Texas should be glad to be coming home.
The Longhorns faltered once again on the road, controlling most of the first half during last weekend’s game in Stillwater before Oklahoma State pulled away and beat Texas, 78-65, on Saturday.
Oklahoma State (22-6, 12-4) did not lead in the first 14 minutes of the game but used a 14-0 run over a 3:52 span beginning in the final minute of the first half to secure its second 13-point win over the Longhorns (13-16, 5-11) this season.
After missing last Wednesday’s overtime win over Oklahoma due to a concussion he suffered the previous game against Kansas State, sophomore Julien Lewis scored a team-high 15 points while freshman Javan Felix scored 13 points off the bench.
Myck Kabongo, who had scored 55 points in his last two games, scored seven points on 2-for-7 shooting from the floor and, while recording eight assists, along with four steals, the sophomore point guard also committed seven turnovers.
“I don’t know why Myck didn’t do what we asked him to do,” head coach Rick Barnes said. “I think Myck got caught up in trying to do too much by himself … Where we are right now, though, that shouldn’t bother us. We need to move on.”
Texas fell to 1-8 on the road with the loss. The Longhorns have been outscored by an average of 11.3 points per game in those nine contests.
Senior Night festivities will be held for walk-ons Andrew Dick, who suffered a season-ending knee injury last month, and Dean Melchionni before Monday night’s game against Baylor.
The Bears (12-12, 8-8), once a virtual lock to reach the NCAA Tournament, have lost seven of their last 10 games and fell victim to a buzzer-beating three-pointer from Rodney McGruder in a 64-61 loss to Kansas State on Saturday.
They will face a Texas team that is also struggling, one that hasn’t won consecutive games since last December. The Longhorns suffered their second overtime defeat the last time they faced Baylor.
In its Big 12 opener, Felix scored 26 points and grabbed five rebounds, dishing out nine assists while committing only one turnover, but it wasn’t enough to keep Texas from falling to Baylor, 86-79, on Jan. 5.
Published on March 4, 2013 as "Texas can't keep up with Pokes".
