Dressing out for the first time since March 2024, graduate forward Lassina Traore finally returned to the court on Tuesday, making his debut for the Longhorns.
Another debutant for Texas men’s basketball, sophomore center Matas Vokietaitis, also suited up in burnt orange against Duke.
Both players began their seasons after battling injuries leading up to the game against the Blue Devils. Traore, who suffered a season-ending ACL injury last year at Xavier, was battling a mid-foot sprain injury, and Vokietaitis was suffering from an ankle sprain.
“Tonight was actually the first game that (Vokietaitis and Traore) have played for us,” head coach Sean Miller said after the game. “They didn’t participate for three straight weeks, and they didn’t participate in either of our two closed scrimmages.”
Despite the loss to Duke being Vokietaitis and Traore’s first game, both showed flashes of why Miller brought the two to Texas.
Vokietaitis, a transfer from Florida Atlantic and a Lithuanian international, started at the five position for the Longhorns. In 23 minutes of action, he posted 15 points, eight rebounds and one block. He also went almost perfect from the free-throw line, scoring nine of 10 after being fouled.
Traore, who had also played at Long Beach State and Saint Louis, came off the bench for 18 minutes, collecting a team-high nine rebounds. An international from Ivory Coast, Traore also produced five points and two steals.
While the two internationals made an impact in the paint and on the scoreboard, both failed to keep possession of the ball, combining for nine of the team’s 16 turnovers.
However, in the post-game press conference, Miller himself expressed his expectation that they would not be completely up to speed due to their injuries.
“It was just nice to have (Vokietaitis and Traore) of them out there,” Miller said. “They gave us physicality and inside presence, but I also thought (it was) tough to expect them to be a finished product.”
Vokietaitis proved to make an impact outside of the scoresheet, as he himself was booed by the fans. Getting under the skin of the spectators could prove to be impactful for the Longhorns when playing in front of a home crowd.
“I was proud of (Vokietaitis),” senior guard Jordan Pope said. “He’s a young guy, young transfer. He came in, brought a lot of physicality, a lot of relentless effort — that’s something we need from our big and from the rest of our guys. Being able to see that from a guy as young as him, it was pretty exciting. And to see the crowd boo him, I’ve never seen something like that, to be honest, but that means he’s doing something right.”
The two big men will return to the court on Saturday against Lafayette, getting their first taste of basketball in the Moody Center.
