The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
1-0
North Dakota State
0-1
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Dakota State | 18 | 32 | 50 |
| Texas | 38 | 47 | 85 |
No. 10/10 Men's Basketball defeats North Dakota State 85-50 in opener
11.14.2014 | Men's Basketball
Taylor has game-high 18 points and seven rebounds, while Turner and Holmes each post 15 points.
AUSTIN, Texas -- Isaiah Taylor led all scorers with 18 points, while Myles Turner and Jonathan Holmes each added 15 to lead No. 10 Texas past North Dakota State, 85-50, in the 2K Classic Regional Round on Friday night before 11,232 fans at the Frank Erwin Center.
The Longhorns (1-0) won their 13th straight season opener, limiting the Bison to 27.4 percent shooting from the floor (17-of-62) and recording a 51-32 advantage on the glass.
Texas scored the game's first eight points, led by back-to-back threes from Holmes, and increased the advantage to 31-7 with 5:02 left in the first half. UT held North Dakota State (0-1) without a field goal for nearly the first six minutes of the contest.
Turner came off the bench at the 16:05 mark and connected on his first three field goal attempts, all from outside the paint, in just over a two-minute span. His third jumper extended the lead to 14-1 and forced a North Dakota State timeout. In the first 10 minutes of action, Texas shot 64.3 percent while holding the Bison to an 8.3 field goal percentage.
A three-pointer by Lawrence Alexander with one second left in the half trimmed the lead to 20 (38-18) heading into the locker room. The Horns used a 15-4 run to start the second half while building a 53-22 cushion at the 14:17 mark.
Texas increased the margin to as much as 39 (82-43) with 3:34 to play following a Holmes layup. The Longhorns played the final 2:23 with four walk-ons on the court.
UT continues 2K Classic Regional Round action on Sunday, Nov. 16, when it plays host to Alcorn State (0-1). Tip is set for 7 p.m. Central at the Erwin Center, and the game will be televised live nationally by ESPNU-TV.
POSTGAME NOTES
#10/10 Texas 85, North Dakota State 50
2K Classic benefiting Wounded Warrior Project Regional Round
Friday, Nov. 14, 2014
Frank Erwin Center (Austin, Texas)
Attendance: 11,232
• Texas has now won 13 straight season openers. The Horns improved to 15-2 in season openers under Rick Barnes. UT is 90-19 all-time in season openers.
• Texas has now won 13 straight home openers. The Horns improved to 15-2 in home openers under Rick Barnes. UT is 94-15 all-time in season openers.
• North Dakota State was held to 17-of-62 FG shooting (.274), including a 7-of-29 (.241) mark from three-point range. Texas improved to 238-26 in the Barnes era when holding its opponent below 40% FG shooting.
• UT posted a 51-32 (+19) advantage on the glass.
• The Horns converted 18-of-21 (.857) from the free throw line.
• Reached double figures in scoring (15 points) for the 43rd time in his career (96 games)
• Reached double figures in scoring (18 points) for 28th time in his career (36 games)
• Set a career high in three-pointers made (2-of-3)
• Grabbed seven rebounds (one shy of his career high)
• Posted 15 points (6-8 FG, 3-4 FT), six rebounds and two blocks in 20 minutes in his collegiate debut
• Set a career high in assists (four) without a turnover in 17 minutes
NORTH DAKOTA STATE QUOTES
Head Coach David Richman
Opening statement: Obviously we ran into a team that was far superior to us tonight. Let's give them a lot of credit. There's a reason they are number 10 in the country. They are long. They are athletic. They are a year older than they were last year. They are very well-coached and a seasoned team. They made us look like it. We are the opposite. We are an inexperienced group. We have some guys running around out there for the first time at the college level and that showed at times. We have to learn from that and move on.
On Texas height: I'm 6'4, 6'5 myself and you go through that handshake line and I'm looking up to a lot of guys in there. They went really big with [Jonathan] Holmes at the two there for a minute and played that zone. You can't simulate that for us.
Guard Lawrence Alexander
On Texas' height: It's a learning experience for us. We aren't going to see any teams that are that long and that big in the Summit League, but to play against it is a good learning experience.
On quality of Texas against opponents he has faced: If I had to say, I think this would be the best one with their length and their size and depth coming off the bench. We can talk about it all day but playing against them is a whole different story. This is probably the best team that we have played since I've been here at NDSU.
Guard Kory Brown
On offensive struggles: I think we got some good looks, but they were just in and out. If I can think back, some guys had threes that just went in and out that we usually hit. I wouldn't say it was hard to get the shots. Just a lot of them weren't falling.
TEXAS QUOTES
Head Coach Rick Barnes
On team's overall play in the opener: There were some good things. Myles Turner was very nervous before the game, and we were kidding with him about it before we came out to play. He came in and responded well. Jonathan Holmes just did what a senior would do early. They were so packed, but he just took his time. You look at the free throw line (18-of-21), that was impressive, and we took care of the ball for the most part. We played around with a couple of different lineups and did some different things that we wanted to do. We didn't get to do it for long periods of time, but enough to get some things on tape to show them to learn from.
On the balance on the team: We want balance. I'm sure at some point in time we are going to settle into some sort of rotation, but the players are going to determine that. We took some guys out tonight because there are certain things we want certain guys to do. And if they didn't do it, we took them out and said, "Look, these minutes are important and you have to take advantage of them." There really were some good things.
On Myles Turner: The best part of the way he started the game was the way his teammates responded. After he hit the third one and they called timeout and he came to the bench, you could sense the excitement for him from his teammates. He's come in and he's worked. He hasn't done anything besides try to be a part of it. We know he is gifted. Now defensively, he has to get better. He can shoot the ball. Overall, there were some good things.
Junior guard Demarcus Holland
On the first game of the season: It was really fun. It was the most fans we have ever had for an opener since I've been here. I'm excited, and I would like to give thanks to all the fans that were there, [especially] all the students. It felt great, but we know we have to keep going from here.
On DJ Irie: The music kept us pretty amped up, and it kept our fans into the game. I really liked it when I saw the students on the court dancing. I've never seen that before. So, I am pretty sure they had a fun time, and we had a fun time. We are looking forward to playing again on Sunday.
On a lot of different players contributing to the win: I think it is very important. Having fresh legs is always good, especially when you play teams that aren't as deep as we are. We practice hard every day, and we compete hard every day. We know we have guys who can come in and produce like the starters produce.
Freshman forward Myles Turner
On his first collegiate game: My teammates really got me ready for this. They kept me amped all week, and they kept me positive. It felt great coming out there and starting that way. I was able to alleviate some nerves, but there is still a lot to work on. I led the team in turnovers, I need to get on the boards better and block some shots. More than anything, I have a lot to work on going forward.
On making his first few shots: That was huge. That was a huge confidence boost right there. The crowd was into the game at that point, and it gave us a lot of momentum.
On all of the students wearing bucket hats: I had no idea it was going to blow up like that. That was pretty ridiculous. I definitely want to give a shoutout to all our fans that came out to support us, and I welcome them back on Sunday.
Sophomore guard Isaiah Taylor
On the team's high preseason rank: It feels good to be respected. For the home opener, we were pretty amped, especially ending the season like we did last year. We just grinded all summer in practice, on and off the court. We talked to each other as a team and said that we were going to come in and win this first game.
On the atmosphere tonight: I think the atmosphere was great. DJ Irie had the whole gym rocking. I think it was fun.
