The Texas Shaka Smart era of basketball reached a new peak on Saturday when the No. 8 Longhorns broke a streak of nine straight losses against Kansas by dispatching the No. 3 Jayhawks by 84-59 with a dominant offensive performance at Allen Fieldhouse . Texas got 8 out of 13 points out of 3 in the second half, ending Kansas’ eight-game winning streak and proving it belongs in the big 12 title talk.
Jalen Wilson led Kansas with 20 points, scoring 14 of them in the second half. But his team’s poor defense has thwarted Wilson’s efforts to lead the Jayhawks back. The Longhorns scored six consecutive 3-point points at the start of the second half and had no trouble attacking the basket by handing Kansas (8-2, 2-1 Big 12) their worst home loss under Bill Self.
Courtney Ramey led the way to Texas (8-1, 2-0) with 18 points, and guards Andrew Jones and Matt Coleman III contributed 14 and 13, respectively. The Longhorns also looked better on the inside, with striker Jericho Sims double with 11 points and 12 rebounds. Kansas hit 30.8% of the field and made only 3 of 23 attempts in the 3-point range.
Advance of the Longhorn
Texas was already enjoying its highest ranking in Smart’s six-year term, and the Longhorns will only rise further after such a dominant victory over an opponent in the top five. Unlike previous Smart teams, who ended up outside the AP Top 25, this team has staying power. The defensive trio of Ramey, Coleman and Jones provide Texas with the veteran guard game that is often critical to post-season success. With Sims and five-star striker Greg Brown on the attack, the Longhorns also carry a lot of weight.
Detractors will note that last season’s team, made up of a similar cast, cracked the top 25 and started with 9-1 before fighting for a 9-9 record in the league game. But this iteration of the Longhorns is a wiser year and it seems light years more offensively comfortable. Sailing through the big 12 will bring adversity, as quality opponents like No. 9 West Virginia, No. 13 Texas Tech and No. 2 Baylor await. But this team proved on Saturday that it has the strength to endure the routine and emerge as a competitor in March.
Disappearance act
Ochai Agbaji and Marcus Garrett performed a disappearance act in the second half for Kansas, leaving Wilson as the only starter to make offensive contributions in a lifeless rematch effort. After scoring 11 points out of 5 out of 9 shots in the first half, Agbaji missed all five shooting attempts in the second half. Garrett missed all three attempts at kicking in the second half. In total, the four KU holders, in addition to Wilson, combined to do just one field kick in the final 20 minutes of the game.
The lack of production by the great Kansas men was a special concern on Saturday. Although it was a struggle throughout the season for the Jayhawks to extract significant contributions from their post-production players, the problem was particularly striking against Texas. Pivot David McCormack finished with eight points and five rebounds. But all eight of his points came on the free-throw line. Self played against him for just four minutes in the second half, choosing to go with veteran Mitch Lightfoot on the post. But Lightfoot’s only noteworthy contributions were a couple of blocks, as he did not attempt a shot and was credited without rebounds.
Abbreviated confrontation
Texas announced Saturday morning that junior striker Gerald Liddell plans to transfer. The former Top 50 player averaged 11.4 minutes per game in 11 games this season. The Longhorns also ran out of reserves Kamaka Hepa and Royce Hamm. The absences limited the rotation to eight players. But Texas avoided problems and got 23 points from its trio of bankers, including 12 from sophomore striker Kai Jones.
Kansas was also not at full strength. Five-star freshman guard Bryce Thompson did not play due to a back injury. Thompson averaged 5.4 points in 17.4 minutes per game.