When a team has lost five of its last seven games, any win is a big win. When a team has lost five of seven and then wins by forty points, that’s flat-out monumental. While Texas’ 91-51 win did come against the league’s cellar dwellers, this afternoon’s performance was so different from what fans have seen from the Longhorns the last three weeks that it can’t help but to inspire some hope.

Naysayers will latch on to Nebraska’s record and paint this as nothing but an anomaly from a Texas team that is on life support. But what is lost amidst the 1-9 conference record and the absolute mudholing that took place at the Frank Erwin Center is the fact that this Nebraska team is very, very stingy on defense.

The Cornhuskers led the Big 12 in field goal percentage coming into this game, while their defensive efficiency of 0.936 points per possession was 66th in the nation. By our rough math, Texas posted an efficiency mark of more than 1.2 points per possession against that typically-stout Husker defense. An offensive explosion like that could mean that maybe — just maybe — after nearly four months of tinkering with the lineup, Rick Barnes has finally found something that works.

What looked good

The story of the game was the promotion of J’Covan Brown to the starting lineup, and the difference was quickly apparent. With a slashing guard in the lineup who actually possesses the ability to finish at the rim, the Longhorns were able to make the Husker defense react and leave other men open. This resulted in an excessive number of open looks, and Texas shot more than 61% from the field in the first half, including 7-of-11 from behind the arc.

As Barnes continued toying with new lineup combinations, Dexter Pittman and Dogus Balbay saw their playing time decrease. Shockingly enough, the Longhorn offense looked even better for it. Texas’ half-court sets suddenly featured excellent spacing, while having Jordan Hamilton and Gary Johnson on the court for longer stretches meant that defenses had to defend tall, quality shooters even further from the paint.

Hamilton’s play was the most impressive, when you consider where he’s come from. Sure, Avery Bradley lit up the scoreboard with an insane 6-of-6 start from behind the arc. But it was Hamilton who had clearly made adjustments to his game, as he tried very hard to avoid the mistakes that had hampered his play in previous weeks. Jordan was passing up the types of contested shots he willingly threw up against the likes of Oklahoma and Kansas, instead opting to work the ball inside. Lo and behold, when the Texas post players drew defensive help, Hamilton was left with open looks — and he often made them count.

Jordan’s final line was a staggering 16 points, five rebounds, three assists, two blocks, and a steal. After going 3-of-21 in his last two games with just one assist to four turnovers, Hamilton’s performance against Nebraska was the definition of a 180. He certainly still needs to work on his defense and was still getting an earful from Coach Barnes in the second half, but if that is the kind of night Hamilton can have on a regular basis, it will be tough to beat the Longhorns in the future.

At the point, Brown continued to show his own growth. While he still favors the flashy pass to the safe one — sometimes to his own detriment — Brown now seems to recognize where the ball needs to go and isn’t always in shoot-first mode. His ridiculous alley-oop to Bradley late in the first half will likely be on every set of Texas highlights the rest of the year, but he made an equally impressive no-look feed into the post in the second half that left Nebraska frozen. Brown’s defense was much better tonight, and he posted a 2-to-1 assist-to-TO ratio in his 30 minutes on the court.

The play of the experienced frontcourt might have been overshadowed by the fantastic performances from the freshman trio, but it was definitely worth noting. Johnson and Damion James quietly posted identical 13-point, 9-rebound lines, but perhaps more importantly combined to shoot 8-of-10 from the line. For Texas to be successful, James and Johnson have to play well both in the midrange and in the paint, which means that they must make it count when they are fouled inside. It’s been well-documented how Damion’s free-throw woes have cost Texas in the past, but the importance of him converting from the stripe cannot be overstated.

What needed work

While the win was dominating and the offense impressive, there were still some things that were disappointing for the Longhorns. Perhaps most troubling was another weak performance from Pittman. The big man played just 16 minutes this afternoon, and his offensive woes against the constant double-teams continued. Defensively, Dexter still played very, very well, stifling the Nebraska bigs and logging an authoritative block. But considering the Texas offense looked much more fluid without him taking up space inside, it may be time to think about the role Big Dex serves in the Texas gameplan. Perhaps the Longhorns are best served by utilizing Pittman in short stretches, where he serves to ramp up the physicality and defensively own the paint.

In addition, Jai Lucas did not show much in his twenty minutes on the court. It should be noted that Jai didn’t do anything particularly poorly, and in fact made quite a few hustle plays that are worth mentioning. His scramble for a loose ball led to the Brown-Bradley alley oop, and he pulled down a pair of boards amidst much taller traffic.

Unfortunately, Jai gives up so much height that it’s nearly impossible for him to get off a shot, which makes him as much of an offensive liability as Balbay and Justin Mason. The difference is that those two players bring a defensive intensity to the court which earns them solid minutes, while Lucas’ vertical shortcomings make him a liability on defense, too. It’s not that Lucas is really doing anything wrong when he’s on the floor, but there’s no question that there are other players who can provide more if given some of Jai’s minutes.

Looking ahead

Seeing Texas play a free and open style of basketball was exciting and certainly came as a breath of fresh air after the last few weeks. But looking ahead to the next opponent, this up-tempo style might be a tad worrisome. The Missouri Tigers live for high-speed basketball where they can force mistakes and score easy buckets, so if Texas elects to continue this style of play, they will have to be very, very careful to maintain ball control.

Meanwhile, the picture in the muddled Big 12 became a little clearer on Saturday afternoon. At the beginning of the day, there were just two games separating second place from eighth place. Thanks to losses by Texas Tech and Oklahoma, the group vying for those first-round byes became a little bit smaller. Now, K-State and A&M are tied for second at 7-3, while Baylor, Missouri, and Texas are just a game behind. While a win on Wednesday night will not be easy, knocking off the Tigers would be a huge boost as Texas works towards one of the top four seeds in the conference tournament.

After losing five of their last seven games, the Longhorns are faced with what is certainly a must-win. With four road games left in the final seven games, Texas must win every home game on the schedule to ensure they have a shot to earn of the league’s four first-round byes in the conference tournament. Fortunately for the Horns, this afternoon’s game is one that they certainly should win, against a team that is young, shorthanded, and much less talented.

Doc Sadler’s Cornhuskers have been dealing with injuries to their top players all season long. Before the year even began, Nebraska lost Christopher Niemann, a 6’11” sophomore who would have been the team’s starting center. With the loss of the team’s big man, explosive guard Toney McCray decided to try to play through an elbow injury when doctors suggested he would need surgery. After just three games, McCray realized he couldn’t play through the pain and packed it in for the year. With two of the team’s presumed starters out of the mix, Sadler has had to rely on a bunch of freshmen and JuCo transfers to get through the season.

Junior guard Lance Jeter is one of those transfers, a stocky point guard built in the mold of Byron Eaton. He played football at Cincinatti before transferring to Lincoln, and it shows in the way he can barrel through defenders. Jeter isn’t a very fast guard and he tends to dribble the air out of the ball, but without him on the floor, the Nebraska offense often looks lost. The Longhorns should easily be able to keep Jeter in front of them on defense, but should keep an eye on him beyond the arc, where he’s hitting 39% of his looks.

When Jeter isn’t manning the point, the duties typically fall to Sek Henry. Unfortunately, Henry is a defensive specialist and not a quality floor general. Pressure on Henry beyond the perimeter will often stifle the Husker offense before it can even get going. On the other side of the ball, though, the Longhorn guards are going to be frustrated by Sek all afternoon long.

Ryan Anderson is arguably an even better defender than Henry, logging nearly two steals per game. On a team with a slow pace of play, that stat speaks volumes. For the last three years, Anderson has had to play out of position thanks to a lack of post depth on the Nebraska roster. This year, the Huskers have more bodies down low, so Anderson is able to work more from the wing and attack off the dribble. Thanks to his previous experience playing down low, Anderson is able to put it in the hoop in a variety of ways, and is the team’s leading scorer.

Just behind Anderson in the scoring ranks is Jorge Brian Diaz, a redshirt freshman from Puerto Rico who has really developed nicely over the course of the year. He still makes some boneheaded mistakes and misses some point blank looks, but he seems to be adjusting to the physical post play in the Big 12. In addition to banging around down low, Diaz also has a pretty good turnaround jumper that can certainly frustrate his defender.

Also eating up minutes in the frontcourt is German-born Christian Standhardinger. Like Dogus Balbay, Standhardinger played on a foreign team with professionals, and was forced to sit out the first half of the year as a result. Since joining the roster for conference play, Standhardinger has played at a high level of intensity. He’s a scrappy player who is always hustling, and is reminiscent of OU’s Eduardo Najera in both playing style and hair style.

The third big man in the mix for Doc Sadler is freshman Brandon Ubel. At 6’10”, the Huskers are expecting big things out of the Overland Park native, but so far he has yet to impress. Ubel misses a lot of easy looks in the paint and gets pushed around pretty easily by opposing bigs. With some experience and muscle, he’s going to make an impact in future seasons, but for now he’s mostly quiet in his 16 minutes per game.

With Ubel spending more time on the bench, Quincy Hankins-Cole has recently seen more PT as a frontcourt reserve. He’s another junior-college transfer, so he gives Sadler more experience and more polished play than the freshmen sometimes do. Hankins-Cole isn’t a flashy player or a superstar-in-waiting, but he provides quality minutes down low and will earn a few points and rebounds every game.

Brandon Richardson is the team’s third-leading scorer, and has made quite a jump from his freshman year to his sophomore one. Richardson is a favorite of Coach Sadler thanks to his hard-nosed play and hustle, but he’s also a pretty good shooter and is nearly automatic from the line. He’s not going to score a ton of points, but where he’ll be noticed this afternoon is on the defensive end, as he will likely make life miserable for the Texas guards.

The biggest impact off the bench often comes from guard Eshaunte Jones, nicknamed “The Bear.” He’s hitting more than 44% of his looks behind the arc, where he’s taken 79 attempts on the year. If Nebraska manages to play their style of basketball this afternoon, Jones could be the difference an upset win or another road loss.

Keys to the game

If the Longhorns are going to win this one easily, they must dictate the speed of the game. The Cornhuskers are one of the 50 slowest teams in the country, and they try to win basketball games by limiting possessions and keeping it close with suffocating defense. If Texas can increase the number of possessions, it will magnify the difference in skill between these two offenses, and the Horns should cruise to a victory. If Nebraska manages to slow things down and keep the score in the 50- or 60-point range, it could be another close one for Texas.

As Mark Rosner reported last night, J’Covan Brown will be in the starting lineup. At the end of the Kansas game, fans saw Brown attack the rim and force the issue. They also saw him make a few turnovers down the stretch that helped scuttle a late comeback try. The Longhorns must have J’Covan play smart basketball against a very well-coached defensive team. If he is making mistakes that give Nebraska extra possessions, it plays right into their game plan.

Finally, it’s important that Dexter Pittman breaks out. This isn’t necessarily a key to the game, as Texas can still probably beat Nebraska without a big game from Big Pitt. But it’s clear that he has lost some confidence on the offensive end, and he will certainly be needed down the stretch in conference play. If Pittman can have a quality game against the Huskers, perhaps it will give him a much-needed boost for the final weeks of the season.

The rosters for the McDonald’s All-American game were released this afternoon, and once again a future Longhorn snagged the prestigious honor. 2010 commit Tristan Thompson was named to the West squad, along with his Findlay Prep teammate Cory Joseph. Thompson and Joseph are closely following the footsteps of Texas freshman Avery Bradley, who also attended Findlay, was a McDonald’s All-American, and won the All-American Jam Session.

If Texas lands Joseph — who is also considering Villanova, UNLV, UConn, and Minnesota — it will be the first time since 2006 that the Longhorns have secured commitments from two All-Americans in the same class. That year, Texas brought both D.J. Augustin and Kevin Durant to the Forty Acres.

Duncanville’s Perry Jones, a Baylor commit, will represent the East, along with point guard Josh Selby, who is still considering Kansas. When all is said and done, the Jayhawks could actually land two McD’s All-Americans, as forward Doron Lamb still has KU in the mix.

The game will be televised nationally on ESPN, and is set to tip at 8 P.M. ET on March 31st.

Just one month ago, fans of Texas and Kansas were eagerly looking forward to tonight’s match-up. Their teams were undefeated and ranked in the top two slots nationally. The winner of the sole match-up between the two schools would likely have the inside track to a Big 12 title and a 1-seed in the NCAA tournament. Everything seemed to be aligning for an epic showdown.

Things certainly haven’t gone according to plan. First, Kansas stumbled with a road loss against a horribly depleted Tennessee team, propelling the Longhorns to their first-ever No. 1 ranking in school history. Texas was only able to hold on to that spot for one week before hitting a horrendous skid where they lost four out of six games.

After all those speedbumps, February 8th is finally here. But the day that was once circled on so many calendars is now just another Monday in conference play. The game has lost most of its luster, with Texas sliding down the polls and the bracket projections. The Jayhawks hold a commanding 2.5-game lead in the conference standings, and will likely cruise to yet another Big 12 title.

But for Texas, this game is huge. It’s not big because of seeding or even important for the conference standings. The Longhorns desperately need a win tonight to restore some confidence. It’s been crystal clear on the faces of the Texas players for the last few weeks — this team is looking for answers, and they are getting desperate that they have been unable to find them. What better way to re-instill some swagger than a gut-check win over the nation’s top team?

By the numbers

Unfortunately for the Longhorns, that will not be an easy task. The Jayhawks come into the game with the 2nd-most efficient offense and 4th-most efficient defense in the country. Kansas is just one of two teams that has efficiency rankings in the top ten on both sides of the ball, with the other being Syracuse. That all-around dominance gives the Jayhawks a differential of +0.361 points per possession. That may seem like a small number, but when you multiply it out by 60 or 70 possessions per game, you quickly realize just how good Bill Self‘s team has been.

The main reason KU is so efficient on offense is that they are loaded with talent from top to bottom. They can score in a variety of ways, and from anywhere on the floor. If you take away their inside game, they kill you from long range. Sell out to stop the perimeter attack, and you’re decimated by the frontcourt. The Jayhawks are hitting 41% of their threes on the year, and nearly 50% from the field. It’s certainly a matter of picking your poison when trying to defend Kansas.

When Texas has the ball, they are going to have to deal with a defense that simply does not allow teams to score inside. For the Longhorns, that can mean all sorts of trouble. It’s no secret that Texas has been absolutely stymied when opponents force them to settle for long-range jumpers, so Rick Barnes will have to find a way for his team to attack the stingy interior defense. Unfortunately, the ‘Hawks are 12th in the nation when it comes to blocks, typically because big man Cole Aldrich is often waiting as a secondary defender to swat away any ill-conceived shots.

Meet the Jayhawks

Aldrich is not just a phenomenal shot blocker. He also is a beast on the boards, and is the perfect compliment down low for Kansas’ excellent outside shooting. Self often has Cole setting screens in the high post or on the perimeter, and his height makes it very easy for him to catch a pass on the pick-and-roll before flushing it home. The only real knock on Aldrich’s offensive game is that he has a bizarre shooting motion that makes it far too easy to defend him on pick-and-pop plays.

As we’ve already mentioned, Aldrich gets a ton of blocks when he rotates over on help defense. That leaves the Jayhawks susceptible to dribble penetration by guards who then dump it off to open players on the blocks. Last year in Lawrence, Texas rode this strategy to an early lead. If the Longhorns can actually capitalize on the easy one- and two-foot looks they have been missing in the last few weeks, that type of attack should keep them in the game tonight.

The other big-time star joining Aldrich in the starting five is All-American senior Sherron Collins. He’s an incredibly quick guard with really long range, so teams have to decide whether they prefer to give up the blow-by when they crowd him, or give him looks beyond the arc when they sag to prevent the drive. He’s the team’s leading scorer with more than 15 points per game, but he also is a good distributor, logging more than four assists each night. Quite a few of those assists come when he drives the lane and kicks it out past the collapsing D, resulting in a wide-open three from one of Kansas’ many long-range gunners.

Collins is also very strong for a guy his size, so he’s able to finish through contact at the rim. Texas really can’t afford to have their frontcourt in foul trouble tonight, so if they do have to burn some fouls when Collins is driving, they have to make sure he doesn’t finish for an and-one.

Brady Morningstar has once again cracked the starting lineup after missing the first month of the season due to a DUI arrest in October. He’s a lockdown defender that will give the Longhorn guards a headache all night. As if his defense wasn’t enough, Morningstar is a capable ballhandler that can allow Collins to work himself open off the ball, and he’s also a heck of a three-point shooter. He’s making nearly 45% of his attempts from long range, and will surely make some daggers against the Longhorns tonight.

Joining Collins and Morningstar in the backcourt is freshman phenom Xavier Henry. At 6’6″, Henry is anything but just a guard, and he will make plays all over the court tonight. He’s left-handed, which always seems to make players harder to defend, and he can shoot from anywhere. Give him space, and he’ll calmly knock down a three. Cut off his driving lane, and he’ll pull up to kiss it off the glass. Give him an uninterrupted path to the basket, and he’ll throw down a dunk that will show up on Sportscenter’s Top Ten after the game.

In addition, Henry’s tall frame allows him to get many more rebounds than your typical guard. And against a Texas team that often runs three-guard looks and sometimes uses Gary Johnson in the power forward role, Henry is likely going to have a good night on the glass. He’s averaging four boards a game from the swingman role, and there’s a very good chance he’ll exceed that tonight.

The only forward in the starting lineup for KU is Marcus Morris, one half of the twin duo from Philadelphia. Like brother Markieff Morris, Marcus added about twenty pounds in the offseason and his inside game has improved as a result. He’s finishing more baskets inside and is pulling down 6.3 boards per game, second only to Aldrich. He’s always had three-point range — although it’s been overshadowed on a team with shooters like Collins and Morningstar — but Marcus has also developed his midrange game this year. Now he has a nice baseline jumper to compliment his skill set, and it’s typically good out to fourteen feet.

Brother Markieff is coming off the bench for about fifteen minutes per game, but isn’t quite as polished as Marcus. He still has a tendency to pick up dumb, frustration fouls that limit his minutes, and his offensive skill set isn’t as refined as his brother’s. Markieff is averaging six points and five boards per game, so he should still make an impact in his time on the court tonight.

Guard Tyshawn Taylor has been relegated to the bench since Morningstar’s return to the starting lineup, and at one point he was apparently so frustrated that he voiced a desire to transfer on his Facebook. The post was immediately removed and Self was testy with reporters who brought it up, but questions still linger about the chemistry in the locker room between the guards.

When Taylor is on the floor, he’s a very quick guard who can speed past defenders off the dribble. The key is to give him enough space that he’s forced to beat you with a jump shot. Like Collins, Taylor is a combo guard who earns his fair share of assists (3.3 in 22 minutes per game), but is not as good of a jump shooter. He’s still serviceable in the midrange and behind the arc, but if the Longhorns can keep Taylor in front of them and put a little bit of pressure on him while shooting, it will certainly help their chances tonight.

Tyrel Reed is the only other Jayhawk who plays significant minutes, and he’s another guard that is deadly from long range. He’s making more than 44% of his three-point attempts this year, so Texas must always be aware of his location when he’s on the court.

Keys to the game

While the Kansas half-court offense is highly efficient and can beat you in a variety of ways, the Jayhawks also earn a lot of points in transition. They don’t force a ton of turnovers — Pomeroy has them ranked just 157th in that category — but they do push the tempo off of rebounds and made buckets. Texas must limit fast break points, and has to set up their defense quickly enough to limit the secondary break points as well.

In addition, the Longhorns have to break through the interior D. The Jayhawks are nearly impenetrable inside, and Texas is not the most reliable outside shooting team. If the Horns can attack like the rim like they were in the second half of the OU game, perhaps they can create foul trouble for Aldrich and the Morris twins. And of course, we all know that consistent inside play will open up the midrange and outside games, as well.

Finally, the most simple of our keys to the game is that Texas must execute. During this tough three-week stretch, the Longhorns have been plagued by simple errors, be it missed shots from point-blank range, stupid turnovers, or poor shot selection and possessions. I’ve purposely left free-throw shooting off this list, because it’s perfectly clear that this will not get better any time soon.

Obviously, if the Longhorns shoot 37% from the line again, as they did on Saturday, they have absolutely no chance to win tonight. But if they hover around their season average of 61% and actually do the other things correctly, they should be within striking distance during the final minutes of the game. And for a team that has struggled as much as Texas has lately, that’s pretty much all you can ask for.

While Kansas is a very scary team that plays well on both sides of the ball, they are certainly beatable. They were taken to overtime in road games against Kansas State and Colorado, and even let Nebraska — the worst team in the league — hang around with them at Allen Fieldhouse. The Frank Erwin Center is rarely a home-court advantage, but when Kansas comes to town, it always is. The Longhorns haven’t played very well as of late, but they have the talent needed to win this game and perhaps enough desperation to play like they cannot lose.

The Longhorns will be hitting the floor in new uniforms and new sneakers from Nike for tonight’s game with Kansas. The new unis are “dramatically lighter” according to a Nike PR rep, while they feature “unique call-outs to the Longhorn logo, campus landmarks and the school motto.” It also appears that wearing the jersey leads to Zoolander-esque facial expressions.