College Basketball Report Week 10

The No. 2 Baylor Bears and Horned Frogs keep their winning streaks alive during the second week of conference play

Coty Davis
Jan 14, 2020, 7:30 am
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TEXAS LONGHORNS (10-4), (1-2)

Last week (1-1): L - Oklahoma 72-62, W - 64-50

This week: Wednesday vs. Oklahoma State, Saturday vs. Kansas

After dropping their second consecutive conference game, the Texas Longhorns picked up their first win with a 64-50 victory over Kansas State, Saturday night, inside the Frank C. Erwin Center in Austin.

In the win, Texas had one of their best defensive performances of the season, as the Longhorns held the Wildcats to a season-low 50 points, which includes 23 points on 30.0% field goal shooting (9-30) in the second half.

Following the win, UT will hit the road to take on the Oklahoma State Cowboys on Wednesday, before hosting a Big 12 match against the Kansas Jayhawks on Saturday.

TEXAS A&M AGGIES (8-6), (2-1)

Last week (2-0): W - Ole Miss 57-47, W- Vanderbilt 69-50

This week: Tuesday vs. LSU, Saturday South Carolina

Unlike their in-state rivals in Austin, the Texas Aggies had a perfect week after dropping their conference opener against Arkansas. Texas A&M pulled off a victory against Ole Miss (57-47) and Vanderbilt (69-50) to improve on 2-1 in conference play.

In both games, Josh Nebo came up huge for the Aggies, but none more so than in the win against Ole Miss. The senior forward from Houston scored 17 points while shooting 5-for-5 from the floor, and grabbing nine rebounds and collected four blocks in the win. Following the win, The Aggies will host LSU and South Carolina inside the Reed Arena in College Station.

Houston Cougars (12-4), (2-1)

Last week (1-1): W - Temple 78-74, L- Tulsa 63-61

This week: Wednesday vs. SMU, Saturday vs. Wichita State

The Houston Cougars extended their winning streak to six before dropping a two-point loss to the Tulsa Golden Hurricane on Saturday. In the loss, the Cougars missed seven consecutive shots in the last five minutes despite holding a 60-54 lead midway through the second half.

In both games, freshman guard Caleb Mills came up huge averaging 22.5 points on 51.5% shooting from the field, 48.2% from 3-point range. After the tough loss, the Cougars will return to the Fertitta Center for a Texas showdown against SMU before taking on Wichita State on Saturday.

RICE OWLS (9-8), (1-3)

Last week (1-1): L - Florida Atlantic 81-76, W - FIU 92-78

This week: Thursday vs. Louisiana Tech, Saturday Southern Miss

After losing their fourth straight game in a loss to the Florida Atlantic Owls on Thursday, the Rice Owls bounced back with a convincing 14-point victory over the FIU Panthers on Saturday.

In the win, Rice shot a blazing 52.9% from the field, 40.0% from 3-point land. Five players led the Owls in scoring with Ako Adams leading the way with 19 points (7-13 FG, 5-10 3PT), while Josh Parrish added in 18. Up next, Rice will look to make it two straight against Louisiana Tech on Thursday.

BAYLOR BEARS (13-1), (3-0)

Last week (2-0): W - Texas Tech 57-52, W - Kansas 67-55

This week: Wednesday vs. Iowa State, Saturday Oklahoma State

While improving their national rank to No. 2, the Baylor Bears extended their conference play winning streak to three with wins against Texas Tech on Tuesday and Kansas on Saturday.

In the win against Texas Tech, only one player scored in double digits (Davion Mitchell 14), as the Bears struggled offensively on the road. However, in their 12-point victory over the Jayhawks, Baylor had four players to score in double figures with Jarred Butler leading the way with 22 points shooting 50% from the field, 42.8% from behind the arc.

Following their overall 12th straight victory, the Bears will put their winning streak on the line against Iowa State on Wednesday.

TCU HORNED FROGS (12-3), (3-0)

Last week (2-0): W - Kansas State 59-57, W - Oklahoma State 52-40

This week: Tuesday vs West Virginia, Saturday vs Oklahoma

Currently riding a four-game winning streak, the TCU Horned Frogs are off to a great start to their Big 12 Conference play with wins against Kansas State (59-57) and Oklahoma State (52-40) this past week.

In both games, Desmond Bane proved to be too much for his opponents to handle, averaging 18 points, 6.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game. Following the win, TCU will continue their conference play against West Virginia on Tuesday.

TEXAS TECH RED RAIDERS (10-5), (1-2)

Last week: (0-2) L - Baylor 57-52, West Virginia 54-66

This week: Tuesday vs. Kansas State, Saturday vs. Iowa State

After falling to the Baylor Bears on their home floor, the Texas Tech Red Raiders dropped their second consecutive game in a 66-54 loss to No. 17 West Virginia.

With their star guard Jahmi'us Ramsey scoring a season-low eight points, Davide Moretti led Texas Tech with 16 points after connecting on four 3-point field goals. Outside Moretti, the Red Raiders struggled as a whole shooting just 30.9 percent from the field. Up next, Tech will look to end their two-game losing skid against Kansas State on Tuesday.

SMU MUSTANGS (12-3), (2-1)

Last week: (1-1) W - UCF 81-74, L - ECU 71-68

This week: Wednesday vs. Houston, Saturday Temple

Following an 81-74 victory over UCF, the SMU Mustangs lost a heartbreaking 71-68 defeat at the hands of East Carolina on Saturday. Tristen Newton scored a 3-point basket in the final second of the game to lead ECU to the upset win over the Mustangs.

Isiaha Mike tallied in 21 points, as SMU's four-game winning streak came to end. Following the loss, the Mustang will look to get back to their winning ways on Wednesday, in an American Athletic showdown against the Houston Cougars in Houston.

LSU TIGERS (11-4), (3-0)

Last week (2-0): W - Arkansas 79-77, W - Mississippi State 60-59

This week: Tuesday vs Texas A&M, Saturday Ole Miss

Nowhere near the same level of excitement as their colleagues on the gridiron who just took home the National Championship title, the LSU Tigers are currently riding a four-game winning streak after picking up wins against Arkansas and Mississippi State.

In the win against the Mississippi State, Skylar Mays scored a go-ahead buzzer beater in the final seconds of the game to lead the Tigers to a nail-biting one-point victory. Following the win, the Tigers will travel to College Station to take on the Texas A&M Aggies, before moving on to Oxford Mississippi to take on Ole Miss.

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A WEEKLY REVIEW OF CRENNEL'S COACHING

Now my job: Texans feast on Lions

Photo by Getty Images.

Thanksgiving is full of tradition. There's the typical family gathering, large meal, and of course, football. Sometimes, new traditions are added and old ones are retired. I think the Texans did both in their impressive 41-25 win over the Lions in Detroit. Old traditions were carried on (Lions losing on Thanksgiving), some were put to rest (Texans not being able to get turnovers), and new ones were started (multiple passing touchdowns by Deshaun Watson in six straight games).

The fact that this defense got three turnovers in the game was unbelievable! They got all three in the first quarter within the span of eight plays. JJ Watt's pick-six was insane. He went for a batted ball, ended up catching it, and ran it in. They forced Jonathan Williams to fumble on the Lions' very next play from scrimmage and recovered it. On the Lions' next possession, the Texans recovered yet another fumble after the challenge was reversed. Great call by the coaching staff to challenge and win. The defense looked good. Tyrell Adams stood out because he was in on those two fumbles, made 17 total tackles with 14 of them being solo tackles. They also brought pressure that seemed to make Matthew Stafford very inaccurate and resulted in four sacks. I give defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver credit for knowing he needs to blitz to get pressure, but the run defense has to improve.

The offense kept the tempo up in this game as well. The spread and hurry-up were used to keep the Lions already staggered defense off balance. Knowing the Lions were without a couple defensive backs, I thought it would be the perfect marriage of their defense and the Texans' offense. A buddy asked before the game about the line (Texans -3.5) and the over/under (52.5). I told him bet the Texans and the over because neither team can play defense and both have good quarterbacks. Offensive coordinator Tim Kelly put together another good game plan and Watson executed it flawlessly. One route combo I saw later on in the game I particularly enjoyed. Two receivers were tight to the left side. Cooks ran a hook/curl and settled in the middle of the zone while Fuller ran a vertical route. Duke Johnson ran a swing route to that same side. It left Cooks wide open as the attention went to Johnson in the flat, Fuller deep, and the action to the other play side. Route combos are important because it gives the quarterback different reads as he goes through his progressions and lets him pick apart the defense based on what he sees. Combine that with Watson's play and the way Kelly has changed his play calling now that he's liberated from he who shall not be named, we're seeing a beautiful thing.

As good as things were, there's still room for improvement. The defense gives up way too many easy yards, both run and pass. They can't get pressure bringing only four and will often give up big plays if the blitz is picked up. Plus the run defense is still an issue as evidenced by the Lions' first possession of the second half. The Lions ran the ball 10 plays straight for a total of 58 yards on that drive. Utterly ridiculous! Watson was good (17/25 318 yards and four touchdowns), but he missed two more touchdowns with passes slightly off, and continues to hold onto the ball too long at times. The difference between these two issues I've presented here is the fact that Watson has so played well, his "issues" are minor and very correctable, while the defense is terrible and there's no easy fix in sight. But let Romeo Crennel and Anthony Weaver tell it, they're getting the most out of these guys and they're playing disciplined.

The thought that this team may actually creep into the playoff picture may take shape better after next week if they can beat the Colts. I doubt it, but it is getting interesting. Let's see what else happens around them because they need help getting there.

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