After a long week without Texas basketball, the Horns return to the court this evening with a game against some guys from just a few miles down the interstate. Texas State comes to town on a two-game losing streak, having fallen to Texas A&M and Rice prior to the finals break. The Longhorns, meanwhile, are off to their best start in 26 years and look to cruise easily to their 10th-straight win.

By the numbers

With two wins versus D-2 schools removed from the resumé, the Bobcats sit at 238th in Ken Pomeroy’s RPI approximation. They play a ridiculously up-tempo game, with both their raw and adjusted pace ranked tops in the nation. The Bobcats average 83.5 possessions per game, so expect an absolute track meet in this one.

Fortunately for Texas, that tempo plays right into their hands, especially when considering how piss-poor the Bobcat D is. Their defensive efficiency is slated at 205th in the nation, but that ranking plummets when it is adjusted to reflect the weak opponents Texas State has played. Their adjusted dEf is only 313th in the country, so when combining this info with the high-tempo game plan, we will likely see another 100+ point effort from the Horns.

Know your foe

Lanky junior guard Brandon Bush is the man for the Bobcats, leading the team in both scoring and rebounding so far this year. Bush has 15.5 points at 6.8 boards per game so far this year, and dropped twelve points on the Longhorns in Austin as a sophomore last year.

Six-foot, ten-inch freshman center Ty Gough is the second-best rebounder for the ‘Cats, although he is only grabbing 5.4 per game. Even though Texas State is going to have the height advantage in the backcourt, they are generally not a huge team. The Horns should control the glass in this one, and will hopefully keep the Bobcats from pushing the transition game off of offensive boards.

This game is a bit of a homecoming for senior guard Brandon Thomas, who played his high school ball just up the road at Pflugerville. Thomas has started seven of the eight games for Texas State this year and is averaging just over 20 minutes per contest. It’s tough to say how the homecoming will affect the kid, as some players get nervous in front of family and friends, while others seem to thrive under the pressure. Unfortunately for Thomas, he has to do it against a much more talented Longhorn team.

Brent Benson is the key reserve for Coach Doug Davalos. Benson has not started a single game, yet is the second leading scorer on the team with 13.5 points and only 20 minutes per game. He is their only true long-range threat, as he’s hitting at a 42.6% clip from behind the arc.

The big finish

This game should be nothing but a full-speed scrimmage, as the Horns outmatch Texas State in every facet of the game. The only way I forsee the Bobcats hanging with Texas in this one is a perfect storm of stupid turnovers and poor shooting. Barring that incredibly slim possibility, the Longhorns should run away with this one as they pad the scoring stats.

While this game is only being shown in the state of Texas on FSN Southwest, folks with the ESPN Full Court package will be able to pick it up. ESPN360 is also listed as a way to watch the game, but I’m really not at all familiar with how that online viewing option works. For those of you in Austin, you can save $2 on your ticket by printing this coupon. The deal is only for mezz tickets, but you should easily be able to move down as the Drum should be pretty empty for this one.