The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
10-4, 2-0
West Virginia
8-6, 0-2
Men's Basketball tops West Virginia, 61-54, in Big 12 home opener
01.06.2019 | Men's Basketball
Matt Coleman III posts a team-high 17 points to lead the Longhorns to their first 2-0 start in league play since 2010-11.
AUSTIN, Texas — Sophomore guard Matt Coleman recorded a team-high 17 points to lead The University of Texas Men's Basketball team to a 61-54 win over West Virginia (8-6, 0-2 Big 12) on Saturday night at the Frank Erwin Center. Texas (10-4, 2-0 Big 12) improved to 2-0 in league play for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
Coleman, who hit 6-of-10 from the floor and 3-of-4 from the free throw line, added four rebounds and three assists without a turnover in 35 minutes. Senior forward Dylan Osetkowski recorded 14 points and a team-high seven rebounds, while junior guard Elijah Mitrou-Long registered 10 points. Freshman forward Jaxson Hayes set a career high with four blocked shots.
The opening seven minutes featured six lead changes, before a driving layup from sophomore guard Jase Febres gave the Longhorns a two-point lead (11-9) at the 12:46 mark. Coleman hit a three-pointer with 9:00 remaining to give Texas a 17-11 cushion, but West Virginia responded with a 5-0 run to trim the deficit to 17-16 at the 7:52 mark.
Freshman guard Courtney Ramey scored five consecutive points and assisted on a Hayes jumper as UT built a 26-21 cushion with 4:30 left. An Osetkowski layup with 38 seconds remaining gave Texas a six-point lead (32-26) at the break.
Trailing 49-41 after an Osetkowski three-pointer with 8:47 remaining, WVU used a 9-2 run to pull within a single point (51-50) following a pair of free throws by James Bolden at the 4:44 mark. Senior guard Kerwin Roach II provided a highlight-reel tip-in on the ensuing possession to extend UT's lead to 53-50 with 4:15 left.
Coleman hit a step-back three-pointer at the 1:03 mark to give Texas a five-point lead (59-54) and sealed the game by knocking down a pair of free throws with 33 seconds remaining.
Texas Basketball Postgame Notes
Texas 61, West Virginia 54
January 5, 2019
Frank Erwin Center (Austin, Texas)
Attendance: 9,195
Team Notes
- Texas improved to 18-5 all-time in Big 12 Conference home openers. UT is 3-1 in league home openers under coach Shaka Smart.
- The Longhorns are 2-0 in Big 12 play for the first time since the 2010-11 season.
- UT improved to 10-8 all-time in the series against West Virginia. The Longhorns are 5-2 vs. WVU in games played in Austin, including a 3-1 mark under Smart.
- Texas improved to 235-43 at the Frank Erwin Center in the last 17 seasons (dating to the start of the 2002-03 season). UT is 44-17 at home during the Shaka Smart era (7-3 this season).
- Texas converted 50.0-percent (21-42) from the floor while limiting WVU to 40.0-percent (20-50) FG shooting. UT improved to 4-0 this year when hitting at least 50.0-percent from the field.
- UT ran its school-record consecutive made 3-pointers streak to 10 before missing its second attempt of the game (Roach at 10:41 of first half). The Longhorns hit their last nine threes at K-State and their first 3-pointer vs. WVU.
- Texas tied a team season high in blocked shots (7), also set vs. Purdue (Dec. 9).
- Reached double figures in scoring (team-high 17 points) for the sixth time this year (14 games) and 22nd time in his career (48 games)
- Set his career high in blocked shots (4) in 20 minutes, previous: 3, six times
- Marked the 13th time in the first 14 contests that he has posted at least a pair of blocked shots
- Reached double figures in scoring (10 points) for the fourth time in the last six games and fifth time this year (14 games)
- Reached double figures in scoring (14 points) for the eighth time this year (14 games) and 33rd time in his UT career (48 games)
Up Next
Texas travels to Stillwater, Okla. to face Oklahoma State on Tuesday, Jan. 8. Tip is set for 6 p.m. CT at Gallagher-Iba Arena, and the game will be televised nationally on ESPNU.
