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Longhorn fans and players were all smiles when the final horn sounded in Reliant Stadium on Friday night, as Texas pulled away late for a 20-point win over the Pac-10’s Stanford Cardinal. A quick glance at the stats showed what many pundits would’ve expected, as D.J. Augustin led the way with 23 points. But were it not for key contributions from a handful of Longhorn reserves, a game that had been a nailbiter with 10 minutes left could’ve had a very different ending.
In Little Rock last Friday, it appeared that Dexter Pittman might be finally coming into his own. And sure, Big Dex’s 10/11 line could be chalked up to facing an extraordinarily undersized Austin Peay sqaud. But tonight he played excellent second-half defense against Brook Lopez, shutting down the future lottery pick that had single-handedly drawn the Cardinal within a point.
While Connor Atchley was often getting worked all the way down to the blocks by the offensive-minded Lopez, Pittman forced the 7-footer to catch the ball further and further away from the lane. With his go-to hook shot suddenly out of the repertoire, Lopez threw up ill-advised jumpers with hands in his face. Frustrated, he didn’t make a basket for the last 13-plus minutes.
Not only was Pittman’s defense key in shutting down the biggest threat on the Stanford roster, it also came at a dire time for the foul-plagued Longhorns. In the midst of the Cardinal comeback, Damion James and Atchley both picked up their third fouls in a span of only eight seconds. Coach Rick Barnes was forced to play Gary Johnson and Pittman with 9:25 still on the clock and the Longhorns only up five. But with the reserves on the floor, Texas didn’t allow Stanford back into the game — they actually extended the lead to 13 points before James returned almost three-and-a-half minutes later.
In the first twenty minutes, it was Clint Chapman who was coming up big off the bench for Texas. The freshman from Canby, Oregon chipped in just four points and two rebounds in seven minutes of play. But his scant statistics don’t represent how incredibly well-timed his hustle was, as Chapman seemed to pop up out of nowhere for the key board or the quick tip.
Against an incredibly athletic Memphis team who can kill on the glass, Texas will need clutch performances like these from their post reserves. We’ll look more at those match-ups throughout the weekend, but the solid bench play is a great sign as the tournament reaches its midpoint.
Penny Hardaway showed up to support his alma mater
With all of the top four seeds on the court in the South region, the stars were out in force at Reliant Stadium. Anfernee “Penny” Hardaway was on hand (sans Lil Penny), while former Longhorns Vince Young and Roger Clemens were in attendance. Pat Riley was in the house for a second straight weekend, having also scouted the Memphis and Texas players in Little Rock. And spotted in a T.J. Ford jersey was Scott Porter, better known as wheelchair-bound QB Jason Street on TV’s Friday Night Lights.
The seating set-up, however, was an absolute disaster. Walking down to our place in Section 104, it was an incredibly surreal feeling to be practically level with the court, yet still have 46 rows of fans and media tables in front of us. I checked out the “club level” during the second half of the doubleheader — the level where Memphis and Texas had their student seats — and was treated to a game that seemed to be played somewhere outside of Harris County. Of course, when considering how ugly Michigan State’s performance was, perhaps it was safer to stay as far away from the carnage as possible.
Texas fans were predictably quiet, even finding it difficult to stand and make noise as Stanford closed the gap in the second half. But when the burnt-orange faithful did decide to make noise, the ridiculous setup killed any kind of energy the building could’ve had. As someone who attended that incredible double-overtime regional final between Michigan State and Kentucky back in 2005, I’ve seen how electric a neutral court can be in the NCAA tournament. The move to this mid-field set-up in football arenas is a horrible, horrible decision, and it’s going to make future regionals and Final Fours feel distant and antiseptic.
We’ll be back tomorrow with some more notes and a quick look at the day’s Elite Eight match-ups. In the meantime, bask in the post-win glory and snap up your tickets for Sunday’s tilt with Memphis. No matter how craptacular the seating is, there’s no reason that arena shouldn’t be bathed in burnt orange with a trip to the Final Four on the line.
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