When you think of The University of Texas, the first three things that come to mind are, football, Bevo the Longhorn mascot, and Vince Young, but never basketball. However, thanks to head coach Shaka Smart, basketball is gradually becoming part of the conversation.
On Saturday, the Texas Longhorns defeated the Oklahoma State Cowboys 91-86 to claim their first Big 12 Basketball Championship in School History. This was the Longhorns first tournament title in 26 years, which dates back to the Southwest Conference days.
In the first half, the Longhorns took us back to the 90’s by dominating the paint, in which Jericho Sims and Kai Jones scored a total of 20 of the teams 43 points along with 10 rebounds. The duo also held Oklahoma State freshmen star guard, Cade Cunningham, to just four points to take a 43 to 33 lead when halftime came around. In the second half, the Cowboys seem to regain their footing by rallying twice and coming within two points of the opposing team (Longhorns) — however each time, the Longhorns were able to stave off the pressure.
They say pressure either bust pipes or make diamonds, and in the case of Matt Coleman III, it was his time to shine. Coleman III scored a career high 30 points and was Stephen Curry hot, shooting 80% from three-point range and 71.4% from the field.
Jericho Sims also chipped in with a double-double of 21 points and 14 rebounds along with 2 assists. The bench players also got in on the action due to the play of Brock Cunningham, who stat line personifies a two-way player with 7 points, 7 rebounds, 2 block shots, and 3 steals.
According to credible sources, after the game, Coleman III told reporters, “I can’t even explain it — Nobody knows how much it means for myself and for coach,” Coleman said. “Since the day we stepped on campus, we got the whole team here, I looked to my left and my right and said, ‘We’ve got some guys. We’ve got the makeup to do something special this season.'”
The Longhorns now await the NCAA Tournament Seeding to see what seed number they will be along with what bracket they will be in and who they will face in the tournament known as March Madness.
