After sweeping through the opening round games and the semifinal of the Legends Classic, Tennessee and Texas finally meet in the championship game that many pundits had penciled them into months earlier. This marks the fourth-consecutive year with a battle of the UTs, with the Vols on a two-game winning streak against the Horns after sweeping the home-and-home in 2006 and 2007. Texas last claimed a victory against Tennessee with a 95-70 rout in the 2005 Maui Invitational.

The Vols are a quality team that can beat you inside and out. Everybody knows the dangers of leaving Chris Lofton unguarded outside, especially after he torched the Horns for 35 in last year’s overtime thriller from Knoxville. But this season, he’s started cold, hitting only 31% of his threes so far this season. He’s still the penultimate flopper, as anyone who watched last night’s semifinal with West Virginia can attest. We can only hope the refs don’t blow the whistle every time he flails on the ground following a three.

JaJuan Smith can also hit from outside, and is leading the Vols in scoring so far this year with almost 17 points per game. He’s a quick guard with even quicker hands on defense, and it’ll be exciting to see him match up against this Texas backcourt. Forward Tyler Smith has stepped up in his sophomore year, scoring over eleven points per game so far this year. Senior guard Jordan Howell gives about 20 minutes per game off the bench, but was incredibly unimpressive against the Mountaineers last night.

Wayne Chism is a tough player to defend, as the 6’9″ sophomore can abuse you inside or stroke a three if you leave him alone. He’s also going to be the toughest assignment on the glass today, which is still an area of concern for the Horns. Occasional LRT co-traveler Jon Rasul feels that this Tennessee team won’t be as much of a problem for Texas because they graduated big man Dane Bradshaw, who he dubbed the “Mark Madsen of the NCAA.” While I certainly agree that losing Bradshaw will hurt the Vols, sophomore Duke Crews is a pretty solid post player as well. Freshman Brian Williams also provides some minutes off the bench last night, but his game still looked pretty raw against West Virginia last night.

Tennessee loves to pressure the ball, and that intense defense helped bring the Vols back in the second half of last year’s crazy matchup. But the Horns only turned it over 10 times in that game, which is far below the average that Tennessee usually forces. If the Longhorns can once again maintain good ball control, I like their odds against the Vols. With Texas only turning it over ten times per game to start the year, I think that’s a very strong possibility.

The Mountaineers kept things close last night with a physical defensive game that disrupted the Volunteer offense. I don’t expect the Longhorns to use this same strategy, so look for another high scoring game from these two teams. Texas will need to once again shoot well in order to keep up with the high-powered Vols, but the real keys to this one are ball control and rebounding. The Horns can’t afford to give Tennessee extra possessions, so they can’t turn it over or give up a ton of offensive rebounds.

All told, this should be a fun one to watch. It’s the biggest test thus far for both programs, and will certainly be a resumé-padding victory for whoever pulls it out. Tune in to Versus for all of tonight’s action, which should start at 6 P.M. Central, or roughly 30 minutes after the finish of the consolation game between NMSU and West Virginia.

The Longhorns allowed New Mexico State to shoot 50% from the field last night, with the Aggies hitting thirteen three-pointers on the night. Thanks to A.J. Abrams, it didn’t even matter. Texas cracked the century mark for the second straight game and dispatched New Mexico State 102-87 in the semifinals of the Legends Classic in Newark, New Jersey.

Abrams scored 31 points on the night, shooting a ridiculous 9-of-12 from behind the arc. If not for cramps that suddenly sidelined him in the second half, the junior guard might have tied or broken the school record for three-pointers in a game (10). As it was, Abrams still had his second consecutive night with 30 points or more, and pushed his season average to 23.3 points per game.

The game was a track meet, with Texas pushing the tempo from the start. The Longhorns forced 19 turnovers on the night, and their pressure defense led to a ton of early fast break points that staked them to a 30-11 lead less than eight minutes into it. The Aggies hung around with 60% shooting in the first half, but could never fight their way back into it. They could get no closer than eight points the rest of the way as the two teams ran up the score throughout the second twenty minutes.

While it’s easy to get drunk on the burnt orange kool-aid after two 100-plus point games, there are certainly still some issues worth noting. We knew heading in that NMSU would likely control the glass, but seeing them dominate with a +14 on the night is still a little unsettling. Perhaps most unsettling, though, is the fact that half of the 34 Aggie rebounds came on the offensive glass. On a night where the Texas offense isn’t hitting on all cylinders, a good team will make the Longhorns pay for allowing so many second chances.

Don’t let that get you down, though. The positives to be gleaned from this one are certainly much more numerous. Connor Atchley continued to showcase the progress he made during the offseason, demonstrating his newfound confidence in that sweet three-point stroke. Atch hustled all over the floor, blocking three shots and grabbing three rebounds while dropping in 15 points. While we’d love to see him more active on the glass, his defense has improved and he’s given Coach Barnes three consecutive ten-point games. That’s the kind of reliability fans were looking for last season.

The move to the 3 for Damion James continues to work out well for the Horns, as DaMo hit some outside jumpers en route to a twelve-point night. He fought for six rebounds and generally looked comfortable in the position he played back in high school. But Damion did pick up four personal fouls, which was often a problem for him last season. We’ll give him a pass in this game, as the Aggies had a bunch of trees disguised as players, but it’s definitely something that James will need to control this season, particularly with the thin bench.

As for D.J. Augustin, it was just another day at the office. Twenty-five points and ten assists? Ho hum. It’s quite a luxury for Barnes and Horn fans that D.J. has raised his game to the level that we just expect these kinds of numbers from him every night. He had a couple of sick plays where he attacked the rim and finished the play with typical Augustin flair, and knocked down a pair of nice threes as well. A ton of the credit for A.J.’s great shooting night also has to go to D.J., who found the hot hand repeatedly.

Justin Mason is still a scrappy defender who seems to be rediscovering the offense that we saw early in his freshman year. Discussing the game last night, we couldn’t recall a definitive offensive game for Mason since his game-winner against Arkansas last December. Perhaps last night’s eleven point performance — including 2-of-5 from long range — is a step in the right direction.

The rest of the squad was generally unremarkable last night. There were short spurts of brilliance from Alexis Wangmene, who once again managed to get to the line repeatedly. He only grabbed two rebounds in his thirteen minutes, and is definitely one of the players that must step up his game on the glass if the Longhorns are going to improve. Dexter Pittman and Clint Chapman played two and nine minutes, respectively, while J.D. Lewis chipped in with three. None scored, and had marginal impact on the stat sheet.

Texas now advances to play #7 Tennessee in the Legends Classic championship tonight at 6 P.M. An abbreviated game preview is on the way shortly.

A-G-G-I-E-S…whoooop! Texas A&M trailed at half, but came back to top Washington, 77-63 in the first NIT semifinal. And in a match-up of two fanbases I absolutely cannot stand, Ohio State took care of Syracuse, 79-65. THE Ohio State University will meet up with the “Texas Aggies” on Friday night for the NIT title.

Looking around the rest of the Big 12, Oklahoma State lost to Illinois, 65-49 in the Maui third-place game. Kansas earned its 600th home win, defeating Northern Arizona by an 87-46 count, while the Sooners toppled Morehead State, 74-42.

You’ll get a chance to watch some outstanding freshmen late tonight as you’re fighting the effects of the tryptophan (and Jerry is playing with your toy collection). Check out Michael Beasley and K-State against George Mason (8 PM CST, ESPN2), followed by O.J. Mayo and USC taking on San Diego in Anaheim (11 PM, ESPN2). There’s also hoops all day long on the U, but we recommend Gonzaga and Western Kentucky from the Great Alaska Shootout (10:30 PM, ESPNU).

Everyone enjoy your holiday and please be safe as you make your way around the country to visit your families. Personally, I will be on my way to Newark for the Legends Classic in about 11 hours, where I’ll bring you coverage from the tournament all weekend.

Last night

Royal Ivey saw a good chunk of minutes for the second-straight night, and Milwaukee knocked off the Lake Show, 110-103. Ivey scored five points in eleven minutes and logged four assists. For L.A., Chris Mihm was mostly ineffective in his 15 minutes, scoring only one point on a free throw and grabbing only two boards.

T.J. Ford missed the entire game due to a stinger, but the Raptors held on for a 95-89 victory against Memphis.

The Cavs took out Minnesota on the road, 97-86, moving back to .500 on the season. D-Gib finished with eleven points and five dimes in 34 minutes on the court.

Maurice Evans did not play for Orlando last night, a day after being traded from the Lakers. Mo doesn’t play and the Magic lose to the Spurs, 128-110? It clearly doesn’t have anything to do with the incredibly talented San Antonio squad….it’s gotta be the lack of Mo.

LaMarcus Aldridge and the Trailblazers let one get away at home, as the Nets used a 4th-quarter comeback to earn a 106-101 victory. LA scored fourteen and corralled eight rebounds in his 31 minutes, adding two blocks and a steal.

Today

The NBA takes a back seat to the NFL, leaving its schedule clear so that Glen Davis can eat three turkeys. Plus a pecan pie.