The Texas Longhorns are back in action after a long week off, opening play in the Maui Invitational against the host Chaminade Silverswords. Although Texas posted a decisive victory over Coppin State in its last game, the Longhorns were very sloppy and unfocused, giving Coach Rick Barnes and his young squad quite a bit to work on in the days leading up to this tournament.

Today’s game will be the first of three in the next three days for the Longhorns, who will quickly get a chance to measure themselves against tougher competition. Texas will face either USC or Illinois in tomorrow’s game, and will face North Carolina, Marquette, Butler, or Mississippi State on the final day of the tournament. With Jaylen Bond sidelined with an injury to his right foot and Myck Kabongo still awaiting an eligibility ruling from the NCAA as of this writing, the newest batch of freshmen will have ample playing time to accelerate their growth.

By the numbers

The Silverswords enter this game with a 2-1 mark, having won the season-opening GNAC/Pac West Challenge before losing to defending D-II champ Western Washington last week. Coach Eric Bovaird has his team pushing the tempo so far this season, with Chaminade clocking in at a brisk 79 possessions per game. Even though the Silverswords are playing up-tempo basketball, their offense isn’t built on turnovers, as opponents have only coughed it up on 17.7% of possessions so far.

Although Chaminade hasn’t done a great job shutting down opposing offenses, they at least haven’t been giving them free points at the line. The Silversword defense has allowed a free-throw rate of just 29.5% so far, with no players fouling out in any of their first three games. While the numbers might speak to matador-style defense by Chaminade, the pace of play certainly can’t help things. With the five starters accounting for 80% of the minutes and a core rotation of just eight guys, playing nearly 80 possessions a game has to add up to some tired legs.

Meet the Silverswords

Chaminade boasts a diverse roster, with players from Hawaii, the U.S. mainland, Africa, Australia, Europe, and Asia. Three seniors and a junior in the starting lineup give Coach Bovaird some experienced leadership, and also ensures that the team won’t be intimidated by big-name opponents. Although Chaminade was defeated by an average of 28.3 points in their three EA Sports Maui Invitational games last year, this group of upperclassmen did get a D-I win over Oklahoma in the 2010 tournament.

Guard De’Andre Haskins (No. 33) is the leading scorer on the team, averaging 18 points per game. He also rebounds well from the wings, ranking second on the team with his six boards per contest.

Haskins began his college career at Valparaiso before taking the junior college route and eventually landing at Chaminade. Having missed last year with a knee injury kept him out of action last year, the well-traveled fifth-year guard provides experience and leadership in this year’s backcourt. Haskins is the only current player to have started in that upset win over Oklahoma, scoring eight points in 25 minutes.

Australian guard Dominique Cooks (No. 3) also saw action in that 2010 win, scoring four points off the bench. This season, he’s averaging 9.7 points and 3.7 rebounds through three games.

Fellow Aussie Rhys Murphy (No. 25) is the team’s tallest player at just 6’7″, but his outside threat makes him more of a stretch four than a typical post player. He leads the team with a 50% success rate from behind the arc this year, knocking down 7 of his 14 attempts. As a member of Oregon State last season, Murphy saw action in only half of the team’s games and averaged just 5.1 minutes per appearance. He did not log any playing time when the Beavers knocked off Texas in the Legends Classic semifinals.

Senior Bennie Murray (No. 10) averaged nearly 14 points per game last season, and has upped that average to 15.3 through three games this year. He’s playing more than 33 minutes per game, despite posting an ugly 0.33 assist-to-TO ratio.

Sophomore Lee Bailey (No. 5) has struggled with ball control nearly as much as Murray, logging a 0.55 A/TO ratio. He’s second on the team in scoring, though, pouring in nearly 16 points a game. Bailey is clearly the cornerstone of this program moving forward, having started all 25 games a freshman while leading the team in minutes.

Forward Mike Green (No. 22) is first off the bench for the Silverswords, averaging nearly 15 minutes per game. At 6’6″, he’s one of the team’s tallest players, and could see a spike in playing time this week against bigger D-I opponents.

Like Green, 6’7″ junior forward Tyree Harrison (No. 11) could also see an increase in minutes during the EA Sports Maui Invitational. Although he’s playing only about 12 minutes per game, he’s made a mark on the glass, posting a defensive rebounding rate north of 24%. If the Silverswords want to keep Texas from getting easy second chance points, Harrison, Murphy, and Green will have to scrap on the boards.

Rounding out the rotation is freshman guard Kevin Hu (No. 23), who came to Chaminade by way of Taiwan, and was described as the team’s best dancer by Coach Bovaird at last night’s Tip-Off Banquet. Hu is coming off the best game of his young career, dropping in 16 points in only 15 minutes against Western Washington last Wednesday.

Keys to the game

1) Build an early lead – Neutral-site tournament crowds always favor the underdog, and that is never more true than at the EA Sports Maui Invitational. Chaminade is playing about 130 miles from their home court in Honolulu and will certainly have the local fans behind them. Add in the fans of every other school in the tournament pulling for another historic upset, and the crowd support should be at about 99.8% for the Silverswords this afternoon. Texas needs to race out to an early lead and take the crowd factor out of the equation immediately.

2) Control the basketball – Chaminade doesn’t thrive on turnovers to fuel their offense, but the Longhorns simply haven’t been able to hang on to the rock this season. Texas coughed it up 26 times against Coppin State last Monday, and matching Chaminade’s quick pace is bound to cause some more miscues for the young Horns today. The Longhorns need to control the ball, slow down if start making mistakes, and limit the number of free possessions they give to the Silverswords.

3) Take away dribble penetration – Based on the numbers, Chaminade appears to be a driving team. They have logged assists on only 30.5% of their baskets and have a free-throw rate of 51.4%. Texas needs to frustrate the opposing guards and make them move the basketball to earn their points. If the Horns can successfully cut off driving lanes, the Silverswords will be forced out of their comfort zone and will likely settle for long, contested jumpers.