Everything Texas has worked for was brought crashing down with Monday’s thumping at the hands of the No. 1 ranked Jayhawks. The Longhorns will look to enter the Big 12 tournament on a winning streak with a road victory at the depleted Oklahoma State Cowboys on Friday.
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HOW THE TEXAS LONGHORNS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
Texas learned a valuable lesson last week. A big win over Oklahoma on Saturday was followed by the largest home defeat since 1998 at the hands of the No. 1 ranked Kansas Jayhawks on Monday. And coach Shaka Smart could sense something was awry during the Horns’ victory over the Sooners.
The big losses have followed monumental successes. Texas upset No. 10 West Virginia before falling to Baylor. The loss to Kansas came just two days after the victory over the Sooners. It’s happened at other times, too. Smart said it’s just another example of his continued fight to get the Longhorns to produce a consistent mind-set.
Sometimes it’s just not your night, and the Horns experienced that Monday. They allowed the Jayhawks to shoot 66 percent in the first half and 64 percent for the game. That won’t stop Texas from applying the press and havoc-style defense that has them on the verge of a 20-win season.
The Longhorns’ offense stalled mostly because Isaiah Taylor never got going. The point guard has been the catalyst all season – he’s their leading scorer – but missed his first eight shots on Monday night. A better effort from Taylor should help against the Cowboys.
HOW THE OKLAHOMA CITY COWBOYS CAN COVER THE SPREAD
The Cowboys already knew they’d be without Jeffrey Carroll, who stayed home when the team travelled to play Iowa State on Monday. Then Leyton Hammonds had to bail due to a dislocated finger on his right hand suffered during Saturday’s loss to West Virginia.
So if the Cowboys were going to quit, this would have been the time, down to eight scholarship players, on the road, against the nation’s No. 21 team. And again OSU fought on, trailing by only two at the half. And the Cowboys battled back late, too, closing the gap on an 18-point deficit.
With a depleted roster, the Cowboys have to stay out of foul trouble against the Longhorns. They didn’t do that Monday and it cost them late after Mitchell Solomon and Joe Burton fouled out. The Cowboys leaned heavily on Tyree Griffen and Jeff Newberry, who each played 40 minutes.
Oklahoma State may not win the game, but they can’t be taken lightly. If Texas wants to pat itself on the back and spread the atta boys around for such a great season, the Cowboys have the talent and heart to pull off the upset. Beside, this is the Big 12 and it’s tough to win on the road.
ANALYSIS AND ODDS PREDICTION
Coach Travis Ford and his Cowboys are having a season everyone associated with Oklahoma State basketball is ready to forget. There was plenty of promise when the year began, but three games in, star guard Phil Forte was lost for the season with an injury and the club never recovered. In the beginning of February, Jawun Evans injured his shoulder and hasn’t played since. The team has shown plenty of heart during a current five-game losing streak, but the Cowboys don’t have the bodies to keep up with the rest of the conference. Expect the Longhorns to turn up the pressure defensively and wear down the shorthanded Cowboys. That’s happened a lot lately and is likely to happen again on Friday.
Texas 74, Oklahoma State 65
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