The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Colorado State
Men's Basketball tops Colorado State, 56-44, in NCAA First Round
03.22.2024 | Men's Basketball
The Longhorns held the Rams to 29.3-percent field goal shooting on Thursday night.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Sophomore guard Chendall Weaver provided a spark off the bench with 11 points to lead Texas (21-12) to a 56-44 victory over Colorado State (25-11) in a NCAA Tournament First Round game on Thursday night at Spectrum Center. With the win, the Longhorns advance to the NCAA Second Round to face No. 6/6 Tennessee on Saturday, March 23 at approximately 7 p.m. CT (8 p.m. ET) on CBS.
Weaver converted 5-of-7 field goals and added four rebounds (two offensive) and one steal in 29 minutes. Graduate guard Max Abmas posted 12 points and two rebounds in 36 minutes, while graduate forward Dylan Disu tallied 12 points, five rebounds, two blocked shots and one steal in 24 minutes.
The Texas defense was the story of the evening. The Longhorns held Colorado State to just 29.3-percent (17-58) field goal shooting, including a 6-of-24 (.250) mark from three-point range. UT allowed just eight assists while forcing 19 turnovers and posted a 17-0 advantage in points off turnovers.
The 44 points marked the second-fewest allowed by Texas in a NCAA Tournament contest. Thursday's defensive effort was only topped when the Longhorns posted a 42-40 victory over Wyoming in the 1947 NCAA Tournament quarterfinals (when the NCAA tourney featured an eight-team field).
Colorado State grabbed an 8-2 advantage after a Joel Scott put-back at the 15:16 mark. The Longhorns responded with a 14-0 run over the next eight-plus minutes to build a 16-8 cushion following a Dillon Mitchell dunk with 7:17 remaining.
The Rams trimmed the gap to 16-11 after a Joe Palmer three-pointer at the 6:50 mark, before Texas closed the half on an 11-0 run, capped by an Abmas three-pointer with two seconds left, to take a 27-11 advantage into the break. The Longhorns held Colorado State to 18.5-percent (5-27) field goal shooting, including a 1-of-9 (.111) mark from three-point range, in the opening 20 minutes.
Texas built a 35-19 cushion following a Weaver jumper at the 14:16 mark. Colorado State scored eight straight points to trim the deficit to 35-27 after a Nique Clifford three-pointer with 12:44 remaining, before the Longhorns answered with back-to-back baskets to increase their advantage to 39-27 following a Weaver jumper at the 10:34 mark.
The Rams scored five straight points to cut the gap to 39-32 after a Josiah Strong three-pointer with 8:29 left. Colorado State then pulled within six points (44-38) following a Joel Scott layup at the 4:11 mark, but that was as close as the Rams would get the rest of the night. Texas used back-to-back three-point plays from Disu and Weaver to take a 50-38 lead with 3:08 remaining, and the margin did not dip into single digits in the final three minutes.
Texas Basketball Postgame Notes
NCAA Tournament First Round
Texas 56, Colorado State 44
March 21, 2024
Spectrum Center (Charlotte, N.C.)
Attendance: 18,037
Team Notes
- Texas won its NCAA First Round game for the third-consecutive season. This marks the first time the Longhorns have accomplished the feat since UT won four-straight NCAA First-Round games from 2006-09.
- UT improved to 40-40 all-time in the NCAA Tournament (in 38 appearances).
- Rodney Terry improved to 4-1 in NCAA Tournament contests as head coach of the Longhorns (4-2 in his collegiate career as a head coach).
- Texas improved to 5-2 in NCAA Tournament games over the last three years.
- The Longhorns held Colorado State to just 44 points on 29.3-percent (17-58) field goal shooting, including a 6-of-24 (.250) mark from three-point range, on the night.
- The 44 points allowed by Texas marked the second-fewest allowed in 80 all-time NCAA Tournament contests. The Longhorns posted a 42-40 victory over Wyoming in the 1947 NCAA Tournament (eight-team tourney that year) quarterfinals in Kansas City.
- Texas held Colorado State to opponent team season lows in field goal percentage (.293) and free throw attempts (6) and tied a season low in free throws made (4).
- Texas allowed just eight assists while forcing 19 turnovers and posted a 17-0 advantage in points off turnovers.
- The Longhorns tallied a 20-6 advantage in bench scoring and a 30-18 margin in points in the paint.
- This marked just the third meeting between Texas and Colorado State. UT improved to a perfect 3-0 against the Rams in the all-time series. It marked the first matchup between the two schools since the 1952-53 season.
- The Longhorns held Colorado State to just 11 points on 18.5-percent (5-27) FG shooting, including a 1-of-9 (.111) mark from three-point range while building a 27-11 halftime advantage.
- UT forced 11 Colorado State turnovers and allowed just two assists in the opening 20 minutes. The Longhorns posted an 11-0 margin in points off turnovers in the first half.
- Texas had runs of 14-0 (from 15:16 to 7:17) and 11-0 (over the final 6:49) in the first half.
- Reached double figures in scoring (12 points) for the 30th time this year (33 games) and 142nd time in his career (156 games)
- Moved into sole possession of the No. 3 spot on the NCAA Division I men's career three-point field goals made chart (510), passing Fletcher Magee of Wofford (509).
- Set the UT record for most career wins (110), previous: A.J. Abrams (109, 2006-09) and Connor Atchley (109, 2006-09)
- Registered a team-best plus-minus total of plus-19 in 19 minutes of action
- Tied his season high in steals (3)
- Reached double figures in scoring (12 points) for the 17th time this year (24 games) and 63rd time in his career (135 games)
- Recorded a team-high seven rebounds in 16 minutes of action
- Had primary defensive responsibility on Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens and limited Stevens to 10 points (4-16 FG, 2-7 threes) and four assists against four turnovers in 38 minutes. Stevens entered the contest averaging a team-best 16.2 ppg and 6.9 apg while hitting 48.2-percent from the floor and 44.8-percent from three-point range.
- Reached double figures in scoring (11 points) for the eighth time this year (33 games) and 23rd time in his career (65 games)
- Registered a plus-minus total of plus-16 in 29 minutes of action
