I’ve got to be at my McJob in less than an hour, so I’ll just throw out the sparse Sunday TV listings for those of you who won’t be tuned into the NFL playoffs. (Although really, all Longhorn fans should be watching VY against the Chargers.)

4:30 PM CST, FSN – Cornell (6-4) at #8 Duke (10-1)
6:30 PM CST, FSN – #1 North Carolina (14-0) at #19 Clemson (12-1)

I’d say that Clemson game is Carolina’s toughest test to date, but the Tigers are famous for chalking up a ton of early-season wins and then collapsing faster than Marie Osmond. Clemson gets this one at home, so it’ll be the first real road challenge for the Heels — sorry, but Rupp Arena doesn’t count this season — and perhaps we can finally learn something about this team beyond “they’re really good.”

For those of you with ESPN Full Court, here’s what’s on your plate today…

Right now – #13 Pittsburgh (12-1) at #16 Villanova (10-2)
Right now – Vermont (6-7) at Albany (5-8)
1 PM CST – #11 Marquette (11-1) at West Virginia (10-3)
2 PM CST – Xavier (11-3) at Auburn (9-2)
3:05 PM CST – Weber State (5-7) at Northern Colorado (6-8)
5 PM CST – St. Peter’s (4-9) at Siena (7-5)

With Big 12 play just a week away, the Longhorns face one of their stiffest tests as they close out the non-conference portion of their schedule. The Saint Mary’s Gaels come to town riding a five-game winning streak and boasting an upset win over Oregon in November. The Ducks have since dropped off the map, so that win might not be the calling card it once was. But don’t let that fool you into thinking that SMC is going to be a pushover — this team can win in a multitude of ways.

The Gaels hope that this is the season in which they finally get over the hump in the West Coast Conference. Forever a league dominated by Gonzaga, the WCC seemed up for grabs last year when the Gaels took out the Bulldogs early in the season. But SMC dropped four straight games in February, and Gonzaga slipped past to win yet another league crown. This year, Saint Mary’s is clearly the stronger team, but nothing would give them a bigger boost heading into WCC play than a road upset over the Horns.

By the numbers

St. Mary’s is currently 4th in Ken Pomeroy’s RPI approximations and has amassed that 11-1 record against the 23rd-toughest schedule in the country. The Gaels are at their best when pushing the tempo and forcing their opponents into mistakes, but the scary thing is that Saint Mary’s is just as effective in the half-court game. Their offensive numbers are nearly as good as those of the Longhorns, but the Gaels have a leg up because their defensive efficiency is roughly five points better.

The key players

It all starts and ends with freshman point Patrick Mills. The kid is a speedy, unflappable guard who can attack off the dribble, shoot the three, and is absolutely stellar in transition. He’s also got an eye for the court, as he constantly feeds the pair of big men down low for Coach Randy Bennett.

As you’ll hear endlessly during today’s broadcast, Mills is an Aborigine from Australia, one of three active Aussies on the Gaels roster. Ben Allen is also from Oz, although he will have to sit the season after transferring from Indiana.

Diamon Simpson is one of the big men who will create problems for the Longhorns down low. He was named Player of the Month for the WCC in December, and has an array of solid post moves. He’s averaging nearly a double-double so far this year, with 12.2 PPG and 9.6 RPG for the Gaels. Although SMC doesn’t play a style similar to Wisconsin or Michigan State, rebounding was a big concern in both of those losses and could play a big role in today’s game.

The other big threat is the mohawked Omar Samhan. He’s a beast of a man, checking in at 6’11” and 265 pounds, which means that only one player on Rick Barnes’ bench truly matches up with him. The problem with using Dexter Pittman to slow down Samhan is that he’s a liability in the kind of up-and-down game we’re likely to see today. It is likely that Samhan will face a steady rotation of players, if freshmen Alexis Wangmene and Clint Chapman have found their way out of Coach’s doghouse.

Forward Ian O’Leary reminds me a lot of Connor Atchley in that he’s a white forward who has surprising range. Although he’s about four inches shorter than Connor, O’Leary can still play both inside and out. He’s only averaging roughly eight points per game so far, but with the problems Texas typically has at guarding the three-point line, O’Leary could threaten to score more.

Tron Smith is an electric guard off of the bench who is averaging over 21 minutes per game for the Gaels despite never starting a contest. He can absolutely jump out of the gym and is a solid scoring threat as well, averaging nine points per game so far this year.

What to look for

Don’t get frustrated – The Gaels are an excellent defensive team, and the Longhorns have struggled recently at putting the ball in the basket. If scoring is as difficult as to can be expected today, Texas cannot get frustrated and let it change their game plan.

Battle on the glass – These are quality big men for the Gaels, and the Longhorns have let bigger teams push them around on the boards. Texas cannot afford to let a team that is this good clean up on the offensive glass and earn extra possessions.

The guard situation – A.J. Abrams is expected back from injury, but how effective will he be? D.J. Augustin has picked up a pair of fouls early in the first half against both TCU and Michigan State, crippling the offense with his time on the bench. If both can play solid games today, it opens up Justin Mason as a solid sixth man, and it instantly increases the potency of the Texas offense.

If you’re in Austin and even considering going to this game, please make it out to the Drum. Saint Mary’s is an excellent basketball team, but the average fan will see their name on the schedule and think it is just another creampuff. Texas can’t afford to have a half-empty, quiet arena in this ballgame. SMC does not usually play in arenas this big, and a rocking crowd of 14- to 16-thousand people would certainly shake them.

For those Longhorns out on the West Coast, please note that Fox Sports Net Plus will be airing the game in the Bay Area, while fans across the country with ESPN Full Court can also check this one out.

The undefeated teams marched on Thursday night, as Memphis crushed overmatched Siena, 102-58 and Vandy ran away from Rice, 76-58. While Memphis doesn’t have any real threats until the end of the month, the Commodores start SEC play next Wednesday. They open with South Carolina, who will likely be without gunner Brandis Raley-Ross, and then head to Lexington to face a struggling Kentucky squad. That means the next threat to Vandy’s impressive streak will most likely come on January 17th when they head northeast to face in-state rival Tennessee.

Pac-10 play got underway out west last night, with three games on the slate. Arizona State needed a late comeback, but ultimately knocked off Oregon, 62-54. The Arizona Wildcats seem to be hitting their groove after a rough start, and continued their winning ways with a 76-63 victory over Oregon State at home. UCLA started their title defense on the road, topping Stanford, 76-67.

Is DePaul finally starting to put it together? The Blue Demons stumbled through a very difficult non-conf schedule (SOS of 27 according to Ken Pomeroy), blowing halftime leads in four of their seven losses. The worst of those came against Vanderbilt, who eliminated DePaul’s 18-point second-half advantage before winning in overtime. Last night, it seemed like Villanova was going to repeat the late-game comeback, as they trimmed an 11-point deficit down to only four points less than two minutes later. But the Blue Demons stepped up on defense, the Wildcats melted down, and Coach Jerry Wainwright watched his squad seal a third-straight victory. Can the Blue Demons right the ship and make some noise in the middle of an abnormally weak Big East?

When I was a kid, the A-10 was routinely on Big Monday and John Calipari had UMass an established power. Since then, the conference has…dropped off the map, to put it nicely. But this season, it seems that the Atlantic 10 could be in the hunt for multiple NCAA bids. Xavier is one of the top teams in the league, and they have played a challenging slate so far. Their 20th-ranked schedule and 11-3 mark is impressive, but last night’s 108-70 demolition of Virginia was absolutely ridiculous. The Cavaliers shared the ACC regular-season crown with UNC last season, and had a 10-2 mark before last night’s embarrassment. The X-Men already have a win over #11/12 Indiana on the resumé and fell just short of an upset of #8/9 Tennessee during the holidays. Watch out for the upstart Muskies the rest of the way.

Friday night means a lack of quality hoops, but those with a true addiction can check out Fairfield at Loyola (Maryland) on ESPNU at 6 PM CST.

It’s been a long, long day at work, so I’m going to cut right to the national TV listings and then get to wrapping up last night’s game against TCU. Fast Break should be back at full force tomorrow morning, along with another Horns in the League update.

5 PM CST – Virginia Tech at Richmond, CSTV
6 PM CST – West Virginia at Notre Dame, ESPN2
7 PM CST – Virginia at Xavier, CSTV
7 PM CST – Ohio State at Illinois, ESPN
8 PM CST – Villanova at DePaul, ESPN2
9:30 PM CST – UCLA at Stanford, FSN

The Longhorns hit the court again this afternoon, hoping a game against TCU can help them bounce back from consecutive losses to tough, physical Big 10 opponents. The big news of the day is the regular-season debut of freshman stud Gary Johnson, who should help the Longhorns with that weak inside game. Johnson’s return also relegates guard Justin Mason to the bench, which will help to ease the burden on the overworked combo of A.J. Abrams and D.J. Augustin.

While the losses to Michigan State and Wisconsin were not blowouts, one can’t help but think back to the Elite Eight season just two years ago. That Texas team started the year with nine straight wins before suffering back-to-back blowouts to Duke and Tennessee. That team finished the year at 30-7 — the best record in school history — and it took overtime to knock them out of the NCAA tournament just shy of the Final Four. One can only hope this season’s story arc will continue with its similar path.

By the numbers

The Horned Frogs are a sight for sore eyes on the Texas schedule at this point. TCU is an average 8-4 so far this year, and has amassed the mark against the 333rd toughest schedule in the country. Or if you prefer to look at it the other way, they did it against the 9th easiest schedule to date.

TCU’s losses have come against some familiar opponents, as they lost three straight after Thanksgiving to the likes of Tech, Oklahoma, and SMU. After beating up on some more patsies from the Southwestern Technical Association of Seminary Colleges, the Horned Frogs blew a big halftime lead on Saturday against the Rice Owls, ultimately losing by five.

Texas Christian is an up-tempo team, with an average of 71 possessions per game. While the Longhorns’ tempo numbers are muddled by slower games against UTSA, UCLA, Michigan State, and Wisconsin, it is undebatable that Texas plays better when pushing the issue and getting out in transition. Unless the Horned Frogs try to adjust their own style to slow down the Longhorns, this one could be ugly.

Offensively, TCU is a slightly above average squad, averaging just over a point per possession. While that’s no match for Texas — who sports the most effective offense in the land — the Horned Frogs’ troubles are further complicated by their struggling defense. Their numbers look good at first blush, but when adjusted to reflect that pitifully easy schedule, their DefEf plummets to 222nd in the country. If the Longhorns don’t score at will against these guys, something is horribly wrong.

Players to watch

Junior guard Henry Salter is the go-to guy for the Horned Frogs, averaging 14.9 points in only 26.1 minutes per game. He takes good care of the ball, and is a deadly shooter from behind the arc. Salter is 30-of-61 from long range so far this season, so if the Horned Frogs are going to have any chance of an upset, they’ll need him to continue the three-point bombing.

Big man Kevin Langford is the brother of former Kansas Jayhawk Keith Langford, but isn’t quite as good. This Langford knows how to get to the line, as he holds one of the highest free-throw rates in the nation. Unfortunately, he’s only 70% from the line once he gets there, although that still makes him one of the best Horned Frogs from the charity stripe. As a team, TCU is only 63% from the line.

Brent Hackett is the other starting guard for Coach Neil Dougherty, and he is not shy about launching the three-ball. While he’s not nearly as accurate as Salter, Hackett has 93 attempts from behind the arc and has connected on 34% of them. Although Mason will be coming off the bench, his lockdown defense will be needed to keep Salter and Hackett under control.

Coming off the bench is guard Jason Ebie. The 6-foot, 1-inch sophomore has quick hands and is adept at forcing steals that jumpstart the TCU transition game. If Ebie is in the game, Horn fans have to hope that Augustin is always at the point. The thought of Abrams or Mason having to run the show against this thief is pretty scary.

What to look for

Crashing the glass – TCU is a horrible rebounding team, and the addition of Gary Johnson to the lineup should only make things worse for the visitors. After struggling on the glass against Michigan State and throughout the second half of the Wisconsin game, this one should offer the Texas bigs a good chance to pad those stats.

The sixth man – How will Justin Mason respond to his new role as the first man off the bench? His offensive game has struggled lately, so one can only hope that this shake-up gives the kid the spark he needs to get back on track.

The Gary Johnson effect – In addition to helping out on the boards and in the paint, the addition of Johnson also should free up other Longhorn players on the court. I’m particularly interested to see how often Gary’s presence inside opens up Connor and Damion for those mid-range jumpers they can easily knock down.

The magic number – Although Texas really shouldn’t have a problem in this one, it is interesting to note that the Horned Frogs have scored at least 75 points in each of their eight wins this year. Unless TCU can shoot it over the Texas defense, they will likely be held below the magic 75 mark.