So we’re back from Colorado and still alive, although we certainly were hit by about every winter condition short of a blizzard that you could think of. I’ll get to all of that in the trip wrap, but for now we’ve got a game to break down.

Nothing makes 30 hours spent in a car seem more worthwhile than a solid, convincing win. And after a battle from the Buffs in the first half, that’s exactly what Kevin Durant and the Horns had, pulling away for a 102-78 victory in Boulder.

Texas (11-3, 1-0 Big 12) jumped out to an early lead and it looked like all was going according to script. But Colorado (4-7, 0-1) quickly stormed back and took its own lead. The first half was a see-saw affair, with the Horns unable to shut down Buffs star Richard Roby. He was hitting from outside, and getting open looks inside with Texas constantly losing him away from the ball. They even allowed him easy shots on the offensive glass as he would crash from the outside and no one picked him up.

That all changed in the second half, as Texas came out with added pressure on Roby. The double-teams and help defense frustrated him, as he scored only eight points in the second half after dropping a massive 22 in the first frame. Meanwhile, Texas went on a 22-11 run at the 16:24 mark and never looked back. The surge was fueled by threes, with Texas hitting what I think was four in a row.

Kevin Durant was the star for the Horns, scoring 37 points and grabbing 16 rebounds. He was hitting from absolutely everywhere, going 5-for-7 behind the arc, throwing down some monster dunks, and knocking down the mid-range jumpers, too.

It has reached the point where we know that KD is going to be the standout player in each and every game for the Horns. Which leads me to the newest feature of Longhorn Road Trip — the Player-Not-Named-Kevin-Durant of the Game Award. And for Colorado, I have to give the PNNKDOTGA to Damion James. Enjoy the alphabet soup.

Damion continued his stellar play on the defensive end, despite picking up four fouls. You could tell that the altitude was getting to him, as he’d stand around and grab at his shorts on the offensive sets late in the game. But even with the added exhaustion from playing over a mile above sea level, James gave his best game of the year — fifteen points, nine rebounds, and a block.

A.J. Abrams and D.J. Augustin also added fifteen points each, with the latter just missing out on a double-double. Augustin dished out nine assists while turning the ball over only once and had four steals.

Connor Atchley again provided valuable minutes for Coach Barnes. And while he picked up one dumb foul that I can distinctly remember, his added contribution in playing time is huge. Now if we can just get him to actually finish those layups when he’s fouled….

Texas heads home for its next pair of conference games, starting with Mizzou at 7 PM on Wednesday night.