstances and how much a team has improved. Texas is one of the best 25 teams in the country right now, which should be all that matters. Their record against the top 25 speaks for itself.

But that's the point. The polls are flawed. People know that. I'm not saying it wouldn't help in various ways to be ranked. But again, as for what is going to happen in the tournament(s) and seeding, we're more than fine. And if we're playing and winning like we are, we'll be getting the benefit of the doubt in the near future. I agree, that currently we're playing like one of the top 25 teams in the country easily. But there really aren't any college polls that I can think of that totally discount losses just because of when they happened in a season. It's just a fact of life... in football, in baseball, in basketball, in volleyball... whatever. Winning at the right time means everything when it comes to the tournament and such, and as far as the polls are concerned early losses are worse than late losses, but losses don't just get erased in the eyes of pollsters. Going after that is a case of tilting at windmills. You might as well go after why the traditional color of a basketball is the color that is is, or why Aggies are the way they are.

And, the sad fact is... if it's really going to play a factor in attendance of home games, that says more about our fans when it comes to basketball than the ranking system.

Good win for your horns! What do you guys think about the OU game in Norman next monday?

I think OU should (and will) be favored to win... but I also am enjoying having a season where the challenge of a strong opponent is something to look forward to, not to worry about. I could see a game where OU stays ahead the whole time, a game like @ Kansas where we do well but don't quite have enough to finish, but I can't completely discount the potential upset. Mostly I just want to see more of the enthusiasm and strength we've shown in the last several games.
 
We need them for sure. I think we need some rebounders to. Someone who can go get it. Any Forward/Center guys we are looking at now?

The big man we got, is maybe the best of the bunch.

So far we have a class of 3. All are 4 stars. And we are looking to add more.
A 6'10 Center James Banks
A 6'4" SG Andrew Jones
And a 6' SG Jacob Young.


And we are in the mix for 2 5star big men that already play ball in state. I feel decent about Jarrett Allen out of Austin, TX. Kansas, Kentucky, and Notre Dame are in the mix for him too.
 
  • Like
Reactions: swVAHorn
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT