Damion James had his best game of the year, scoring 22 points

Three weeks ago, the Longhorns lost in College Station to a red-hot Texas A&M team who had just defeated Kansas on the road only two days prior. In the locker room, Coach Rick Barnes told his team that they could still win the league — but they’d have to play defense. Since then, they have run off six straight wins and find themselves playing for a share of the league crown on Saturday night in Lawrence.

The sixth of those consecutive wins came last night in Austin against those same Aggies. The Longhorns (22-7 overall, 12-3 Big 12) fed off of a raucous, capacity crowd to hold off repeated comeback bids by Texas A&M and secure a double-overtime victory, 98-96.

The game was back-and-forth for much of the first half until Kevin Durant hit a three to put the Horns up 28-27. Texas was able to extend the lead before the break, although the Aggies kept themselves within arm’s reach at all times. Although the Longhorns couldn’t hit free throws and were brutally outrebounded in the first half — at one point, Texas A&M held a 21-9 advantage — they did hold Acie Law to only one field goal in the first twenty minutes.

Coming out of the locker room, the Longhorns were able to push their advantage to 11 points before Texas A&M mounted a massive comeback. Over the next eight minutes, the Aggies outscored the Horns 23-5 to go ahead by seven. But despite their youth, the Longhorns showed resiliency and resolve in quickly fighting back and reclaiming the lead with six minutes to play.

The homestretch was again a back-and-forth affair, but the game looked to be over after Kevin Durant hit an NBA-range three-pointer for a 76-72 lead with only 16 seconds left. But after a Dominique Kirk three and a pair of free throws from D.J. Augustin, it was Mr. Clutch, Acie Law IV, who hit the three to send it to overtime.

It wasn’t his only heroic act on the night, as Law again knocked down a game-tying three at the end of the first overtime to force another five minutes of basketball. And just as in regulation and the first overtime, it looked like the Aggies might mount another incredible comeback in the second OT. But with the Horns up three and only eleven seconds remaining, Antanas Kavaliauskas elected to take the layup instead of kick it to Law behind the arc. Kevin Durant knocked down both free throws on the ensuing foul, leaving the Aggies with five seconds and a three-point deficit.

At the end of regulation, Rick Barnes had told the team to foul Law before he could get a three off. Durant refused to do so, and Law hit the game-tying shot. But in double overtime, Texas finally listened. D.J. Augustin practically tackled Law at the top of the key, leaving the Ags with a one-and-one and only a second remaining. Law sunk the first, but was forced to miss the second. Bench-warmer Chinemelu Elonu grabbed the rebound, but was unable to tip it in for another tie, and the Longhorns escaped with a hard-fought, emotional victory.

Damion James had the game of his life, scoring 22 points, knocking down clutch free throws, grabbing nine boards, and coming up with a huge block at the end of regulation. He did have a lane violation in overtime that negated what would’ve been the game-winning point, but without him the Longhorns wouldn’t have even been in that position. With or without Kevin Durant, next year James is going to be a breakout star.

Durant turned in yet another superstar performance while making it look like just another day on the job. He played 49 of the game’s 50 minutes, dropping in 30 and grabbing 16 rebounds on a night where the Horns needed every board they could get. Defensively, he even added three blocks and a steal to help the cause.

Although he was the second-best point guard on the floor last night, D.J. Augustin still gave another all-conference performance. He earned 25 points and seven assists, and turned in a ton of flashy layups against a defense that is among the best in the country. He knew when to attack the rim and when to pull it back out, as his miniscule turnover total of two attests. Shit, that was all kinds of alliteration.

It was an electric, emotional night in the Drum. I’ve seen sellout crowds in my time on the Forty Acres, and I’ve seen some big wins. But I have never seen a packed arena that was so rowdy and into the game. The alumni along the sidelines stood for a majority of the first half, the last five minutes of regulation, and both of the overtimes. Even as the game dragged on and both players and fans tired, the students still jumped and screamed on defense. It was big-time college basketball, and finally the Frank Erwin Center had the atmosphere to match it.

Now the Horns must make a quick turnaround as they face their toughest task to date. A well-rested Kansas team awaits in Lawrence for a painfully early tip-time of 11 A.M. on Saturday. Texas gets only 60 hours to recuperate and prepare, so we can only hope we don’t get a repeat of the flat performance we saw in Philadelphia following a triple-overtime game in Stillwater.

Regardless, this Longhorn team now owns the signature win that its NCAA resumé sorely lacked. Last night’s win has to assure them of at least a 6-seed in the Big Dance. And as hot as they are right now, who knows where the ceiling is.