Texas junior forward Dailyn Swain scored 25 points Saturday night, pacing all Longhorns scorers in the Texas men’s basketball team’s fourth consecutive victory. Texas beat Missouri, 85-68, on the road at Mizzou Arena in Columbia, Missouri.
The Tigers, coming off a statement win over Texas A&M, could not maintain the close deficit at halftime. The Longhorns were able to pull away in the second half, shooting 16-26 in the final 20 minutes to claim their fourth consecutive Southeastern Conference victory.
After scoring just seven points in Texas victory over Ole Miss last Saturday, Swain, the Longhorns’ most dynamic offensive threat, was able to restore his ability once again tonight. The Xavier transfer put up another impressive stat line of 25 points, six rebounds and a pair of assists in the victory.
Swain took control of the game in the second half, putting up 18 points in the final 20 minutes to lead the Longhorns toward the win.
The majority of Texas’ scoring came from its three-headed monster of Swain, sophomore center Matas Vokietaitis and graduate guard Jordan Pope, accounting for 59 of the 85 points the Longhorns scored over the Tigers.
Vokietaitis, one of Texas’s most consistent performers this season, put up another double-double night on the road. The Lithuanian was able to get major minutes in the wake of graduate forward Lassina Traore being held out due to injury. Vokietaitis shot 6-10 in the field, 7-8 from the free throw line for 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds.
Although he made progress against Ole Miss, Vokietaitis found himself in a very familiar place, getting back in foul trouble tonight against Missouri. Vokietaitis committed four fouls against the Tigers, but he was not alone in drawing Missouri players to the line.
Texas junior guard Simeon Wilcher, who came off the bench in the victory, also picked up a technical foul.
The Longhorns’ defense was able to hold the Tigers to just 8-21 in the field, but the majority of Missouri’s points in the second half came from the free throw line. The Tigers went 20-27 at the line to close out the night.
Senior guard Jordan Pope put up 15 points and two rebounds, but was another Longhorn who found himself in foul trouble. Graduate guard Tramon Mark had a quiet game, putting up eight points and four rebounds.
The Longhorns have struggled at the power forward position all season and found themselves in the same position, with junior forward Camden Heide producing zero points as the starting four. Texas did not get much from its bench, just 18 points, all coming from sophomore forward Nic Codie and Wilcher.
Texas will face the LSU Tigers at the Moody Center in Austin on Tuesday at 8 p.m. CT.
