For the better part of 21 minutes last night, it seemed that the Texas team which has struggled through its last four-plus games was going to continue down the same path. Colorado found itself wide open for a ton of shots — many of them coming from behind the arc — while Damion James picked up two fouls in less than five minutes and sat for the rest of the first half.

But with the Buffaloes holding a 41-28 lead with only 19 minutes left in the game, the Longhorns were suddenly awakened. A.J. Abrams sparked a 24-2 run over the following eight minutes, and although Colorado slowly clawed back the rest of the way, Texas was able to coast to a 69-67 victory in front of a sold out Frank Erwin Center.

D.J. Augustin led all scorers with 25 points on the night, but struggled a bit in the final minutes of the game as Colorado turned up the defensive pressure. Levi Knutson and Richard Roby were especially stingy defenders against Augustin as Colorado submitted a last-minute comeback bid, but it was not enough.

Augustin’s counterpart in the backcourt also had a solid game, although the first half was a bit rough. Abrams had a quiet first 20 minutes, but kick-started the giant run that put Texas ahead for good. A.J. hit a three and followed it with an old-fashioned three-point play on the ensuing possession to trim the Colorado lead to five points, and the rest of the Horns followed suit. Abrams finished the night with 17 points and had a few key steals in the second half.

One of the biggest issues in the recent Texas slide was the absence of Connor Atchley from the stat sheet, but last night he made a reappearance at key moments. Atch had 15 points and five boards against Colorado, but most importantly didn’t seem afraid to shoot the three and stayed on the ground when the Buffs threw head fakes at him. If Texas is going to find success in the Big 12 and beyond, Connor will have to continue to play at this level.

The other missing Horn has been Justin Mason, and while his offense still looked shaky, his defense and all-around hustle were on display against Colorado. In the middle of the big second-half run, Jay Mase had a great rebound and putback, plus a block and deflected shot on two straight defensive possessions. In the post-game presser, Coach Barnes said that Justin’s solid play had earned him his starting spot again for Monday night’s game with Oklahoma State.

The man who now finds himself on the bench courtesy of that lineup move is Gary Johnson, who is still struggling in his adjustment to the college game. His conditioning may also be an issue, as just four minutes into last night’s game, GJ waved to the bench to ask for a breather. He did come back into the game later, so I’m certain it was not a scare with his heart.

The unfortunate truth is that Gary still looks a little lost out there. It’s tough for freshmen to make the leap, and for a fish coming right into the rigors of Big 12 play, it’s got to be even harder. Hopefully he’ll continue to develop into his role with the team, otherwise I see him as simply another guy being rotated inside along with Alexis Wangmene, Clint Chapman, and Dexter Pittman.

As previously mentioned, James sat for more than 15 minutes in the first half, and the Longhorns suffered. Against a much smaller Colorado team, the Horns found themselves out-hustled and out-boarded by a 17-12 count. In the second half, Texas controlled the boards by a 23-17 count, especially on the offensive glass. Without a doubt, the presence of DaMo inside was a huge reason why the Longhorns were able to come back.

Another key to the comeback was the stifling defense, which held Colorado without a field goal during that stretch. The only points the Buffs managed over the eight minutes came courtesy of two free throws, while they missed four more. The sellout crowd certainly helped things, as Colorado usually plays in front of less than 5,000 folks at home, and their only wins on the road came against Denver, Air Force, and Colorado State. Increased pressure from the Texas D plus 16,000 screaming orangebloods meant disaster for the Buffs, who burned through their timeouts with more than eleven minutes left in the game.

Although a home win is certainly a nice boost, and fighting through the huge deficit speaks volumes about the character of this team, there are still always negatives to pick out. Free throw shooting was still an adventure for the Horns, with a few of the misses coming late in the game and on the front end of one-and-ones. Perhaps fatigue is a factor in the late-game misses, but those types of hiccups in the tourney could spell the end of the season.

There is also the lingering concern about the finishing punch from Texas. In this one, the Horns were up ten points with a little less than five minutes to go and did not score again. We’ve seen the lack of focus in the second half many times throughout the season, including games against teams like North Texas, Rice, Oral Roberts, and TCU, and played poorly for long stretches in the second twenty of the Mizzou and Wisconsin losses. The Horns have really only put together one complete game since UCLA, and they will surely be tested for the full 40 minutes by a handful of teams the rest of the way. If they don’t bear down in the second half the rest of the season, a few more wins will slip away in the final minutes.

But rather than end this post-game with a doom-and-gloom feeling, I’ll direct your attention to Ian Mooney as we close. Although Mooney played only five minutes in this one, his time on the court was solid. His hustle kept alive a couple of rebounds during the run, and he had a great feed from the low post to set up Atchley for a jumper. Ian is clearly not the key to success for Texas, but if he plays like he did in his short stint last night, that’s a great sign for the Longhorn bench.

The next game is less than 24 hours away against Oklahoma State in the dangerous Gallagher-Iba Arena. Game preview will be up before we hit the road in the morning.

Just a quick hit early this morning to let you know that the Colorado post-game and a look at this crazy, upset-filled weekend will be coming later tonight. Until then, enjoy the football, and be sure to check out the Pac-10 match-up between Oregon and Washington State at 7 PM CST on FSN.

Last Saturday, Texas walked into Mizzou Arena riding high after a convincing win over a ranked St. Mary’s team. But by the time the afternoon was over, the Longhorns had been thoroughly whipped by the homestanding Tigers and were rewarded with a week in the cellar of the Big 12.

After six days long days, Texas looks to bounce back in a home game against the Colorado Buffaloes, a team picked dead last in the conference by practically every major publication. The Buffs have turned something of a corner, though, and are buying into the defense-first program that Jeff Bzdelik is bringing to Boulder. Although CU fell behind early to A&M last week, they fought the rest of the way and kept the deficit pretty much the same the rest of the way. And just two days later, the Buffs pulled off an ugly upset of Nebraska at home on Tuesday night.

Texas should not have any problems with Colorado tonight, but the Buffaloes are not quite the lame-duck that most had anticipated at the start of the season. They are going to eke out a few more wins in conference play than they should, and it’s the work of their new coach that is making the difference.

By the numbers

The Buffs are ranked 145th in the nation in Ken Pomeroy’s RPI approximations, with one of their nine wins coming against D-II Colorado Christian. Their efficiency numbers are roughly middle-of-the-pack, with an OfEff of 103.4 and a 99.3 DefEff. Texas should not have trouble scoring against the Buffs, but the porous Longhorn defense could make Colorado deceptively good.

As mentioned earlier, Bzdelik wants the Buffs to think defense first, and his 2-3 and match-up zones are surprisingly good for a bottom-feeding team in a power conference. The zone allows CU to slow down the game to a pace that will allow them to steal games they should not win by taking possessions away from the more talented teams.

Colorado is not only a patient defensive team, but also very deliberate on the offensive side of things as well. They often take 25 to 30 seconds per possession, working it around in a spread offense built on cuts and screens. This slow-down approach is underscored by their tempo stats, which have Colorado slotted as 293rd-fastest in the country with only 64 possessions per game.

The starters

Coach Bzdelik runs a guard-heavy lineup, as the offense is concentrated around the perimeter and keys on a big man setting screens in the high post. That big man is Marcus King-Stockton, who has started the last two games for Colorado after beginning the year on the bench. Stockton has a serviceable jump hook, but will be used mostly to free up the guards with his picks and also to pull a big defender out of the lane.

Guard Richard Roby is still the star for Colorado, and is leading the team in scoring for the fourth time in the four years he’s spent in Boulder. He’s second on the team in minutes, but is tops in scoring with 16.2 per game. Despite playing mostly on the perimeter, the 6-foot, 6-inch Roby is the team’s leading rebounder, although that isn’t saying much for a Colorado team that is absolutely abysmal on the glass.

He’s a dual threat, as he can hit the three-ball but can also easily beat guards off the dribble if they play him too closely. Roby’s accuracy behind the arc has improved dramatically after a junior year in which he struggled, and he now sits at 37.3% BTA on the season.

Marcus Hall runs the point for Coach Bzdelik and leads the squad in minutes played. He’s got quick hands on defense and can also hit from three-point range with regularity, shooting at a 34.7% clip so far.

Austin native Xavier Silas will make his first appearance back in Austin as a member of the Buffs, and the sophomore comes into this one playing some good ball. The Stephen F. Austin grad is the third-leading scorer on the team with 10.7 per game and is playing over 31 minutes per contest. As with the other guards, Silas is a threat from long range, and at 6’5″, he will get some open looks over the short Texas backcourt.

Freshman Cory Higgins rounds out the starting lineup for Colorado. He’s a promising young player with NBA pedigree, as he is the son of former big leaguer Rod Higgins, who is now the GM for the Charlotte Bobcats. Higgins is another quick guard, but struggles from the line. With many of the Colorado buckets coming off of backdoor cuts and moves into the paint, denying Higgins an easy look by fouling could often be the right approach.

The bench

Colorado has four walk-ons listed on the roster, and truly only run seven or eight deep. Jermyl Jackson-Wilson plays the same role on the team as Stockton, and was actually the starter prior to his demotion two games ago. Guard Levi Knutson is the three-point specialist, hitting 48.6% of his shots from behind the arc. Knutson is 6-foot, 4-inches, so he also will have the height advantage over the Texas guards to get off clean looks if he wants them.

What to look for

Colorado is an absolutely horrendous team on the glass, and Texas needs to take advantage of that in this one. With possessions at a premium in this contest, the Horns will need any second and third chances they can earn through rebounding, and limiting the Buffs to one-and-dones will definitely slash the slim chances of an upset tonight. Texas A&M held Colorado to only 16 rebounds in the entire game last Saturday, and although Texas is not as dominant as the Aggies inside, I forsee them winning the battle on the glass easily.

One thing that was noticeably lacking in the Colorado defense was a quick reaction to ball movement when a quality big man is in the paint. Texas doesn’t have an intimidating post presence, but if Dexter Pittman is in the game for extended periods of time, it could work in their favor. The Buffs often doubled down on Aleks Maric and DeAndre Jordan when in their match-up zone, leaving players wide open on the wing for three. If Colorado happens to use this approach against Pittman, post feeds followed by quick kicks out to the perimeter should result in a ton of open looks.

The big albatrosses in the past few games have been free throw woes, poor defense, and the disappearance of Connor Atchley and Justin Mason. With this game seemingly a lock, it will be important for the Horns to use this as a full-speed practice and address those issues. A win is certainly a win, but if those problems are still apparent in this game, it is very bad news for the tough dates coming up later on the schedule.

This one is televised in a lot of markets across Texas — and randomly in Columbia, Missouri — so be sure to check out the affiliate list from TexasSports.com for listings in your area.

The game preview for Colorado won’t be up until sometime after 3 P.M., but there’s a lot of hoops action on TV between now and then to keep you busy. And if you feel like watching some old games, ESPNU is even running some of the best games in the Border War all morning long. On to the listings…

#21 Villanova (12-3 overall, 2-2 Big East) at Syracuse (13-5, 3-2) – 11 AM CST, ESPN – The Orange is looking to break out of the pack in the Big East, and they have the huge advantage of playing this one at home in the Carrier Dome. The Wildcats are 0-2 on the road in conference play so far this year, which is unsettling for coach Jay Wright heading into this one.

Illinois (9-9 overall, 1-1 Big Ten) at Purdue (12-5, 3-1) – 1 PM CST, ESPN – Bruce Weber’s Illini are really struggling this year, but it’s tough to get well on the road against Purdue and its stifling defense. Meanwhile, the Boilermakers are looking to keep pace with the league’s top teams this week to set up a huge match-up with Wisconsin next weekend.

Rutgers (8-10 overall, 0-5 Big East) at DePaul (7-9, 3-2) – 1 PM CST, ESPNU – If Rutgers is going to get its first Big East win anytime soon, the Blue Demons are a possible victim. DePaul is a streaky shooting team that doesn’t do much else right, so if the shots aren’t falling for the home team, the Scarlet Knights could pull off the upset.

Oklahoma State (10-6 overall, 1-1 Big 12) at Iowa State (11-6, 1-1) – 12:30 PM CST, KNVA/Full Court – Two teams who have each split their first two conference games, OSU and ISU are mid-pack teams in the muddled Big 12 looking to make a mark. If the first week of league play is any indication, home court should give the ‘Clones the win in this one, but we all know that trends were made to be broken.

Maryland (11-7 overall, 1-2 ACC) at #1 North Carolina (18-0, 3-0) – 2:30 PM, ABC – This game isn’t quite as exciting on paper as some Maryland/Carolina tilts in recent years, but the rivalry usually produces some great games. And while Wednesday night’s game showed that UNC still has some vulnerabilities, you’ve got to like the Heels in the Dean Dome.

USC (10-6 overall, 1-3 Pac-10) at #4 UCLA (16-1, 4-0) – 2:30 PM, CBS – This is part of a split national telecast from CBS, so check your local listings to see which game you get. (Viewers in the Austin area are scheduled to get this game.) UCLA looks good in this cross-town rivalry, and it’s worth watching just to see O.J. Mayo get embarrassed yet again.

Ohio State (12-5) at #7 Tennessee (15-1) – 2:30 PM, CBS – The other half of the CBS split-national telecast is a rematch between two teams who played a pair of games last year decided by a total of three points. Ohio State ended Tennessee’s season on a blocked shot in the Sweet Sixteen last year, and you can be sure the Vols — and their rowdy fans in Thompson-Boling Arena — will be looking for some revenge.

#9 Texas A&M (15-2 overall, 1-1 Big 12) at Kansas State (11-4, 1-0) – 3 PM CST, ESPN – The Aggies collapsed in Lubbock under the pressure of their first road test in almost two months, and now they get another one just days later in Manhattan. K-State hasn’t lived up to expectations yet this season, but they’ve got the talent in Bill Walker and Michael Beasley. This one ought to be a dandy.

Texas Tech (10-6 overall, 1-1 Big 12) at Oklahoma (12-5 overall, 1-1) – 3 PM CST, KNVA/Full Court – Tech and OU? That means it’s time for the best Raiders/Sooners clip ever. Oh, and, uh…Blake Griffin’s hurt for the next two weeks.

Eastern Illinois (2-16 overall, 1-9 OVC) at Tennessee State (7-10, 4-4) – 4:30 PM CST, ESPNU – I don’t understand why every time they put a mid-major game on ESPNU, one of the teams has to be absolutely God-awful. There really are good teams playing basketball below the radar, but the “Worldwide Leader” decides to give us these crapfests instead. Thanks, guys!

#23 Clemson (14-3 overall, 2-1 ACC) at #5 Duke (14-1, 2-0) – 5 PM CST, ESPN – Remember the clock controversy in the first game between these two schools last year? Yeah, there might be some bad blood left over.

Oregon State (6-11 overall, 0-5 Pac-10) at Washington (10-7, 1-3) – 5 PM CST, FSN – If this is your first chance to watch the Pac-10 this year, please don’t think the Beavers represent the rest of the conference in any way, shape, or form.

Kent State (14-3 overall, 3-0 MAC) at Ohio (10-6, 1-2) – 5 PM CST, ESPN Classic – A live game on ESPN Classic? It’s like a giant mind-puzzle.

#3 Kansas (17-0, 2-0 Big 12) at Missouri (11-6, 1-1) – 7 PM CST, ESPNU – The Border War is always exciting, and the fans in Mizzou Arena are going to be rabid tonight when the hated Jayhawks come to town. As one Tiger fan told me last week, “This isn’t just a rivalry. We literally killed each other in the Civil War.”

Kentucky (7-7 overall, 1-1 SEC) at Florida (15-3, 2-1) – 8 PM CST, ESPN – This is your Game of the Night, ESPN? Really? Don’t let the schedule that the Baby Gators racked up against cupcakes fool you. Of course, they could’ve always played like Kentucky and lost to those cupcakes…

Wyoming (6-9 overall, 0-3 MWC) at San Diego State (13-4, 3-0) – 10 PM CST, CSTV – I don’t know a damned thing about the Mountain West, but just judging by records this one ought to be ugly.

And if that’s not enough basketball for you, here’s all the extra games you can watch if you’ve got the ESPN Full Court package…

Notre Dame at #6 Georgetown – 11 AM CST

LSU at #14 Vanderbilt – 12 PM CST

Georgia Tech at Virginia Tech – 12 PM CST

Mississippi State at Alabama – 2 PM CST

#16 Pittsburgh at Cincinnati – 3 PM CST

#15 Mississippi at Auburn – 4 PM CST

Baylor at Nebraska – 5 PM CST

Arkansas at Georgia – 6 PM CST

Boston College at Virginia – 7 PM CST

Louisville at Seton Hall – 7 PM CST

Louisiana Tech at New Mexico State – 8 PM CST

Idaho at Utah State – 8 PM CST

The game of the night pits two of the top three in the SEC, who also happen to be interstate rivals separated by just 180 miles. The Big East provides some interesting match-ups as usual, and there’s a nice one to check out in the WAC for those up late. On to the games…

#13 Marquette (13-2 overall, 3-1 Big East) at Louisville (12-4, 2-1) – 6 PM CST, ESPN2 – Louisville is finally starting to show some signs of life, and this home game against the ranked Golden Eagles is a great chance to loudly announce their return. The guard play for Marquette makes them a scary squad for anybody to face, so the Cards will have to shut down the backcourt in this one.

#14 Vanderbilt (16-1 overall, 1-1 SEC) at #7 Tennessee (14-1, 2-0) – 6 PM CST, ESPN – Game of the night, without a doubt. These two teams have met 171 times in the last 86 years, but this is the first time since 1968 that both schools have been ranked on game night. The winner of this one takes control in the SEC East…at least until they meet again on February 26th.

George Mason (11-5 overall, 3-2 CAA) at Hofstra (3-11, 1-4) – 6 PM CST, ESPNU – It’s been an off season for Jim Larranaga’s bunch, but tonight should be a cakewalk of a win on the road in the CAA.

#21 Rhode Island (15-2 overall, 1-1 A-10) at Saint Louis (9-7, 0-2) – 7 PM CST, CSTV – Saint Louis scored only 20 points against a pretty awful George Washington team last week, so this home game against the Rams shouldn’t be pretty. Rhode Island hopes to keep rolling and take advantage of the stumbles by Xavier and Dayton last night.

Central Arkansas (11-5, 1-1 Southland) at UT-San Antonio (6-8, 0-1) – 7 PM CST, FSN Southwest – Unless you went to one of these two schools, I don’t see why you’d be watching it. But it’s on TV in the Austin area, so it’s listed for those of you who might be into that kind of thing. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

#8 Indiana (14-1 overall, 3-0 Big 10) at Minnesota (12-3, 2-1) – 8 PM CST, ESPN – Minnesota has put together a nice start under new coach Tubby Smith, but they haven’t faced anything like E-Giddy and D.J. White yet.

Ohio (10-5 overall, 1-1 MAC) at Akron (12-3 overall, 2-0 MAC) – 8 PM CST, ESPNU – With Tennessee/Vandy on at the same time, even Kyle Whelliston won’t be watching this MAC showdown.

Full Court is packed to the gills, so get your hoops fix tonight before the abysmal Friday night schedule comes calling.

Providence (11-5 overall, 2-2 Big East) at Connecticut (11-4, 2-2) – 6 PM CST – The Friars are right in the thick of it! With a strong RPI and SOS, plus a chance to shine in an average Big East, Providence can play their way into the tourney. Of course, UConn might have something to say about that in Storrs tonight

St. John’s (7-8 overall, 1-3 Big East) at West Virginia (12-4, 2-2) – 6 PM CST – Thuggins has skinny, white Beilein players actually buying into what he’s teaching, and he’s got WVU in position to make a run. A home game against the Red Storm shouldn’t be too much of a hassle, but with the way things are going in the Big East this year, you can’t ever be sure.

South Florida (10-7 overall, 1-3 Big East) at Seton Hall (10-6, 0-3) – 6:30 PM CST – Seton Hall is much better than their 0-3 record in the conference would indicate, and they’ve got this one in the brand spanking new Prudential Center. The Bulls have their work cut out for them against a desperate Pirate team tonight.

Oregon (12-4 overall, 3-1 Pac-10) at Washington (9-7, 0-3) – 8 PM CST – Remember when Washington was being talked about as a potential seventh or eighth NCAA bid out of the stacked Pac-10? That seems like ages ago, as the Huskies have scuttled against a fairly stout schedule and are sitting just above .500 on the year. Oregon has also had its stumbles, but needs to win games like this one to keep the resumé from getting too messy.

Boise State (12-4 overall, 3-1 WAC) at Utah State (12-5 overall, 2-0 WAC) – 8 PM CST – I still haven’t had a chance to watch the Broncos, but they are certainly jumping out to a great start in league play. One might think that the New Mexico State Aggies are the WAC front-runners with Herb Pope and Hatilla Passos now ready for action, but the Broncos could be playing spoiler. Oh, and they’ve got the USU Aggies in this one.