Texas men’s basketball faces critical test Saturday at Iowa State

By Colby Gordon

AUSTIN, Texas — It’s do-or-die for Texas Saturday at Iowa State, and Longhorns coach Shaka Smart freely admitted it during his weekly meeting with the media Thursday.

“This is a swing game for us,” said Smart, who was a bit more tense during the press conference following home losses to Texas Tech and Baylor than his usual easy-going self. “It’s definitely a huge game. It’s important for us to put everything we have into it, and it’s something we talk about how it impacts us long-term.”

Smart also dropped the bomb that[s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)] Texas may have to go the rest of the season without junior forward Jericho Sims, the team’s leading rebounder who averages just under 10 points a game, due to a back injury that he has apparently battled for months.

“We’re still figuring it out,” Smart said. “He’s definitely dealing with some discomfort and pain. Any time there’s injuries, you want guys to be able to process them and deal with them. You want guys to have all the information before you put any information out.”

It would be a brutal blow for the Longhorns (14-10 overall, 4-7 against Big 12 teams), who already are dealing with injuries to forward Kai Jones and guard Jase Febres. Smart noted Jones could possibly play against the Cyclones, but that Febres is nowhere near returning.

All of this comes at the worst possible time for Texas — and Smart’s job security — as with seven games left before the Big 12 Tournament, the Longhorns, who are nowhere to be found on ESPN’s bracketology and come in 70th in the KenPom ranking, likely have to finish 5-2 just to get on the NCAA Tournament bubble.

“We talk about it year-’round, about what we want to do and need to do to accomplish our goals,” Smart said. “You get to this point in the season and it’s got to be about guys stepping forward and coming together around the guys that are healthy and playing your best basketball with that group. It might be playing differently and changing things depending on who’s out there.”

With Texas now potentially being so thin in the frontcourt, even more pressure falls on its veteran guards.

Smart noted Matt Coleman III and Andrew Jones have played well most of the season, but the Longhorns will need others to step up around them — specifically Courtney Ramey.

“He’s a huge key,” Smart said. “I think we all know what he’s capable of, and he’s been up and down at times this year. He’s a guy we believe in and believe can be a really good player here. But with the injuries we’ve had, he’s a guy we need to step forward.”

And with the Longhorns now being even more guard-dominant, expect a full-court press to be more of the game plan going forward.

“It’s something we’ve done more of late, and the guys that are healthy can be good at it,” Smart said. “As long as we do it with an aggressive mindset, it’s something we can be good at.”

Iowa State (10-14, 3-8) will be without star guard and likely NBA lottery pick Tyrese Haliburton, who is out for the season with a wrist injury, but in a must-win game for Texas, Smart said the Longhorns are concerned less about their opponent than other factors.

“The focus on ourselves is how we can best get in the paint and play effectively,” he said. “This is a big opportunity and it’s really, really important coming off our last few games to put a few things together.”
[/s2If] [s2If !current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)] [habeabk] [/s2If]