The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Baylor
No. 3 Men's Basketball stays unbeaten in Big 12, tops Baylor, 69-60
02.12.2011 | Men's Basketball
Feb. 12, 2011
Box Score | | Quotes | Notes | Box Score 
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) - Texas keeps winning. Is a return to No. 1 next?
Freshman Tristan Thompson had 17 points and 13 rebounds and No. 3 Texas held off a furious rally by LaceDarius Dunn and Baylor to remain undefeated in the Big 12 with a 69-60 victory Saturday.
The Longhorns have won 10 in a row. And given top-ranked Ohio State's loss to Wisconsin and the fact that Texas handed No. 2 Kansas its only loss of the season, the Longhorns could find themselves sitting at No. 1 come Monday.
They hope not.
"We don't want No. 1," sophomore forward Jordan Hamilton said.
That's understandable considering what happened last season: Texas started 17-0 and reached No. 1 for the first time in school history before a quick losing skid left them unranked in a matter of weeks.
Thompson wasn't around then, but doesn't want anything to bring back reminders of what happened.
"I don't want to be No. 1," he said. "Enjoy No. 3 and keep climbing that mountain."
Baylor pushed Texas harder than anyone else in the Big 12 so far.
Dunn scored 22 points in the second half as the Bears cut an 18-point deficit to three in the final 2 minutes. Texas led 65-60 when Dunn's 3-pointer rattled in and out with about 25 seconds left. Texas' Gary Johnson made two free throws to put the game away.
Texas (22-3, 10-0) could have settled the game much earlier, but went 22 of 37 from the free throw line.
"I liked the fight," Baylor coach Scott Drew. "You play a game like this and walk away a better team."
Texas was in complete control after a blistering first half, then looked helpless to stop Dunn in the second as he seemed to score at will.
"He heated up for them and kept them in the game," Thompson said.
Baylor (16-8, 6-5) has more size than Texas has seen this season with three starters at least 6-foot-10, and the Bears tried to use that bulk to match Texas' physical style of play. The game featured several early dunks as Thompson and Baylor's Perry Jones III, two of the top freshmen in the Big 12, were locked in a battle under the basket. Jones had 13 points and six rebounds.
Texas looked unstoppable in the first half. The Bears got in early foul trouble and the Longhorns shot 61 percent over the first 15 minutes, slicing up Baylor's zone defense by shooting over it or driving through it with ease.
Hamilton had 12 points in the first half and his baseline dunk for a three-point play put Texas ahead 34-15. Texas led 38-22 at halftime and opened the second with Thompson's dunk on an alley-oop pass from Dogus Balbay.
But Thompson was whistled for a technical foul for hanging on the rim. Dunn made one of two free throws to start a 7-0 Baylor run - including another dunk by Jones.
The Bears had clearly found their rhythm and cut Texas' lead to 44-36 when Dunn hit a tough shot over Balbay and converted a three-point play.
"I think we came out with an edge," Dunn said.
Dunn was just getting started on a dizzying run of layups and jumpers over the next 10 minutes. He scored 16 of Baylor's 17 points during one stretch to get the Bears within 61-57 with 3:42 to play.
"He scored every kind of way," Hamilton said. "(But) we never get rattled, even when a team is coming back."
Texas' biggest problem was that Baylor was willing to foul to send the Longhorns to the line. Time after time, the Longhorns missed one or both shots to give away points and keep the Baylor rally going.
It wasn't until the Bears cut the lead to 63-60 on Jones' three-point play that Thompson, who was 5 of 10 at that point, made two free throws. Dunn missed his chance to keep Baylor alive and Texas finished the game making four straight free throws by Johnson and Cory Joseph in the final seconds.
Thompson was 7 of 14 from the line, but grabbed several offensive rebounds late in the second half that helped Texas keep the ball when time became a critical factor.
"I thought Tristan was a monster today," Drew said.
"Just be hungry for the ball," Thompson said. "Every possession counts."
TEAM
- The last time Texas trailed in a game was the first half of the game at Oklahoma State (25-23 - 4:04). Dogus Balbay hit two free throws to tie the game at 25-25. Texas has gone the last 224:04 without trailing.
- Texas has not trailed at home in any of its five conference games
- Texas has posted a +16.8 average scoring margin in the first half of its last five games
- This marks the third time in program history (second in the Rick Barnes era) that the Longhorns have started the year with at least 22 wins in their first 25 contests. The last time Texas accomplished the feat was the 2005-06 season when the Longhorns started 22-3
- This marks the first time that Texas has won 10 straight games in league play in the same season since the 1962-63 season when the Longhorns started 13-0 and finished 13-1 in Southwest Conference play
- Texas has tied a school record for consecutive Big 12 Conference wins. UT won 10 straight over a two-year span from Feb. 13, 2001 to Jan. 19, 2002
- Texas owned a 20-2 advantage in points off turnovers
- This marks the fifth time this season and second straight game that Texas has had five players (Jordan Hamilton, Gary Johnson, J'Covan Brown, Tristan Thompson, Cory Joseph) reach double figures.
- Texas has held six of its Big 12 opponents to less than 30% from three-point range
- Texas is holding Big 12 opponents to 54.6 points per game
- Texas owned a rebounding edge for the 22nd time in 25 games on the season
- Texas owns a +17.2 edge in scoring margin through the first 10 conference games
- Texas improved to 85-27 all-time against Baylor in Austin, including a 12-1 mark in the Rick Barnes era.
- Texas improved to 25-4 against Baylor in the Rick Barnes era
- Texas improved to 86-15 (.851) in Big 12 home games in the Rick Barnes era and 180-23 (.887) overall at home during his tenure
- Texas' 38-22 lead at halftime marked the seventh time in 10 Big 12 games that Texas has led by 10 or more points at the half
J'Covan Brown
- Reached double digits in scoring (11 points) for the 10th time this season and the 25th time in his career (58 games)
Jordan Hamilton
- Reached double digits in scoring (17 points) for the 24th time this season and the 42nd time in his career (59 games)
Gary Johnson
- Reached double digits in scoring (13 points) for the 17th time this season and 53rd time in his career (113 games)
- Now tallies 1,056 career points, placing him 28th in Texas history
Cory Joseph
- Reached double digits in scoring (11 points) for the 15th time this season
Tristan Thompson
- Registered his fourth double-double (17 points, 13 rebounds, three blocks) on the season
- Reached double digits in scoring for the 20th time this season
- Reached double digits in rebounding for the fifth time this year
- Recorded at least three blocks for the ninth time this season
TEXAS QUOTES
Head Coach Rick Barnes
On facing Baylor: I think we have to give Baylor a lot of credit. They flipped the second half in their favor. They bogged us down and opened up our lanes a little bit. The forced us to adjust. Luckily, our guys were able to pull themselves together and do so. That being said, we are proud of this win. We won against a really good basketball game.
On Texas' performance overall: We broke away from what we wanted to do out on the court, especially in the second half. But overall, I'd say we played the game we thought we would play. We got inside when we wanted, we performed on the free throw line as well as we wanted, and we got our win overall. I think our guys gave a great effort tonight and it worked out well.
On the upcoming competition: I think we have a lot to work on. We are proud of the way we have been playing, but we can improve. As simple as it is, we have to stay focused on our game. Today's game was proof that the competition is going to get tougher, but a team can really lose themselves worrying about the competition. We are going to focus on our improvement and that will be enough.
Sophomore Guard/Forward Jordan Hamilton
On Baylor making it a close game in the second half: [Baylor] did a great job of coming back. I think LaceDarius Dunn did a great job on executing their offense. We have to take our hats off to them. Those guys are pretty good. This was one of the closest games that we had in the Big 12 and I figure we need some of that, especially towards the end. This is the first time I've beaten Baylor, so it feels good. Those guys are really good. I think their coaches do a great job of getting their post-up guys the ball.
On Baylor's halftime defensive adjustments: They went man-to-man. We were kind of shocked because we thought they were going to stay in zone. Our main focus is just to get the ball inside. I scored a little bit in the second half, but I think Tristan did a great job of getting it down and posting up. There were a couple shots that I missed that I should have made, but Baylor is a great team.
Freshman Forward Tristan Thompson
On how they battled against Baylor's comeback: We just stuck to the game plan, coming in and playing physical and matching their intensity. We just executed the game plan and it worked out for us.
On the play of LaceDarius Dunn: Cory did a great job. He made it tough on their guards. People will probably say that LaceDarius Dunn got hot. That is what great players do. You have to give them credit. He heated up for them and kept them in the game. He's a great player.
BAYLOR QUOTES
Head Coach Scott Drew
Opening statement: As we know they could, Texas was dominant. They really got after us and we didn't respond well. Our coaching staff could have done better. We could have used a couple more timeouts. I thought we really competed and played a lot better in the second half and gave ourselves a chance to win down the road. That's what you want to do, give yourself a chance. Credit to Texas for coming up with big plays down the stretch. I thought Tristan (Thompson) was a monster today. His offensive rebounds were huge. I thought he was the difference.
On changing defensively at halftime: We went to a man defense and were able to get some stops. We were able to get some transition points and some easier looks. At the end of the day, players make plays and LaceDarius (Dunn) had a great second half along with everyone else.
Guard LaceDarius Dunn
On the second half: I think we came out with an edge. We came out and shot the ball better, I still took some bad shots in the first half but in the second we took our time and it made it a different ball game.
On their determination: We knew it would take one possession at a time. We knew they were a good team so we had to stop going down and just jacking the ball up. I think in a man, we did a better job guarding.
Forward Perry Jones III
On the difference between the first and second halves: In the first half, we just took bad shots as a team. We didn't have any composure, we weren't executing, we just weren't playing as a team. In the second half, everything started to fall in place. People started getting good shots and good looks and we started defending better.
