Texas Longhorns Basketball

The Butler Bulldogs, who are playing in the NCAA tournament for the seventh time in the last nine seasons, are 5-1 both straight up and against the spread in their last six Big Dance openers.

The Bulldogs will be looking for another opening-round victim when they take on Texas in the Midwest's No. 6 vs. No. 11 game Thursday afternoon in Pittsburgh.

Opening spread

This game opened as a pick'em but the line moved towards Texas, who sat today as a two-point favorite. (Compare lines and consensus on the Odds Shark matchup report.)

Why pick Texas to cover the spread

The Longhorns have had some trouble with close games this season, but thanks to a late three-game winning streak, they made the tournament nonetheless. Texas only went 8-10 in the Big 12, but it was a tough Big 12 that sent seven teams to the Big Dance. The Longhorns also played through a couple of key injuries, and now stand about as healthy as they've been all season.

Texas owns victories over North Dakota State (champion of the Summit League), Iowa, West Virginia and Baylor this season.

However, they suffered numerous close losses against quality foes, including a three-point loss at Iowa State, an overtime loss to Oklahoma State, a one-bucket game at Oklahoma, a five-point game at Kansas and a one-bucket game lost at the buzzer in the Big 12 tournament against the eventual champion Cyclones.

Texas ranks fourth in the nation in field-goal defense, holding foes to under 37-percent shooting, and dominates on the boards. It has the ability to make a run in this tournament.

Why pick Butler to cover the spread

Not much was expected of the Bulldogs coming into this season, which was their second since jumping to a tougher conference, but Butler rose above expectations to qualify for this NCAA tournament as an at-large participant.

The Bulldogs finished in a tie for second place in the Big East, with wins over St. John's, Xavier and Providence, all teams headed to the Big Dance. Butler also picked up victories earlier this season over North Carolina, Georgetown and Belmont (the OVC champion). Of the 10 games the Bulldogs lost, nine came against tournament qualifiers, and five came by six points or less, one in overtime.

Butler doesn't dazzle. It's only shooting 44 percent from the floor. It just grinds down opponents, wins possessions, does a good job on the boards and eventually gets its way, most of the time.

Smart betting pick

Sure, Texas could make a run in this tournament, but it could also flame out in its opener. Physically, and statistically, the 'Horns are impressive. They just seem to find ways to lose games, instead of win them.

Butler, meanwhile, is the opposite. Which of these teams is more likely to make the big plays down the stretch of a close game? The Bulldogs.

The computer says Butler will win outright 63-61.

Power rankings (per Odds Shark power ranks)

Texas Longhorns: No. 90

Butler Bulldogs: No. 48

March Madness betting trends

Texas is 6-1 straight up in its past seven games as favorites.

Butler had eight straight under results to end the season.

Butler is 7-2 straight up and 8-1 against the spread in its past nine round-of-64 games.

Texas is 0-3-1 against the spread in its past four round-of-64 games.

Note: All spread and betting-line data powered by Odds Shark—download the free Lines and Bet Tracker app in the Apple Store and on Google Play.

While every night might not be as laced with intrigue as this past weekend was for college basketball’s bubble watch, there are always games to be played that impact the teams battling for a spot in the NCAA tournament field.

But while the pickings were a little slim in terms of teams on the bubble, with most of the major teams either already in the tournament—Virginia, Iowa State and Oklahoma—or having long since seen their tournament hopes disappear—Virginia Tech, Boston College and Syracuse—there were a couple of matchups that could impact the March Madness field, with perhaps the biggest game coming from the Texas Longhorns.

What seems like a lifetime removed from its days as a Top 10 team in the first month of the season, Texas has struggled through conference play and sits entrenched in a battle to claim a spot in the field of 68.

After four consecutive losses, all by single digits against ranked opponents, the Longhorns were reeling and looking for a boost to their resume that most experts agreed had the team on the outside looking in on the tournament.

With a 2-9 record against Top 25 teams coming into its game Monday night, Texas had an uphill battle against No. 14 Baylor. On the other side of the coin, the Bears were on a four-game winning streak, including a nine-point road win against Iowa State, and looked to be gathering steam for the postseason.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9d7hrNZ0XVA

The script flipped Monday, though, as the Longhorns, who trailed by as many as 10 points in the final seven minutes, battled back late and forced overtime. Following an ugly brawl in the extra period, Texas’ Isaiah Taylor hit a game-winning runner with 4.8 seconds left, lifting Texas to a 61-59 victory and giving it its most impressive win of the season.

With no bad losses but no great wins on its resume, Texas desperately needed a victory seeing as things weren’t looking great for a tournament bid. Wins against Connecticut and West Virginia looked impressive at the time, but a poor year for the Huskies has dropped that win's stock significantly, while the Mountaineers have stayed strong.

But a win against a Baylor, a team that is considered a likely top-four seed by ESPN's Joe Lunardi, stands out and finally has Texas into the field, according to most bracketologists. The regular season is coming to a close, and the Longhorns have themselves in a good position at the right time.

Jerry Palm of CBS Sports pointed out how much Texas needed the win to solidify its spot in the field:

Texas really, REALLY needed that

— Jerry Palm (@jppalm85) March 3, 2015

new bracket. welcome Texas. for now. http://t.co/CRlLfSggxu

— Jerry Palm (@jppalm85) March 3, 2015

A game against Kansas State stands between the Longhorns and the Big 12 tournament this Saturday. If Texas does manage to lose to the Wildcats, it could be a blemish that pushes the team back to the wrong side of the bubble. However, the win over the Bears should be enough at the end of the day to keep the team in the field for good.

Not everybody has Texas in the field right now, including Lunardi, but the debate is being had, which a better place than where the Longhorns were two days ago:

“@ESPNCBB: In @ESPNLunardi's latest Bubble Watch, Texas makes a big move after its victory over Baylor. http://t.co/eHWUtAA3jr” Medium move.

— Joe Lunardi (@ESPNLunardi) March 3, 2015

In terms of other bubble action Monday night, there weren’t games that directly influenced teams on the bubble but some did set up potential bubble-bursters in the conference tournaments.

In the Southland Conference, Stephen F. Austin and Sam Houston State both picked up big wins against overmatched conference opponents and look to be comfortably in charge of the conference. But only one of these two teams will be able to claim the automatic bid the conference tournament provides, and thus the other will have to hope for an at-large bid.

Neither team has any strong wins, with Stephen F. Austin’s resume looking like the more impressive of the two, but it wouldn’t be a shock if the Lumberjacks fell to the Bearkats in the conference final and slipped into the field as an at-large bid.

The regular-season finale between the two teams could very well decide if either can make the field as an at-large bid, but if one does, that would leave a team from a major conference left to watch from home.

After plenty of promise heading into the season, the Texas Longhorns are on the bubble as the final week of regular-season action in the Big 12 approaches.

In a wild Big 12, the Longhorns have gone 1-7 against ranked opponents and are in the middle of a three-game losing streak.

On top of that, Texas has not received the best performances from its star players during the stretch run of the season.

Below is a look at some of the best- and worst-case scenarios for the rest of the Longhorns' season.

Best-Case Scenarios

Longhorns Win Out and Earn an Automatic NCAA Tournament Berth

The perfect scenario for the Longhorns over the next three weeks would see the team win its final six games before the NCAA tournament.

To do that, the Longhorns need to go into Allen Fieldhouse on Saturday and defeat Kansas before home games against Baylor and Kansas State.

At the Big 12 tournament, head coach Rick Barnes' team will have to defeat at least two ranked teams at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri.

While this may seem like an unrealistic scenario, it could still happen if Texas finds a way to pull everything together at once.

Javan Felix Gets His Act Together

Since returning from a concussion on February 11, guard Javan Felix has scored 34 points in 89 minutes, including his failure to score in two minutes against West Virginia.

Felix had been relied on as one of the top scorers on the team before his injury, but he has failed to make the same impact in the last five games.

If the Longhorns want any chance of pulling off a few upsets and securing a NCAA tournament berth, Felix must drastically improve his numbers.

However, the odds are not in Felix's favor, as he scored a combined six points in 54 minutes against Kansas and Baylor earlier this season. He missed the clash with Kansas State on February 7 due to his concussion.

Jonathan Holmes Uses His Ejection as Positive Motivation

Things went from bad to worse in the loss to West Virginia when forward Jonathan Holmes was ejected for throwing an elbow.

VIDEO: Jonathan Holmes ejected for throwing an elbow against WVU. (h/t @WVWilkerson). http://t.co/sZZR1ABI06 https://t.co/EwLFkooiy5

— CBS Sports College Basketball 🏀 (@CBSSportsCBB) February 25, 2015

Holmes did make amends for his lapse in judgment after the game by apologizing in the Mountaineers' locker room, per Mitch Vingle of the Charleston Gazette:

#Texas senior Jonathan Holmes went to #WVU's locker room after game and apologized after getting ejected for elbow.

— Mitch Vingle (@MitchVingle) February 25, 2015

Now that he has put the ugly moment behind him, Holmes needs to channel his emotions in a positive manner against the Jayhawks, Bears and Wildcats.

Not only does Holmes need a few good showings to end the season to put the incident squarely in the past, he needs to show up in order to silence a growing amount of critics.

The last time the senior scored in double digits was in the January 31 loss to Baylor.

Worst-Case Scenarios

Texas Loses Out and Fails to Make the Field of 68

Based on their recent outings, the Longhorns are destined to crash and burn against Kansas and Baylor as well as in the Big 12 tournament.

In the absolute worst-case scenario, Texas would end the regular season with a 6-12 conference record and a first-round loss in Kansas City.

Four more losses to end the season would leave the Longhorns at 17-15 overall, which is far from a desirable record for an at-large team from a power conference.

The potential downward spiral would also hand Texas a 2-10 record in games against teams from the Top 25.

The Players Give Up and Get Blown Out

There is also a strong possibility that Texas will crash out of the postseason conversation in dubious fashion.

Taking into account some of the awful individual performances turned in by the Longhorns recently, it would not come as a surprise if the players give up on the season.

The Longhorns were expected to be a contender for the Big 12 regular-season title, but things have not gone in their favor at all.

By having failed to live up to their preseason title of contenders, the Longhorns may mail it in and lose all hope of making the field of 68.

All statistics obtained from ESPN.com.

Follow Joe on Twitter @JTansey90.

Austin, we have a problem.

The Texas Longhorns are loaded with talent and potential. Execution, though, has been a different story, and it could be what ultimately keeps them from participating in the 2015 NCAA tournament.

That's a pretty bold assertion about a team that the Associated Press ranked No. 19 in the country on Monday morning, but after an 89-86 loss to Iowa State on Monday night, it's beyond time to start asking just how good this team actually is.

The score doesn't even begin to tell you how ugly the first 80 percent of this game was. Iowa State led by 21 points with eight minutes remaining before Texas caught fire, and the Cyclones decided to start missing free throws left and right.

The final margin was three, but it looked for most of the night like it should have been 30.

Just another blown opportunity for the Longhorns.

This team doesn't have any bad losses, but where are the quality wins? The miracle road victory over Connecticut isn't looking so great anymore, which means a come-from-behind, neutral-court win over Iowa is about as good as it gets for the first two months of Texas' season—and who knows if that will still be an RPI Top 50 win when all is said and done?

The Longhorns are absolutely still in the projected field at the moment, but they have been steadily slipping since plateauing at the fringe of the No. 1-seed discussion before the home loss to Stanford.

How much further might they slide?

With Monday night's loss, Texas is now 4-5 in its last nine games—and only one of those four wins (at home against West Virginia) came against a team with any realistic shot at an at-large bid to the tournament.

It's more than just the losses, though. It's how hopelessly lost they have looked for long stretches of those games.

The biggest issue on display for Texas on Monday night was the complete inability and unwillingness to run a half-court offense.

Time and again, some combination of Isaiah Taylor, Javan Felix, Demarcus Holland, Kendal Yancy and Jonathan Holmes passed the ball around the perimeter with no purpose whatsoever. According to ESPN.com's Myron Medcalf's assessment, the players are simply not "trusting each other or their roles":

I just spent 3 days with Texas Longhorns in Austin. So much potential. Just seems like they're still working on trusting each other, roles.

— Myron Medcalf (@MedcalfByESPN) January 27, 2015

They weren't looking to drive. Until the final few minutes, they weren't looking to shoot, either. They were just waiting for one of the big men to establish position for an entry pass before inevitably getting double-teamed.

It wasn't exactly a new phenomenon, either. Coming into the game, Texas was averaging 6.0 made three-pointers per game and only attempting 32.8 percent of its shots from beyond the arc.

As Fran Fraschilla noted during ESPN's broadcast of the game, their inability and lack of desire to shoot three-pointers "allows the defense to play five against two in the paint, because they don't have to worry about perimeter players making shots. It shrinks the floor, and they don't have an answer for that right now."

It's been big men or bust all season long, and that's been readily apparent when you look at the production from their frontcourt in losses—as well as the game against Connecticut that would have been a loss were it not for Holmes' clutch three-pointer in the final seconds.

Note: Though Holmes is technically a forward, we're counting the frontcourt in this chart as Myles Turner, Cameron Ridley, Connor Lammert and Prince Ibeh.

Game	Points	Margin
at Kentucky	18	-12
at Connecticut	16	+1
vs. Stanford	19	-3
vs. Oklahoma	9	-21
at Oklahoma State	27*	-11
vs. Kansas	19	-13
at Iowa State	26	-3
Other Games	32.0	+22.4

*Turner had 18 points in this game, but Holmes was held scoreless.

Long story short, Texas has had a lot of trouble against teams that are big enough to force Ridley and Turner out of the lane and savvy enough to constantly double the big men as soon as they touch the ball.

Play zone or pack-line defense against the Longhorns and you can hold them to 60 points.

But if you think Texas' execution on offense is hard to watch, you may want to avert your eyes when this team is on defense. Man-to-man clearly wasn't working for Rick Barnes' squad, so he's been experimenting with a 2-3 zone as of late.

Iowa State tore that thing to shreds on Monday night.

Granted, the Cyclones possess quite possibly the best ball movement in the entire country. They had 20 assists on 29 made field goals. But they did so by finding holes in the zone over and over again. Georges Niang and Dustin Hogue kept flashing to the free-throw line for entry passes before quickly finding someone else—either on a backdoor cut or simply on a defensive breakdown.

Here's a Vine of such a play from midway through the first half, courtesy of Iowa State Athletics:

Monday night was the fifth time in the past nine games—all losses—that Texas allowed at least one point per possession on defense, according to KenPom.com. No matter what the Longhorns try, it isn't working.

This comes in stark contrast to what we were led to believe in November.

In terms of points allowed, the Longhorns had one of the best defenses in the country for the first few weeks of the season. They held each of their first seven opponents to 57 points or less, allowing a combined total of 0.81 points per possession.

As it turns out, though, there's a pretty big difference between Alcorn State and Iowa State.

The Longhorns were able to get by on defense with sheer athleticism during nonconference play, but now they're getting into trouble by frequently being out of position and overcommitting against much better opponents.

These aren't quick-fix problems, and this isn't a quick-fix coach.

Over the years, Barnes has earned one heck of a reputation for doing less with more than any other coach. We're not even remotely prepared to start the near-annual "Fire Rick Barnes" campaign, but that flame will rage hotter than ever before if he fails to coach this group of talented players to the NCAA tournament.

However, they may never properly jell on defense, and it's not often that guys suddenly develop a reliable three-point stroke in February. They need to run better sets on offense and communicate better on defense, and they needed to start doing so a few weeks ago, because the schedule isn't getting any easier anytime soon.

The Longhorns still have a pair of games against both Baylor and Kansas State, road games against Kansas, Oklahoma and West Virginia and a home game against Iowa State—and they're already just 3-4 in conference play.

If they keep playing like they have been, they'll be lucky to win any of those games, and they'll need at least three of them—plus home wins over Oklahoma State, TCU and Texas Tech—to get to .500 in Big 12 play.

Eight of the 10 teams in the Big 12 are legitimately vying for a trip to the Big Dance, but they won't all finish above .500. And if the Longhorns are one of the unlucky teams that fails to do so, the end of Turner's one season of college basketball could be spent chasing an NIT championship.

Kerry Miller covers college basketball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter: @kerrancejames.

The Texas Longhorns made a massive statement Friday night at Rupp Arena, even though they fell 12 points short of knocking off the top team in the nation. 

The first half of the 63-51 loss in the SEC-Big 12 Challenge was dominated by Rick Barnes' Longhorns. The feat is even more mind-boggling when you look at the foul trouble the team experienced. 

Kentucky eventually turned up the pace of the game and showed off its excellent talent. But the defeat on the road handed Texas plenty of positives heading into the rest of its nonconference play. And more importantly, the Longhorns received a massive confidence boost in regards to their chances in the Big 12. 

We all saw Friday night the Longhorns have plenty of depth in the frontcourt. They don't just have one big man to spell the starters coming off the bench. They have three players in Myles Turner, Prince Ibeh and Connor Lammert who can make an instant impact in the paint when called upon. 

Unfortunately for Texas, it had to flaunt its ridiculous depth early in the first half after Cameron Ridley was sent to the bench with two fouls. 

The referees, who are still calling fouls as we speak, handed Ibeh two fouls and one to Turner before the under-12 media timeout. Turner picked up his second shortly after the break. 

Even with every one of its big men in some type of foul trouble, Texas was able to contest every shot inside the paint taken by mighty Kentucky. 

Never thought I'd see a team dominate the glass like that against Kentucky, nor did I think Texas could survive that kind of foul trouble.

— Jeff Eisenberg (@JeffEisenberg) December 6, 2014

Despite the Wildcats' insistence on shooting inside instead of opening up lanes for the shooters on the perimeter, Texas was able to counter with impressive defense. 

What Ibeh, Turner and Lammert lack in width, they make up for in height and smarts. It is widely known none of these players have the wide presence in the paint of Ridley, but that did not stop them from physically challenging the imposing Kentucky frontcourt. 

Before Kentucky woke up during the early stages of the second half, Texas was holding its own, which is a terrific sign of progress for a team expected to challenge Kansas for the Big 12 regular-season crown. 

There is no doubt when Texas has its frontcourt at full strength, it is the best in the Big 12. Kansas has a game-changer in Perry Ellis and a young stud in Cliff Alexander, but after that it doesn't have much. 

Iowa State is seen as the other true contender for the Big 12 regular-season title, but like Kansas, the Cyclones have a small amount of game-altering big men, led by Georges Niang. 

If we base Texas' chances to win the back-to-back games against Kansas and Iowa State in January on just the Kentucky game, it would be hard not to give the Longhorns the advantage. And that is before we begin talking about the things the Longhorns have to improve on before they begin their grueling Big 12 slate. 

With five nonconference games left before the Big 12 opener against Texas Tech on January 3, the Longhorns have plenty of time to fine-tune their flaws. 

Foul trouble was the obvious concern from the loss to Kentucky, but it is worth noting the Longhorns will not face another team with as much frontcourt depth as the Wildcats have for the rest of the season. 

There will be games where one or two players spend an extended amount of time on the bench, but as we saw Friday night, the next-man-up mentality of the Longhorns is alive and well.

By hanging with Kentucky for a long amount of time, Texas proved it can play well without its imposing big man, Ridley. The three players used to replace Ridley also bring different skill sets to the table, which will cause matchup problems down the road. 

Lammert is a terrific defender who can cause plenty of issues for frustrated opposing offenses. Turner's versatility will challenge future opponents to guard him on the perimeter as well as in the paint. Ibeh is more of a true paint player who has the length to contest any shot in his direction. 

If we take the focus off the frontcourt, which is hard to do at times, the play of the other players on the court also helped Texas battle with the Wildcats. 

Jonathan Holmes is the top scorer on the team, and as we saw against UConn, he has a knack for showing up in clutch spots. The Longhorns will need the clutch gene of the senior forward to appear at some point during the brutal run through the Big 12. If Holmes is able to make some big shots late in games, Texas could win a few more games than expected. 

The other important quality Holmes possesses is his consistency. In seven of his eight games, Holmes has scored nine points or more. If he continues to put up strong numbers throughout the season as expected, the Longhorns will not have to worry about their play on offense. 

In the backcourt, Demarcus Holland is gaining a ton of valuable experience in the starting five with Isaiah Taylor out until the start of conference play. 

Holland was one of two Texas players in double digits Friday night, as he scored 10 points in 38 minutes. In four of his eight games this season, the junior guard has found his way into double digits to put his points-per-game average at 8.4. 

If you thought the depth of the Longhorns was scary in the paint, just wait until Taylor joins Holland and Javan Felix in the backcourt for the stretch run. 

Texas certainly has a few things to improve on after the Kentucky game. If they fix the little things in time for the Big 12 regular season, the Longhorns could be on the top of the conference standings in March. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.

All statistics obtained from ESPN.com. 

The Texas Longhorns survived their first major test of the season Sunday by taking down UConn on a game-winning three-pointer from Jonathan Holmes. 

Despite the celebration after the final buzzer sounded, Texas still has plenty of issues to fix if it wants to defeat No. 1 Kentucky on Friday in the SEC-Big 12 Challenge. There is no doubt the Longhorns have the size to deal with the Wildcats in the paint, but that is the least of the team's concerns heading into the game at Rupp Arena. 

The concern stems from a brutal second-half performance in Storrs on Sunday, which was caused by stingy defense and awful shooting. 

Instead of using an 8-3 run to end the first half as a springboard to a major victory, the Longhorns struggled to fight off the defending national champion until Holmes' game-winning shot from the left wing. 

Throughout the second half, there were plenty of long stretches in which Texas failed to score a basket. Most of the bad shots taken by the Longhorns were from outside on quick possessions. 

With Isaiah Taylor out until the start of conference play, the Longhorns do not have a strong floor general to lead the way in close games. Javan Felix carries a good amount of experience with him, but he was one of the main culprits of the missed early shots in the second half. NBC Sports' Twitter feed quoted Taylor on his return:

Isaiah Taylor says he’ll be back for Big 12 opener against Texas Tech http://t.co/mshRA2URvJ

— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) November 30, 2014

During the 24-point second half, the Longhorns made just six field goals, two of which came from Holmes beyond the arc. Felix contributed four points, while Kendal Yancy and Cameron Ridley had the other field goals. 

Felix did start the second half on a high note with two assists and a basket, but during the crucial stretch of the game, he became vulnerable in the backcourt. 

On two possessions during their dry spell, the Longhorns opted to take a quick shot instead of setting up a play that could have had a higher success rate. 

After UConn's Ryan Boatright made two free throws with 6:12 remaining in the game, the Longhorns' deficit was extended to six. Instead of working the ball around the court for a high-percentage shot, Holmes missed a shot 13 seconds later. 

Another 13-second possession occurred the next time the Longhorns took the ball on offense. Down by five, Texas had a golden opportunity to create some positive momentum after a Sam Cassell Jr. turnover. Instead of threatening the Huskies by cutting the lead, Felix turned the ball over 13 seconds into the possession. 

The Longhorns did not score another point until the 2:44 mark, when Myles Turner hit a pair of free throws. In the time between Ridley's free throw with 5:58 to go and Turner's two points, the Longhorns committed a litany of mistakes. 

On top of Felix's turnover, Yancy made an error in the backcourt which led to UConn gaining possession. What is even more concerning about that over-three-minute span is the lack of shots from the field. Only one shot was taken during that span compared to UConn's four. 

The host Huskies did not capitalize on any of their shots in that crucial span, but a team like Kentucky most likely will. If Texas fails to snatch control of the game late in the second half, the final score in Lexington could be ugly. 

The most concerning stats from the ugly road win at Gampel Pavilion were the team's field-goal percentage (37) and offensive rebounds (eight). 

If the Longhorns shoot 17-of-46 from the field and only pull down eight offensive rebounds against Kentucky, they are in for a long night at Rupp Arena. If you dig deeper into the box score, you will notice the lack of shots from Ridley, who could end up being Texas' greatest asset Friday night. 

In 17 minutes, Ridley was 1-of-3 from the field with five points and zero rebounds. That's right, the most imposing figure in the frontcourt for the Longhorns did not have a single rebound Sunday afternoon. 

Regardless of the circumstances surrounding his minutes, there is no way the big center should have left the court without a rebound. For Texas to even come close to taking down Kentucky, he has to turn into more of a dominant force down low. 

Despite all of the negative aspects of Texas' win in Storrs, there were a few positives from the 55-54 victory that led us to believe the Longhorns could contend with the top team in the nation. 

Led by stud freshman Myles Turner, the Longhorns had eight blocks in the frontcourt. Turner had five rejections, while Ridley, Holmes and Prince Ibeh all had one each. 

There is no doubt the Longhorns have the frontcourt depth to put up a fight against Kentucky, but they must get their hands on the ball in the paint to take the Wildcats out of a rhythm. 

Another promising stat that may not earn a ton of attention is the fouls committed by Rick Barnes' team. After 40 minutes of play, Texas had just 14 fouls, seven of which were earned by Turner and Connor Lammert. 

If the entire Texas squad can stay disciplined and remain out of foul trouble, it is possible that an upset may occur. 

If the Longhorns do fix their glaring issues from Sunday's victory before Friday's trip to Lexington, we could witness one of the best games of the young season. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90. 

All statistics obtained from ESPN.com.