Texas, hoping to peak at right time, meets skidding LSU
Texas and LSU square off Tuesday in a late-season Southeastern Conference clash in Austin, Texas between two teams pointing in different directions as the regular season turns into the home stretch.
The Longhorns (16-9, 7-5 SEC) head home after a dominating 85-68 win at Missouri on Saturday that featured a game-high 25 points from Dailyn Swain. Matas Vokietaitis scored 19 points and grabbed 10 rebounds and Jordan Pope hit for 15 points in the victory.
Texas led by only a bucket at the break but owned the second half on both ends of the floor, going 61.5% from the floor and making 16 of its 17 free throws while holding Missouri to 38.1% field goal shooting.
The win was the fourth in a row for Texas, the first time since the 2020-21 season that it has recorded four straight regular-season conference victories. The Longhorns have won five of their past six games, with only one against a team ranked in the AP Top 25 at the time.
Two-thirds of the way into the conference season, Texas is considered to be safely in the NCAA Tournament field. Only two of the Longhorns' final six regular-season games are against teams ranked in the Top 25.
"We're looking, obviously, to finish strong, and be at our very best here in February," Texas coach Sean Miller said. "Every night in this league is a tough test, and we're looking to build on some recent good play. These next two or three weeks is the moment of truth for everybody, not just Texas. Everybody in college basketball wants to play well from this point moving forward."
The Tigers (14-11, 2-10) travel to Austin carrying a three-game losing streak, most recently a 73-63 loss at Tennessee on Saturday. Marquel Sutton led the Tigers with 15 points and nine rebounds, while Jalen Reece had 15 points and four assists, Pablo Tamba scored 13 points and Mike Nwoko hit for 10.
The Tigers played without starting point guard Dedan Thomas Jr., who has officially been ruled out for the season, and their top scorer in Southeastern Conference play, Max Mackinnon, who missed the loss with a knee injury.
"We learned a lot about our group, and that's how we need to compete and fight for 40 minutes every night out as we move forward," LSU coach Matt McMahon said. "I was really proud of our players for their fight, the resolve that we showed."
LSU has dropped six of its past seven outings, with five of those by double digits; its lone win since Jan. 20 was in overtime at conference cellar-dweller South Carolina.