The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Baylor
Men's Basketball dials long distance in 79-60 win over Baylor
01.09.2005 | Men's Basketball
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Daniel Gibson scored 18 points and No. 15 Texas used a sharp performance from 3-point range to open Big 12 play with a 79-60 victory over Baylor on Sunday.
Texas hit 11 3-pointers -- Gibson and Kenton Paulino combined for nine -- and LaMarcus Aldridge added 16 points and 11 rebounds for the Longhorns (12-2).
Tim Bush scored 20 points to lead Baylor (7-4, 0-1).
Texas is 14-0 against Baylor under coach Rick Barnes and has won the last four in the series by at least 18 points.
Baylor is still rebuilding from the NCAA violations and player transfers left by former coach Dave Bliss. The Bears have just six scholarship players.
While Texas could have been expected to use its deeper bench to wear down the Bears, the Longhorns were also playing shorthanded and the Bears managed to keep it close until midway through the second half.
Texas senior reserve forward Jason Klotz, who averages 11.3 points, served a one-game suspension for throwing a punch in last week's game against Memphis, and guard Sydmill Harris missed his third straight game with a groin injury.
While Texas shot 52 percent and hit eight 3-pointers in building a 45-37 halftime lead, Baylor did everything it could to keep up, hitting four 3-pointers. Bush, a transfer from LSU, had 12 points, including Baylor's last seven of the half.
Texas' perimeter shooting over Baylor's zone defense cooled off early in the second half, but the Longhorns started getting more points inside and in transition.
Klotz's absence opened up more playing time for Aldridge, a freshman who got his first double-double. He had five straight points when he converted a three-point play on a dunk after a steal and followed it with a layup that opened a 63-49 lead with 11:35 to play.
Texas committed 10 of its 18 turnovers in the second half and Baylor cut the lead back to nine before Paulino found his 3-point range again. Paulino hit consecutive 3-pointers to put Texas up 73-58 and finished with 17 points.
Postgame Quotes
Texas Head Coach, Rick Barnes
ON LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE: I am amazed that as a freshman, LaMarcus has such a commitment to getting better. He puts so much time in. He had to become stronger and more physical. He has a great presence inside tonight.
ON THE GAME: Baylor has some nice players on their team. We knew what style they would play. They try to shorten the game and take time off the clock. We had 18 turnovers and that is disappointing on our side. That is an area we need to clean up and improve.
ON BRAD BUCKMAN: Brad is so close to being able to take his whole situation to a new level. It will be mental. He is a guy we expect to be a difference-maker every night. I want to see him start taking charges and have him take it to the rim on offense. Too many times he looks to pass instead of looking to score. We want him to be a guy that dominates day in and day out.
Daniel Gibson, Freshman Guard
ON TEXAS' DEFENSE: Everyone played hard and we got off to a nice start. I know that when I'm in trouble, everyone is there to help me out. Coach Barnes always says that good teams start with their defense. The Big 12 is a lot more physical than we're used to, and we had to adjust to that. Overall, we played hard.
ON BAYLOR'S DIFFERENCE WITHOUT AARON BRUCE: There was a big difference in the game after Aaron Bruce fouled out. He seems to be the guy they look for to score. When he went out, we could tell they were looking for him.
LaMarcus Aldridge, Freshman Forward
ON IMPROVING HIS GAME: I feel like I did a better job posting deep and rebounding. I need to work on my right hand follow-up dunk. I made the left hand dunk, but I can work on that at practice.
ON TONIGHT'S GAME: Coach Barnes always stresses the importance of every game. Each game counts. We did a good job passing and did well on both the inside and out. Daniel's and Kenton's points made it easier on everyone else.
Kenton Paulino, Junior Guard
ON THE GAME: Knowing they were playing a zone defense made me worry less about my play inside. I just looked for open shots and took them. Fast breaks helped out with our shooting, but Baylor did a good job of slowing us down, and we were a little impatient at first. We had a few uncharacteristic turnovers, but we fought back.
ON LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE: He is improving every day. He played really big for us today. With Jason (Klotz) out, he really stepped up.
Baylor head coach, Scott Drew
ON TEXAS' REBOUNDING: Texas rebounded well, so it was hard for us to get points in transition. Their job on the boards was the difference in the game. Coach Barnes' teams are known for their rebounding and they showed that tonight. They did a good job working the ball instead of forcing up quick shots like other teams will do.
ON PLAYING ZONE: There are 15 reasons we played zone. We hoped it would help with fatigue, fouls, height and strength. We were hoping for some long rebounds to convert into points.
ON LAMARCUS ALDRIDGE: He is big inside and kept a lot of balls alive. He finished well. He is a guy I am glad we only have to play against twice a year.
Tim Bush, Sophomore Forward
ON TEXAS: I give Texas credit, they did a great job. They are really long and physical and I had to ask my teammates to help me out a lot. Their depth is amazing and even without (Jason) Klotz they were great.
Aaron Bruce, Freshman Guard
ON FOULING OUT: It was really hard to draw back even after I was in foul trouble. I was disappointed to foul out and felt like I let my team down. That's something I am going to need to work on and learn.
