So what was the difference?

[Longhorn_Fan68]

This looked like a COMPLETELY different team than we've seen the last couple of weeks.

 

[KosherHorn]

hustle and defensive intensity

 

[HoopsRule]

a little dose of heart, amigo.

 

[TheBestPoster]

a little VY never hurt...

VY even sacrificed attending class tonight to come to the game.

 

[L.A.Longhorn]

I kept the good luck cat in the living room to watch during the second half.

You're welcome everybody!

 

[ThirtyFiveAlive]

It's pretty apparent to me that we play to the level of the opponent. Some of that is just the nature of the beast--it's nigh impossible to bring your A-game to every outing.

I'd also attribute some of the inconsistency to our lack of depth. Our first-stringers, particularly Abrams and Augustin, have a higher work load than most any starting five in the country.

 

[mhayden]

Playing at home.

Makes a world of difference in major conferences.

We whooped you guys good in College Station... I would be *shocked* if we came out with a W in Austin next week.

Love the setup though... Two Top 15 teams on Big Monday. Looking forward to being there

 

[naked_bongo]

Good post, mhayden. I lurk on texags, and you seem to be one of the few objective posters over there.

 

[Hu_Fan]

Let me give this observation... from watching the game there instead of on tv you see the overall movement and flow of the players.

From the start, Kansas looked like a work of art the way they moved and passed the ball. The even looked that way in warm-ups. You could see the motion and poise of the talent and coaching and execution.

As the game wore on, in particular inside the final 10 minutes and into 7 min and 5 min and on down to 3 min and 2 min... progressively Kansas seemed out of sync and unable to deal with the actual clash of competition and the nerves it demands of you and puts on you.

Texas with Mason and James fully into gear seemed more capable of out-hustling and out-positioning the Jayhawks, and from the stands you could see -- watching the whole court of play with complete vision -- that Kansas could not move around on the court with the same poise and flow they had earlier. They could not apply themselves and will themselves to a competitive advantage as they seemed to move about earlier in the game. It was as if they moved around fine so long as the game was not beginning to allude them.

In short, this game boils down to how well you can play on the road in a pressure situation. Or, in any arena. Texas looked much better in "gaming" out a win than did Kansas. Late in the game, Kansas' talent and capabilities began to wane on them. They were good enough to damn near win, but given their Jr and Sr players (almost 2 yrs average older players than the Horns in the starting lineups) they could have played even better in terms of sheer competition and forcing a win on the other team.

I can't say enough for how good this team can play when you consider their years of eligibility.

One thing I learned tonight is that a televised game is great for seeing details, but only live in an arena (or stadium) can you see the broader movements and flows of a game. Any kind of game.

I wish coaches would not pull players with 2 fouls for long periods of time. Five or ten minutes can cost you the game. Instead I'd call timeout and tell that player to just play smarter, keep his head in the game and stay on the court. Better he be out there contributing even if backing off the pedal a bit. Whatever.

 

[hornpharmd]

Team shot well in 1st half and went to the basket in the 2nd half. Got KU into foul trouble early in 2nd half.

 

[warrior]

Playing at home was huge. To beat KU with DJ being 1 of 13 from the field is almost unbelievable.

 

[DCLonghorn]

We came out and scored early and didn't spot them 12 points. Defensive intensity and crowd helped a lot.

 

[longhornfan2818]

The horns played above the rim last night. The were rebounding and dunking the ball. Not to mention the defense over the last 4 or 5 games has been much much better.

 

[j.e.s.-U.S.]

IMO the difference was Connor Atchley and the legend of GARY JOHNSON. I can't tell you how surprised I am that these two stepped up against two great low post players and Johnson did this with a broken nose! WTF... are you kidding me. Atchely hit threes, set picks, got some dunks, and got some huge blocks. Johnson was great on D. In the second half, Mason and James were huge and the crowd seemed to help!

 

[PacSER]

In reply to:

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[OUsucksATMblows]

To answer the OP's question:

ATCHLEY and MASON. That was the difference. All of our big wins have been because these two guys played well. It takes so much pressure off AJ adn DJ when these 2 guys show up and play well. Mason's hustle and rebounding was absolutely amazing.

 

[Alex_de_Large]

There was a reason the players were rubbing Mason's head and cutting up with him after the game. They know who the difference maker was in that game. I gotta say Atchely's 3's in the the first half kept us in the game. If he doesn't do that, KU is likely to run and hide by 10-12 at the half and we're in trouble.

 

[The Horn Identity]

The difference - it was a complete team effort - at least by the 6 guys that are getting the bulk of time.

DJ - couldn't hit shots, but was relentless at driving past the pick and roll to get in the lane to dish it or get fouls. Even, when he shot and missed, he was getting so much attention that his teammates could follow.
Damion - Double-double in the second half. Let me say that again. a DD in one half.
AJ - Shot the ball well in the first half and clutch free-throws down the stretch.
Connor - Big 3s early in the game and two monster dunks in the second half. Couple nice blocks, too.
Justin - the type of gritty peformance that we need. 8 point and 9 rebounds. Lots of 2nd chance points.
Gary Johnson - the only real bench support, but did provide some nice post offense.

 

[rtw21]

Let's not forget about Barnes. He did a great job of introducing some new sets and new plays that KU hadn't seen before last night. In fact, the first play of the game, we came down with Mason at the point, and instead of hitting AJ or DJ off of screens, Mason hit Damion James for a short jumper. In the second half, Barnes brilliantly called the same play twice in a row, and the first time AJ hit a jumper, but the second time, we went to the third option on the play, Mason, who was fouled hard in the lane. Barnes also did a great job of switching up our defense to give KU different looks. Great game all around.

 

[93ex]

I also think the up tempo style of the game really helped. When you know both teams are going to being running up and down the floor all night, each possession doesn't mean quite as much and so the shot should flow a little easier. I think AJ and Conner both benefitted from that in the eraly going and that helped us from the standpoint that our guys knew after the first ten minutes they could play with KU. DJ didn't play well, but he's a slump that I'm sure he'll work out of. Of course, when you play a team like Kansas, you still have to score in crunch time which our guys did. It was a very good effort and I'm really proud of them. The key is to build on this game and not let our guard down when we play Baylor tomorrow.