The UC-Davis Aggies come into the game having split their first two contests. The lone win came over Division III school La Verne, while the loss was only two days ago in a road game against New Mexico State. They finished last season at 5-23, just missing an at-large bid to the NCAAs.

The Aggies were outrebounded by the other aggies of NMSU by a 47-20 count. While the tallest UC-Davis players check in at 6’9″, their guards will have a few inches over the Longhorn backcourt. But even with that in mind, one can’t help but think that a team outboarded by 27 — albeit by a very lengthy NMSU squad — may have a few problems with their fundamentals on the glass. Redshirt freshman Mark Payne is their top board man, although he is averaging only 5.5 per game so far.

Davis runs nine men deep on the bench, with Kyle Brucculeri and C.J. Portz alternating as fifth starter and sixth man. Ryan Silva is the only reserve that serves as a huge scoring threat for the Aggies, averaging 11 per game in the first two contests.

Nearly half of the shots for UC-Davis come from behind the arc, and with the team hitting at 44%, the Longhorns will want to prevent open looks. Sophomore Shane Hanson has been particularly deadly so far this year, sinking 7-of-11 treys. Silva is also a threat, going 6-of-11 from three-point range in the first two games.

Despite that, the Aggies have been middle-of-the-road thus far. Their offensive efficiency checks in at only 99.2 according to Ken Pomeroy, meaning that they average about a point per possession. For comparison, the 2006-07 Longhorns finished the year with a 114.3 efficiency. Defensively, the Aggies’ efficiency falls in the bottom third of all NCAA squads.

For Texas, this is a chance to see what the offense can do at something that is a bit closer to full speed. Will Damion James still be anchored to the three-point line, or will he embrace the attacking wing role that P.J. Tucker held just two seasons ago? Can the freshmen big men and Dexter Pittman get themselves into the mix offensively, or is this going to be another guard show from our talented top three?

Injuries are still going to be a problem for Texas, as Gary Johnson has still not been publicly cleared. And of course, Dogus Balbay and Matt Hill will be watching in street clothes, as they will likely be all season. Pittman is still available to play, but after his rough outing on Monday night, one can’t help but wonder if the foot is still bothering him a bit.

If the Horns can dominate the rebounding battle and limit the three pointers from Davis, they will win this one running away. Fail to do those things, and they still likely win — it’ll just be a close, ugly one. I’ll refrain from saying what nightmare scenarios could cause the Aggies to come out victorious, considering the last time someone did that — I’m looking at you, Flutie — things ended…badly.

Tonight’s game isn’t on TV, so head out to the Drum for the 7 P.M. tip. It’s early enough to squeeze in before your Friday night plans and not too late for those with little ones. Come orange, wear early, stay loud, be late, yada yada yada. We’ll see you there.