SB Nation - Clint Chapman

Another Ugly Win, as 'Horns Improve to 6-0

awiggo — Fri, 04 Dec 2009 05:39:04 -0000

More photos » by MIchael Thomas - AP

Dogus Balbay quicker than anyone on both ends. (AP Photo/Michael Thomas)

The No. 2 Texas Longhorns improved to 6-0 by outlasting USC, 69-50, at the Erwin Center. For the second straight game, the margin of victory does not indicate the closeness of the game. The ‘Horns led just 33-27 at the break, and in the second half, the Trojans twice trimmed the lead to just four points.

Like many of our first half dozen contests, Texas was too deep and too strong down the stretch. The Longhorn defense tightened, eventually holding USC to just 30% from the floor, and Texas cruised in the final quarter of the game. The Trojans scored just three points in the final six minutes.

As PB noted, this one was not pretty. Texas came out ice cold from the floor and from behind the arc. The Longhorns started like 9-of-33 before eventually improving their shooting to a respectable 41% on the game. Texas was 0-for-8 from three before J'Covan Brown and Justin Mason both connected late in the second half. Last, the free throw shooting went the other way. I think Texas was close to 80% early in the game before clanking their way home. The Longhorns finished a horrific, 19-of-34, 56%.

It's late, so bullet points will have to suffice:

Damion James was very good tonight (19 pts, 9 boards, and 7-of-10 FTs) and easily the offensive player of the game. He remains an effective trash man around the rim and fantastic off one or two dribbles.
Dexter Pittman was probably the defensive player of the game with his seven blocked shots. However, as impressive as that stat is, he tried to block at least ten more missing all of them and letting his man pick up easy second chance points around the rim. I would love to see Sexy Dex use a little more discretion when trying to block shots as a help defender. On the other end, with a foot in the paint, he is unstoppable at the college level. Perod.

More after the jump...

Rick Barnes thought Justin Mason played well. I'm not so sure that Varez Ward's injury didn't give Mase a senior campaign that he otherwise would be enjoying from the bench. Don't get me wrong, Justin plays his tail off, does things that don't always show up on the stat sheet, and is a great senior leader. However, I'm still not comfortable with him and Dogus Balbay on the floor at the same time-not enough outside shooting and too many opportunities for defenders' to cheat on Dex and DaMo. It will be interesting to see how Barnes works in Jai Lucas when he becomes eligible in less than two weeks.
Dogus Balbay is a pest, in a good way. I can't imagine how tiring he makes the opposing guards. He is simply faster up and down the court as well as laterally than anyone else I've seen in college basketball this season.
Avery Bradley must get stronger with the ball around the rim. He was 2-for-10 from the floor. A few of those eight misses were jumpers but he had at least four shots blocked on layups or breakaways dunks when he went weak to the rim. The defense was phenomenal though.
J'Covan Brown is never going to be the quickest player on the floor, but like DJ Augustin, his change of pace is something to watch. Brown is always already adept at creating contact in the lane and getting to the line. Thankfully, J'Covan is the one Longhorn at the line that doesn't cause me to look away in horror.
Brown and Balbay's passes are often better than the hands of the Texas bigs. Other times, they are a little out of control.
Jordan Hamilton plays defense like he's already in the NBA. Neither the focus nor the lateral quickness is there right now. Expect Rick to demand more.
Thirteen minutes for Gary Johnson is fine with me.
Our free throw shooting is an abomination.
The 14 man rotation is already a lot smaller. Varez Ward's injury and Jai Lucas's ineligibility put us at 12. Matt Hill and Clint Chapman put us at 10. Shawn Williams is not there yet and really not close, from what I've seen. That's nine for now.

I said in the comments after the Rice game, this game and the next three (Long Beach St, Texas State, UT Pan-Am) are more about us than they are our opponents. The defense was very good tonight. I still don't think we've put it all together more than just in stretches. It will get there and I'm not worried at all. The freshmen are coming along, the chemistry is improving, and James and Pittman are playing like stars.

To be an elite team, though, the free throw shooting must improve, our three-point shooting must improve, our focus must become more consistent, and our ability to execute in the half court, especially when Pittman sits, has to get better.

Box Score

Next Game: Monday, 12/7 HOME vs. Long Beach State 8 pm ESPNU

Longhorns Roll Past Anteaters in Season Opener

awiggo — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 23:26:21 -0000

More photos » by Harry Cabluck - AP

Rick may have his most complete Texas team yet. (AP Photo/Harry Cabluck)

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Game Recap: The #3 Longhorns notched their first victory of the season, 89-42 over UC Irvine at the Drum behind strong performances from seniors Damion James and Dexter Pittman.

Along with James and Pittman, Varez Ward, Justin Mason, and freshman J'Covan Brown completed the starting lineup. Brown started slowly and sloppily at the point guard spot, and Coach Barnes was forced to sit him down after two early turnovers and again after a couple of more. After the game, Rick said this about his freshman point guard, "J'Covan wore us all out before the games. I've never seen a guy as amped up. Ever."

As will be a theme this season, the depth of this team allowed the ‘Horns to quickly find their stride. Dogus Balbay was inserted for Brown and helped the Longhorns turn a 19-18 deficit after the first ten minutes of action into a 42-21 halftime lead.

Balbay played solid on-the-ball defense and helped protect the ball in the halfcourt where James and Pittman could dominate. Both big men finished with 21 points a piece. Most of Dexter's 10-of-11 from the floor came off dunks or lay ins. James had a few buckets of length but most of his scoring came around the basket as well. The smaller Anteaters were simply overmatched in height, strength, and athleticism.

During the back and forth start, I thought Texas struggled to communicate on defense. There was some confusion on how to defend ball screens. Some players were also over running their pursuit on the pass and over committing on shot fakes. The substitution patters of three, four, or even five players at a time help explain the early defensive lapses. However, after that back and forth start, the Longhorn defense played more consistently and more together. Texas contested shots better, didn't allow second chance points or almost anything in the paint, and, for the most part, controlled dribble penetration.

The outcome was: Exciting. Exciting because this was the first game; exciting because I finally got to see the four freshman live and in a college game; and exciting because the potential of this team is clear.

Unlike last year, this year's Longhorns will not have trouble scoring from the perimeter. Jordan Hamilton and Brown can both shoot the ball from deep. They both have good form, which should help produce consistent buckets, and good size, which will allow them to easily shoot over zones.

Unlike last year, foul trouble, even if it's Dex, won't be an issue. The ‘Horns are deeper than any team in the country and can run as many as 14 different players on the court for double digits in minutes every game.

Unlike last year, Barnes does not have to play smaller, three guard lineups. While Texas did start three guards, that was by choice not out of necessity. Hamilton (6-7) and Williams (6-6) will give Texas excellent size from the wing, and I won't be surprised to see James (6-7) play some at the three too when Rick wants to play with an even bigger lineup. Texas has real size at the two guard spots also. Avery Bradley, listed at 6-2, and Brown, listed at 6-1, both played bigger and stronger than their listed heights. The days of playing two sub six foot guards plus Mason at the wing are thankfully over.

The biggest thing I took away from the ‘Horns first game was potential. Right now, they are so much less than the sum of their parts. And right now, they're pretty good. The parts are all there-talent, size, depth, and experience. There is no reason why Barnes shouldn't be able to mold this team into more than the sum of their individually talented parts and national championship favorites by tourney time.

Stats of the Game: 49-30 Texas on the glass. 54-18 Texas points in the paint. If you didn't get a chance to see the game, that is about all you need to know. As expected, Texas was able to dominate the smaller Anteaters in the paint on both ends.

The Offensive MVP was: Damion James. DaMo started his senior campaign in style-21 points (7-of-9 from the floor, 2-of-2 from three, 5-of-6 from the line), 15 boards, two assists, and a steal in just 22 minutes of action. James came back to Texas for a lot of reasons, but the big one was to play himself into a NBA first round selection. So far, so good. He looked confident, in control, and hungry. If he can produce the same smart and solid performances against the Michigan States and North Carolinas of the world, the NBA will be forced to take a second look at DaMo.

The Defensive MVP was: Texas in the second half. I don't have the exact stats but UC Irvine was something like 9-of-18 to start the game. They finished 17-of-62 for just 27% from the floor. Needless to say, the defense was the key to the 47 point victory.

I want to note a few more things, player by player:

Damion James: After the games, DaMo noted that the younger players looked up to him and that he has tried to take them under his wing. He also said that while the freshmen are very talented, that they still have a lot to learn. I can imagine the exact same thing coming out of Rick Barnes' mouth.

During the off season, we've noted that team chemistry is something of a concern and definitely something to watch. While James has not been a loud and vocal leader in his first three seasons, it sounds like he recognizes that now it's his turn. This veteran to freshman leadership, along with the development of a point guard, whoever it ends up being, are the two biggest keys to a Final Four run, in my opinion.

Dexter Pittman: More important than throwing down one-handed slams over guys standing just 6-6, Dex only picked up one foul. The more Pittman can stay on the floor, the better this team can be offensively. I was also impressed with the one post move when he turned over his right shoulder for an easy lay in. In previous seasons, he has almost always turned over his left shoulder to produce the easier right handed jump hook. If he has added the ability to go the other way with his back to the basket, look out.

Avery Bradley: Bradley is going to be so much better than his stats. Texas will be a Dexter and Damion focused team first. Second, it looks like J'Covan and Hamilton won't be afraid to let it fly. Therefore, Bradley would easily be the fifth scoring option among these five and probably still no better than third or fourth with some others on the floor. He will definitely get his-in transition, off dribble drives, and in second chance opportunities-but given the offensive skills of some other ‘Horns, Bradley won't be a 20 point scorer. It doesn't matter though. He is too good. His two late-game mid-range jumpers were things of beauty-in balance, form, and arc. The defense is also already there. Last, from Barnes' comments during the off season, this is a kid who knows he can get better and his ready to work on his weaknesses.

Varez Ward: If Barnes wants his point guard to pass the ball and play lock down defense, then Ward may be the man. Varez has the size, athleticism, and vision to be a true pass-first, shoot second floor general.

J'Covan Brown: J'Covan is raw, talented, and emotional. Unfortunately for him, he was too hyped for this game and it showed during the first half. Fortunately for us, it was his first game in over a year, after sitting out all of last season, and his upside is huge. If Barnes wants his point guard to score and stretch the defense with his perimeter jumper, then Brown is his man. From everything I saw though, J'Covan is more of a shoot-first, pass-second point.

Dogus Balbay: Dogus is third head of the ‘Horns point guard machine (with a fourth, Jai Lucas coming in December). Balbay played really well this afternoon. Six assists to no turnovers in 19 minutes from your point guard is every coach's dream. That said, I am not as big a fan of Dogus as are many of you. His offensive limitations make me hope that Barnes uses Balbay as more of spark off the bench than 25+ minute contributor.

Justin Mason: Mase has started for the better part of his three seasons at Texas and removing him from the starting lineup won't be easy. He still can do the little things-rebound, play solid d, and push the basketball in transition. However, I can't see how he ends up averaging more than 15 minutes per game once the freshmen become more comfortable.

Jordan Hamilton: Does Jordan have a nickname? He needs one. Hamilton looked smooth, long, and ready to score. Jordan may not have the defensive mindset that Barnes would like yet, but you can already see how important he'll be to the ‘Horns success.

Shawn Williams: I guess Shawn won't be redshirting this year. Williams played a productive (6 boards), yet sloppy 13 minutes against UC Irvine. His size will give Texas a much needed third rebounder and his ability shoot the three ball should open up driving lanes on the other end.

Alexis Wangmene: Wingman, I've missed you. With scorers at nearly every position, Lexi is the perfect bruising big man to bring off the bench. He showed strong hands and a willingness to fight for boards in his eight minutes of action. I expect his playing time to directly correlate to Dexter's foul trouble and stamina.

Gary Johnson: Like Dogus, I am not as in love with Gary as most Longhorn hoops' fans but recognize that he can be important role player on this team. GJ is always going to bring the energy. I just wish he was two inches taller and had a higher basketball IQ. Hopefully, Gary realizes that he is going to be the third, fourth, or even fifth scoring option during most of his minutes this season. Rebound, pass the ball from the post, and make your free throws and I'll love ya. I promise.

Matt Hill: Hill is a big body with limited athleticism. Gary and Wingman will likely be the first two off the bench as bigs, so I can't see Matt getting much playing time.

Clint Chapman: Clint wasn't in uniform. I couldn't see him from my seat either. I have no idea. Anyone?

Box Score

NEXT GAME: Home vs. Western Carolina - Wednesday 11/18 8 pm ESPNU

Big 12 Coach of the Summer...your thoughts

big12hoops — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 19:00:34 -0000

Texas coach Rick Barnes will have no problem laying low with most experts picking Kansas to win the Big 12.

View full size photo »

After posting Jeff Goodman's pre-season Coach of the Year...(Jeff Capel)...I'm now wondering what qualifications could even be used to predict how a coach will do during an upcoming season. It just makes zero sense to make such a prediction. How a coach handles adversity with injuries or losses, or how they continue to encourage their team on a winning streak to keep up the momentum, or how they handle drawing up a play to win a game with 2 seconds left; these are all things that are impossible to know beforehand.

So instead, I'm polling to see which coach you think has done the best job of improving their team over the summer. Aspects include recruiting, hiring/firing of assistants, player or personnel discipline, these are a few things that can be gauged in logic...not prediction.

The only rule is that you cannot vote for your favorite team's coach.

Since I went to Baylor, I'll let others make the obvious argument on how Scott Drew has made Baylor the most improved team in the conference this summer.

------------------------------------------------

My pick has to go to Rick Barnes. Not only did he coax Dexter Pittman and Damion James to stay one more year, but he's brought in what could turn out the be the best recruiting class in Texas history.

Yes, better than Terrance Rencher or Luke Axtell's classes under Penders. Better than Durant and Augustine.

First , you have two 5-stars in Jordan Hamilton (who might not even start) and Avery Bradley, who could be Texas' best overall player this year.

Shawn Williams and the recently cleared J'Covan Brown make for nice back-ups to Bradley and Hamilton off the bench.

Throw in Florida transfer Jai Lucas (aka JL4), and you suddenly have a Lucas/Bradley/Hamilton (or Johnson)/James/Pittman starting lineup.

Think about that.

With senior Just Mason, Williams, Brown, Johnson or Hamilton, a healthy Wangmene, an improving Clint Chapman off the bench...along with Balbay, (who might, but probably won't beat out JL4 at point) and now you have a second set that could strongly compete as its own team in the Big 12. Even a major injury, or two, and the Horns will still be a factor in the title chase.

Thoughts?

Poll

Which Big 12 coach has done the best job at improving their team this summer?

Mike Anderson

1 votes

Rick Barnes

8 votes

Jeff Bzdelik

0 votes

Jeff Capel

4 votes

Scott Drew

2 votes

Greg McDermott

1 votes

Travis Ford

0 votes

Pat Knight

1 votes

Bill Self

3 votes

Mark Turgeon

0 votes

Frank Martin

1 votes

Doc Sadler

0 votes

21 votes | Poll has closed

Morning Coffee Kicks the Tires on Julien Lewis

GhostofBigRoy — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 12:00:19 -0000

Finally, positive recruiting news. After two de-commitments on the football side, an extended timetable for Darius White to make a decision, and the continued, um, drama surrounding Lache Seastrunk, the only good recruiting news in the last month and a half has come from the basketball side of recruiting. Early in May, Bellaire's Sheldon McClellan announced that he will officially become a Longhorn in 2011.

Now there is a third member of the 2011 class. It wasn't a particularly well-kept secret over the weekend, with La Marque's Julien Lewis making it clear that he would commit to Texas if offered. After a spectacular performance at the Texas Elite Camp on Thursday and Friday, Lewis received his offer and committed shortly after, publicly announcing his decision on Monday.

So what exactly did Lewis show the Texas coaches ($) at the Elite camp?

I showed them I can come off ball screens really well, I showed them I could defend real well. I showed I can shoot, showed them I have a step back. I showed I can back my man down into the mid range. I did everything. Showed I can always find my teammates; I did a lot of incredible things. They told me I'm strong and all I need to do is hit it a little harder [in the weight room], and work a little more on finishing.

Lewis took off as a player during his sophomore year after transferring to La Marque from Galveston Ball. Despite missing 10 games during the season because of eligibility concerns, Lewis returned to take his game to another level, eventually averaging more than 18 points, 4 rebounds, and 3.7 assists. While Lewis is known as a good shooter and penetrator with the ability to create for himself and teammates and possessor of a high basketball IQ ($), perhaps the most impressive aspect of his developing game is his willingness to defend. Excellent at sinking into his defensive stance, Lewis has the quick hands and feet to guard point guards, shooting guards, and small forwards, using his length to disrupt the offensive games of opposing players and his anticipation to beat his opponent to the spot.

His ability on the defensive end does not outshine his offensive abilities, however. A strong athlete who can get into the paint and finish at the rim, Lewis complements that ability with three-point range. Like most players his age, he could improve his ball-handling abilities, but that aspect of his game is not considered a weakness at this point. The most impressive part of his offensive game is his ability to change speeds, along with a developed spin move. Lewis also has the ability to back down opposing players to get into his mid-range game, a rarity for a young player. The area of his game Lewis needs to improve the most is being more consistently aggressive in taking over games, as he often lets the game come to him or spends his time getting his teammates involved.

Besides being a native Texan, Lewis' commitment illustrates the continually accelerating recruiting momentum the Longhorns have been building ever since receiving TJ Ford's commitment. Lewis explains how he became such an avid following of the Texas basketball program:

I started liking Texas when I was in the 5th or 6th grade watching T.J. Ford and Daniel Gibson play. They had success at Texas and now the NBA. I really, really started watching Texas closely when Kevin Durant and D.J. Augustin came through. Kevin was awesome and is going to be one of the best players in the NBA. D.J. Augustin is one of the best point guards I've ever seen and I think he'll be one of the best in the NBA.

If Rick Barnes and company are lucky, they might someday receive a commitment who says that he picked Texas because he grew up watching Julien Lewis play.

Tragedy strikes Daniel Bejarano. Condolences to the Longhorn commit and his family, as Bejarano's father, Damion Gosa, was shot and killed late Thursday night during an apparent burglary attempt at his Phoenix apartment. Though Bejarano and his father weren't close throughout much of Bejarano's life, the two had become close in recent months, making up for lost time in their relationship.

The 6-5 shooting guard learned of his father's death on Saturday while participating in the NBPA Top 100 Camp. After being informed of the horrible news, Bejarano decided to stay at the camp for one last game. While the Phoenix North star didn't have any monster scoring games at the camp, he said that basketball isn't always about scoring:

To me, the challenge was you have a lot of great players on your team. So how do you get to the championship? After we lost our first game, I tried to step up and be a leader, do the small things. I tried to step up to try to motivate them, bring us together like a family. Everyone there is good, so I did what I had to do - pass the ball, rebound, block shots.

The first game, I took some bad shots. After that, I stopped to think and that's not me. I needed to stop that. I just played my game, tried to knock down 3s, take it to the hole, rebound, whatever I could.

People think scoring 30 points makes you the best, but it's not all about scoring. In scouting, that's not what it's all about.

His comments are certainly indicative of the maturity of his game, but right now basketball pales in comparison to the life events that will force Bejarano to become even more mature off the basketball court. Best wishes and condolences to Daniel and his entire family.

Rivals 5-star Academy a showcase for local talent. Many of the talented prospects in the Austin area made their way to the Palace ($) on Friday. However, a few players from outside the area had big days. Foremost among them was Texas commit Darius Terrell, the best among a deep group of receivers and recipient of the overall camp MVP award after showing off the ball skills that made him so desirable to the Longhorns and the crisp route-running that helps him make up for a lack of elite speed. Terrell's Desoto teammate Adrian White also had an impressive day, though Vista Ridge's Jaylon Finner won the Defensive MVP.

Bowie's DeAndre Perry had an impressive day, winning the Offensive MVP award after showing his ability to catch the ball in traffic and proving himself a difficult match-up on the inside or the outside. Several Stony Point players turned in good performances, highlighted by defensive tackle Jordan Wade, an extremely talented player still learning the game, safety Desmond Martin, younger brother of Baylor's Glasco, and linebacker PL Lindley, who showed the length and footwork that makes him an appealing prospect. Cibolo Steele's Blake Gardner showed that Malcolm Brown and Marquise Anderson are not the only talented 2011 prospects on the team, as the young receiver continued his impressive spring on the camp circuit.

Todd Wright talks Texas hoops. Gerry Hamilton spoke with Longhorn S&C coach Todd Wright ($) about off-season workouts and the upcoming season. The insights include improvement from Clint Chapman and Matt Hill, as well as thoughts on the conditioning of Varez Ward, Shawn Williams, and Dexter Pittman. Wright says that Chapman is improving his strength, a major concern throughout his first two season, as well as making major strides in his game this summer. Matt Hill, who dealt with a variety of foot injuries early in his career, has regained his mobility according to Wright, and may be in position to contend for minutes in a crowded frontcourt.

As for Varez Ward, Wright says that the player he termed as one of the most advanced players physically to ever enter the program now has now improved his outside shot, the most critical aspect of his game to improve. Dexter Pittman is working hard as always, but the concern with him is not working him too hard throughout the year. Last season, Rick Barnes rested him during the start of the conference season to keep him fresh for later in the year and that will probably be the plan again this season.

From the Land of Miscellany. What is the deal with DeMarco Cobbs? He was a no show in Knoxville as well last week...Darius White took an unofficial visit to Norman ($) last week, but has no other visits planned for the summer...It looks like Harrison Smith will help alleviate the scholarship crunch at Texas by transferring, mostly likely to SFA...There are rumors swirling that J'Covan Brown is now officially eligible and on campus, but no official confirmations yet.

Texas Advances to Big XII Semifinals

awiggo — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 00:49:58 -0000

Survive and move on. Survive and move is definitely the name of the game in March, and Texas did exactly that this afternoon over the Kansas State Wildcats, 61-58. The Longhorns (22-10) may not have done a ton right in their rematch with Kansas State, but it doesn’t matter because Texas came out victorious. The ‘Horns march on to face Baylor, surprising winners in the first quarterfinal over top-seeded Kansas, in the first Big XII semifinal on Friday. Tip time 6 pm on the Big XII Network.

Good:

Dexter Pittman is putting on quite a show in Oklahoma City. A day after dominating the smaller Colorado frontline, Sexy Dex took it to the bigger Kansas State defenders just the same. He has been unguardable in two games thus far. Dexter went for 19 points and 20 rebounds in 34 minutes of action. He has been successful in gaining and holding excellent low post position while also showing good balance. And unlike the final regular season game at Kansas, Dexhas been able to finish most of his easy ones around the rim. If he’s got anything left in the tank, we could easily see more of the same against the undersized Baylor Bears.
Hat tip to Varez Ward. After spending most of the last couple of weeks in the Rick Barnes’ doghouse, Varez came up huge off the bench as AJ Abrams was forced to sit in foul trouble. Ward attacked the basket off the dribble, finished near the rim over taller defenders, and played solid on-the-ball defense as well. Ward scored a surprising nine points with three rebounds, two blocks, and an assist in his productive 19 minutes of play.
Smaller hat tip to Clint Chapman too. Chappy still plays soft too often but did come through with nine points, including a critical and one lay-up late in the game, a rebound, and a blocked shot in eight minutes.

Bad:

There were two areas in which Texas struggled the entire game: turnovers and protecting the defensive glass. The long, physical K State defense forced 22 Texas turnovers! And the more aggressive Wildcats also grabbed 20 offensive rebounds!! In most games, those two stats alone spell doom. However, behind Dexter in the post and because of some awful field goal shooting by Kansas State, Texas advanced.

There really was nothing pretty about today’s performance except for the final score. Survive and move on.

Post your own game thoughts here.

Box Score

Next Game: vs. Baylor Big XII Semifinals – 6 pm Friday, March 13 Big XII Network

My crashed computer is preventing further analysis. PB will be around this evening to preview the Baylor game.

On the Usefulness of Clint Chapman

GhostofBigRoy — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 05:30:41 -0000

Anecdotal and statistical evidence suggest that Clint Chapman has far underperformed his four-star rating out of high school. In fact, to say that the most successful stretch in a nearly two-year career came when scoring 7,4, and 6 points hints at something failing even to achieve mediocrity -- hardly promising, to say the least. Add in the free-percentage at under 16 and a field goal percentage under 35% and Chapman's career at Texas looks even less promising. Not promising at all, really.

None of this comes as news even to the casual Texas basketball fan. It's worth bringing up because PB has essentially given up on Chappy (see comments of following link), while Scipio Tex wonders if Chapman is a potential transfer candidate after the season. Given Damion James' struggle completing his transition to the perimeter and the resulting hit to his draft stock, it's entirely plausible that he returns for his senior season, with a group of players that will be able to stretch the floor more capably and give him more room to operate. The problem -- Texas would be one over the scholarship limit if James returns and two over if J'Covan Brown manages to find his way into school, certainly not outside the realm of possibility, but only barely so.

All of that sets up the question about whether Chapman will ever have a chance to succeed in burnt orange. Count me among the frustrated at Chapman's rushed shots near the basket and inability to finish what should be easy plays. However, his athleticism for his size and much better touch than he has shown this season gives me hope. In his freshman season, Chapman made nearly 70% of his free throws, demonstrating an ability to hit from the line.

For Chapman, the problem appears to be his release point -- when he struggles, he shoots the ball long, releasing it too far in front of his body and not finishing high enough. I wouldn't be surprised if Chapman was a guard in middle school and perhaps early high school before hitting a growth spurt. He shoots like someone who has yet to completely grow into his body. That is to say, with minor tweaking, he could return to consistency at the line. It seems like a stretch to consider a missed jump shot a success, but his stroke looks good in rhythm out to 17-18, actually an easier shot for him than a free throw with his release.

Much like Connor Atchley, his general problems appear mostly mental, combined with a continued struggle to adjust to the speed of the college game, an adjustment lengthened by inconsistent minutes. Chapman has yet to lose himself in the game with any regularity -- he struggles against himself as much as he does against the opponent.

Since I count myself a realist, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that he could well break out at some point in his next two seasons. Despite the struggles at the free throw line, Chapman does have a soft touch, demonstrated on two plays in the last three games spinning to his left in the lane and finishing. One such play came off the bounce, showing a rhythm that he has rarely been able to find, but that suggests the ability to reproduce such plays.If Chapman can consistently replicate those plays, developing a shot fake and drop step off the move could result in easy layups.

Two more plays came off the bounce on quick moves to the basket, one finishing with a lay up and the other with a ill-conceived dunk attempt against Baylor where he was too far away to finish. The aggressiveness, however, was not ill-conceived, and exactly the mentality he needs more often on the offensive end.

Also like Connor Atchley, Chapman struggles to maintain rebounding position, needing to work on consistently getting low and boxing out with authority. Truthfully, he will never be a good rebounder for his position, but that limiting factor won't be the element of his game keeping him from being successful. In fact, Chapman already rebounds at a slightly higher rate than Atchley on both the offensive and defensive ends -- also better than Matt Hill.

Defensively, Chapman has the athleticism to move his feet well, particularly when hedging on ball screens, he just needs to exhibit better awareness. On one play matched up against James Singletary, Chapman bodied up on him too much, allowing the dribble drive, then tried to beat Singletary to the spot. Ostensibly a good move, unless that spot is the free throw line. Needless to say, Chapman committed the foul. For comparison, Matt Hill doesn't have close to the footspeed to even beat Singletary to that spot enough to commit a foul -- he would be trailing on the play. As a post and help defender, Chapman has the ability to block shots -- with the third highest rate of blocked shots, behind Connor Atchley and Dexter Pittman.

All told, I'm not ready to give up on Chapman, yet. He will certainly consider his options after the season and wonder where his playing time will come from if James stays. However, Matt Hill is much less valuable to the program, as he demonstrates far fewer raw skills, instead being limited to setting screens, rebounding, and making easy baskets -- skills that Chapman needs to demonstrate an ability to consistently execute, but skills that ultimately provide the team with little upside. As harsh as it may sound, Hill is a stiff and Chapman, whatever his faults, is not.

Chapman is not a complete loss, and, in fact, shows sign that he could be finally breaking out -- albeit in a limited way. His playing time will decrease when Gary Johnson returns to the lineup for the Big 12 and NCAA Tournaments, but the last three games have set Chapman up for a productive finish to the season, a finish that could springboard him to much bigger things next season, which I hope will come in burnt orange and not on the bench in street clothes at another university, sitting out his transfer season.

Feel free to disagree.

Preview: Baylor at Texas

awiggo — Mon, 02 Mar 2009 15:00:10 -0000

Next Game

Baylor Bears
@ Texas Longhorns

Monday, Mar 2, 2009, 8:00 PM CST
Frank Erwin Center * Austin, TX
Television: ESPN
Radio: 98.1 FM / 1300 AM (Austin)

Las Vegas Line: Texas -9
KenPom Data Prediction: Texas, 75-68

Other Previews:
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First Season Meeting: Texas W, 78-72
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SEASON COMPARISON

	Baylor	Texas		Baylor	Texas
Overall Record	17-11	19-9	Offensive Efficiency (Rank)	114.3 (20)	110.3 (52)
Conference Record	5-9	8-6	Defensive Efficiency (Rank)	99.3 (136)	91.3 (27)
Home Record	13-4	12-2	Strength of Schedule Rank	#36	#27
Away / Neutral Record	2-6 / 2-1	4-5 / 3-2	Quality Wins (KenPom Top 50)	Arizona St at Wash State Ok State at Kansas St Texas A&M	UCLA n-Villanova at Wisconsin Texas A&M Okla St Oklahoma
Record Last 5 and 10 Games	2-3 / 2-8	3-2 / 5-5	Losses	n-Wake Forest South Carolina at A&M at OU Texas at Missouri Kansas at Texas Tech OU at Ok State at Iowa St	n-Notre Dame n-Michigan St at Arkansas at Oklahoma Kansas St Missouri at Nebraska at Texas A&M at Ok State

Stakes and Keys to the Game after the jump.

THE STAKES

Simply put, this is a must win game for the Longhorns. With Texas closing the season at Kansas this weekend, a loss tonight would probably fate the Longhorns to an end-of-season three game losing streak. While the non-conference wins over UCLA and Villanova are still jewels in the ‘Horns’ resume, Texas doesn’t not want to see if the Committee values those over a .500 conference record and a late season slide. Texas also does not want to be playing in the Big XII tournament for their NCAA tournament lives.

A win would also assure the Longhorns of a 20-win season, their tenth straight over Rick Barnes. Last, Texas has won 23 straight over Baylor, including a 78-72 win in Waco in late January.

The Bears come staggering into Austin. Baylor did defeat Colorado at home over the weekend but had dropped eight of their previous nine games. During that slide, the Bears quickly went from a likely NCAA tournament team to a team just hoping for an NIT invite. Baylor is also just 1-6 in conference road games this season.

For Baylor, this game is about pride and saving face. The Bears have been close to knocking off the Longhorns multiple times in the last couple of seasons but have never pulled it off. A win over the Longhorns would be especially sweet for Del Valle native and senior guard, Curtis Jerrells, who seems to always play well against the ‘Horns. Although this season was supposed to achieve so much more, Scott Drew’s club could definitely make a loud end-of-year statement by winning in Austin.

Ken Pomeroy

Pomeroy’s stats show the Bears to be a similar team to the Oklahoma State Cowboys. Both like to score in transition and rely heavily on the three-pointer for points; both have three or four guards in their starting lineup and struggle on the offensive glass; and both have had trouble this year getting stops, particularly in conference play.

The Baylor defense is so bad that it requires an above average shooting night to produce a victory. Take a look at the Baylor game plan. Baylor is 5-0 in conference when their effective field goal percentage is over 50% and 0-9 when their eFG % is under 50%. Basically, when Baylor is shooting well, they have a chance to outscore their opponents, and when they are not, their porous defense dooms them to a loss.

I’m not sure if the similarities between the two teams bode well for the Longhorns considering Texas scored just 18 points in the first half and needed a significant second half rally to get back into the game. However, Texas should be comfortable with the style of play and should have no trouble recognizing the keys to the game.

KEYS TO THE GAME

1. Find three-point shooters in the half court. This is a game where the Texas guards must remember scouting reports. All the Baylor Bears are going to act like they are three point shooters—some Texas should invite to shoot the three, while others must be run at immediately and made to put the ball on the deck. The two guys Texas cannot allow catch-and-shoot open threes are LaceDarius Dunn (39% from three) and Tweety Carter (43%). Both Dunn and Carter have more made three-pointers than they do two point buckets. The two guys Texas can allow to shoot threes are Curtis Jerrells and Henry Dugat. While both players can definitely knock down the long jumpers, they are more dangerous when collapsing a defense off the bounce and scoring in the lane and at the line.

2. Limit Baylor’s transition opportunities. In the first game between these two teams, Texas held Baylor in check for the first twenty minutes and led at the half 27-24. It was certainly not an offensive show by either team as both defenses forced perimeter jumpers and limited easy looks in transition. The second half was a different story, however. Turnovers led to easy run out opportunities for both teams and scoring increased dramatically. As mentioned above, Baylor wins when they shoot the ball well, and lose when they don’t. Although the Bears may be gifted outside shooters, they really punish their opposition when they get out in transition and score easy points. Texas needs to do two things to limit the Baylor fast break offense. 1) Protect the ball. Since the insertion of Dogus Balbay into the starting lineup, this hasn’t been a problem. Actually, Texas is among the nation’s leaders in turnover percentage on the season, so this shouldn’t be too much of an issue. 2) Get back. There isn’t an easier way to say this. Texas must commit a guard, usually Balbay, to defending the bucket when a shot goes up. Earlier this season, with Mason at the point, Texas got into trouble when Justin would compete on the offensive glass instead of retreat on defense. This happens occasionally with Dogus as well but the other problem is when Balbay attacks the basket off the dribble. AJ must be aware when this happens and hustle back, regardless if he starts his retreat from the offensive baseline.

3. Attack the rim, get to the foul line, and make defenses pay for playing off the Texas guards, save AJ. Texas did the opposite of those three things in the first half in Stillwater and scored just 18 points. We shot 24% from the field, didn’t attempt a single free throw, and let Terrel Harris double team the post when Balbay still had the ball in his hands. Texas, and particularly Balbay, got better in the second half. Dogus made the defenses react by taking the ball into the lane; Texas tried to feed the post from the hands of shooters like AJ Abrams and Harrison Smith; and aggression by Damion James and Dexter Pittman was rewarded by trips to the free throw line. It shouldn’t take 20 minutes to adjust to a sagging defense. If it does and Baylor is hot, then it could be a long night for this offensively limited bunch.

4. Feed the post—Dexter Pittman, Gary Johnson, Clint Chapman, and Damion James. This is obviously not easy when the post is being double teamed without the ball. However, Texas still needs to make a conscious effort to play inside-out on offense. I pray that Gary Johnson is able to go tonight, as his presence alone makes defenses play more honest. But even if he isn’t, dropping the ball to Dexter or Chap on the low block will help free up shooters and cutters. Simply pounding the ball at the top of the key will not.

This is a big one Horns’ fans. Come out to the Erwin Center tonight on Senior Night for AJ Abrams and Connor Atchley. It is likely the final home game for junior Damion James as well.

Game Review: Texas Crashes In Stillwater, 59-68

Peter Bean — Sun, 01 Mar 2009 06:22:22 -0000

Final - 2.28.2009 :: COMPLETE BOX SCORE	1	2	Total
Texas Longhorns	18	41	59
Oklahoma St. Cowboys	30	38	68

full game Coverage >

Game Recap: The best way to characterize the first half of Texas' 59-68 loss to Oklahoma State is "race to the bottom" -- by Damion James, by Dogus Balbay, by Justin Mason, by Rick Barnes... and, with equal vigor, by many of the Texas fans following along in the game thread. When Damion James' three point shot badly missed to conclude the half, Texas had managed a meager 18 points of first half offense. Considering that watching Texas first half performance shook me back to the days when the 8th grade B-Team I was coaching would scrimmage the high-A squad... I suppose the Longhorns were lucky only to be trailing by 12.

Incredibly, things actually got worse in the first three minutes of the second half as Texas lost 3 turnovers and committed 2 fouls, and when Terrel Harris' two free throws put OSU up 17 with 17:07 to play, I'm not sure anyone would have blamed the Longhorns if they had just mailed it in from there.

But facing the largest deficit of the night, Rick Barnes' substitution of Harrison Smith -- which at the time seemed an act of desperation more than anything else -- proved to be precisely the offensive spark that Texas needed. Dogus Balbay immediately started a Texas rally by aggressively penetration the lane; though he missed, the Cowboys were caught out of position, Dexter Pittman grabbed the offensive board, put it back in, and drew a foul for a three-point play. Seconds later, AJ Abrams stole the ball from James Anderson and found Harrison Smith open on the wing for a transition three pointer. The 6-0 spurt pulled Texas back within 11 at the under-16 timeout, and more importantly, gave Balbay and the Texas offense the energy and confidence to attack that had been missing.

After a Keiton Page three pointer put OSU back up by 13 with 12:27 to play, Texas put together the big run it needed, outscoring OSU 19-7 over the game's next 8 minutes to slash the lead to 56-55. Sadly, that's as close as Texas' visibly drained players would get. From there, as the tired Longhorns substituted fouling for actual defense and stand-and-watch-Abrams for actual offense, the Cowboys outscored Texas 12-3 to close out the game.

The outcome was: Deserved. Pretty much everyone but Harrison Smith deserves a slice of tonight's blame cake, but the largest slice goes to Rick Barnes & Staff. With Oklahoma State dropping Mason and/or Balbay's defenders into the paint for a pre-entry pass double team, Texas fans watched in disbelief as the Longhorns simply ran minor variations of the same mistake over and over again. Meanwhile, Texas' first-half transition defense looked like a replay of the 2007 Kansas State football game: wave at the opponents as they sprint by! Throw in shoddy timeout management and atrocious endgame offensive strategy, and it's not unfair to say Rick Barnes didn't put his team in a position to win tonight.

Stat of the Game: Texas 7 assists, 15 turnovers. If I was a scout watching Damion James tonight, I have huge concerns about his ability to play the wing in the NBA, so poor were his ball-handling skills. Elsewhere, AJ Abrams had what was perhaps his worst game of the season, finishing with 15 jacks (only 3 made), 3 turnovers, and not a single assist. Justin Mason was so lousy in his 19 minutes of action (0 points, 3 turnovers, 0 assist, 3 fouls) that Barnes turned to Harrison Smith. And Dogus Balbay waited an entire half to come to life and attack the OSU defense, all four of his assists coming in the game's final 20 minutes.

Offensive MVP: Harrison Smith 12 points (5-9, 2-5 3PFG), 5 rebounds (4 offensive) OSU's defensive game plan was simple: sag Balbay and Mason's defenders off and away from their men to double team the post and smother AJ Abrams. With Texas' offense in the gutter, Barnes wisely turned to the eager-to-score Harris, who provided for Texas a perimeter player willing and able to shoot, a threat which neutralized OSU's defensive strategy and opened the floor for Balbay to drive. Though the 'Horns ultimately fell short, Harris deserves a lot of credit for his effort tonight, connecting on two long balls and finishing three more in the paint off of offensive rebounds. His defense is still a clear liability, but he hustled there, too, playing adequately enough to justify his minutes. Whereas to this point all we've seen from Harris offensively are long, often ill-timed three point attempts, if he can contribute to the offense in all the ways that he did this evening, it's going to be difficult not to give him 15-20 of Varez Ward and Justin Mason's minutes. Certainly with Gary Johnson out tonight, Texas needed someone who could pose some sort of scoring threat. Kudos to Smith for stepping up to fill that void.

Defensive MVP: Dogus Balbay. He certainly wasn't the problem on defense tonight, both his excellent work on Byron Eaton and his three second half steals critical to the Texas rally.

Factor Four:

1. Damion James and Dexter Pittman really missed Gary Johnson. Damion James played his heart out, God bless him -- unquestionable effort for all 40 minutes of his 18 point, 18 rebound performance. Still, James' night was marred by painfully sloppy handles and six(!) missed lay ups. More than any other Longhorn, Damion missed the offensive floor spacing that Gary Johnson provides, as OSU was able to pack in the paint, double teaming Pittman and James with impunity. Throughout the first half, Big Dexter struggled mightily with the two Cowboys defenders on his hip at all times, while the swarm of inside bodies caused James to struggle with countless close looks he normally finishes.

2. Baylor is now a must-win. Unless you want to stake your wad on Texas winning at Allen Fieldhouse, you should probably consider Texas' Monday night home game against Baylor a must-win.Take care of business, and Texas remains in decent enough shape, whatever the outcome in the Big 12 tournament. But if they lose to Baylor... things suddenly get interesting again, and not in a good way. This year's bubble doesn't look too imposing, but the last thing Texas wants is to close the regular season with three straight losses, including one at home.

3. Harrison Smith's spark as a microcosm of a lingering big issue. While it's anyone's guess whether Smith can provide with any consistency what he did this evening, his spark off the bench illuminated the ball and chain the Texas offense is dragging around the court -- the lack of perimeter shooting threats.

It's an issue that plagues Texas' roster from top to bottom. What's the problem with giving minutes to the excellent defense provided by Justin Mason and Varez Ward? Neither can hit a jump shot to save their lives. What has Texas most missed from Connor Atchley? His ability to knock down the outside J. What's the one thing keeping Dogus Balbay from being one of the most dangerous point guards in the country? No outside shot.

In looking at what Harrison Smith provided tonight, it's easier to appreciate how Gary Johnson -- still raw and coming into his own -- brings a particularly valuable skill set to this Texas offense. Along with his strong body and improving skills near the rim, Johnson's ability to knock down 12-18 foot jump shots make him especially important as a neutralizing weapon for sagging defenses.

4. Player notes. After back-to-back solid efforts at home, Clint Chapman was the Queen of Spades tonight in Stillwater, equal parts clumsy and soft on both ends of the floor.... After a tough, mostly unproductive first half, Dexter Pittman was having an excellent second half when Rick Barnes subbed him out with 5:27 to play and Texas within 7. But he never saw the floor again and was sorely missed over the final four minutes when the Longhorns quit working the ball inside and watched AJ Abrams dribble and brick away the team's last chances.... Freshman point guard Dogus Balbay was in the first half thrown wildly off his game by the severity of the cushion his defender was giving him. He refused to shoot or drive, as he (and the Texas offense) were thoroughly rendered ineffective. Fortunately, his second half performance (4 points, 4 assists, 3 steals) was as excellent as his first half was poor... Connor Atchley gave Texas serviceable defense and interior rebounding that was sorely lacking from Clint Chapman, but his offensive slump continued (0-3 FGs). Especially without Johnson, Texas badly misses Atchley as a 8-10 PPG scorer.

Looking Ahead:

Remaining schedule: Monday, 3/2 vs Baylor (8:00 p.m.), Saturday 3/7 at Kansas

If you're a masochist:

Trips Right's review at BC

Anatomy of Stagnation: Longhorns Against Iowa State

GhostofBigRoy — Mon, 12 Jan 2009 03:37:40 -0000

Context

After a 17-5 run against Iowa State in the Big 12 conference opener for both teams to stretch a one-point lead at 12-11 to a 29-16 advantage, the Longhorns went through a period of almost three minutes without scoring points of any kind (from 4:25 to 1:41), sandwiched between a Damion James basket and a Gary Johnson put back after an offensive rebound. The Longhorns went 0-5 from the field during that stretch, failing to get to the foul line. Fortunately for the Longhorns, Iowa State scored only six points during that same stretch, which saw the Longhorns compound their problems by committing three fouls. The first foul put Iowa State into the bonus, putting Iowa State on the line after each subsequent whistle against the Horns.

First possession

Following a foul on Clint Chapman that resulted in split free throws by Justin Hamilton, Matt Hill secures the defensive rebound, makes an outlet pass to AJ Abrams, who quickly finds Varez Ward on the perimeter. With no advantage, Ward passes the ball back out to Abrams, who sets up the offense, finding Damion James on the left wing. James quickly hoists an 18-foot jumper in rhythm that rims out off a Connor Atchley screen. Having just made a jumper on the previous possession, it's hard to fault James for this shot, although it was early in the shot clock.

Second possession

Good help defense by Connor Atchley strips Craig Brackens of the ball in the midst of a post move. AJ Abrams comes out of traffic with the ball on the right side of the court. Cutting through the middle, Abrams passes from the left elbow to Damion James beyond the three-point line left side. James takes two dribbles to the middle of the court, taking another jumper from just beyond the free throw line, leaving it short on the front of the rim. Connor Atchley was wide open on the right wing, barely 10 feet away from James, who doesn't see him. Barely six seconds elapsed from the shot clock between the steal by Abrams and the shot by James. Justin Hamilton knocks the ball away from Justin Mason, who nearly secured the offensive rebound. Texas ball.

Third possession

Damion James inbounds from the right side to Justin Mason at the top of the key. Mason passes to AJ Abrams coming off a Matt Hill screen, but Abrams mishandles the pass and turns the ball over.

Fourth possession

AJ Abrams brings the ball up the floor after a made free throw by Diante Garrett. Rick Barnes takes his first timeout of the ballgame, which he would lose if not used by halftime. Good decision by Barnes with roughly three minutes left in the half and the Longhorn offense misfiring on the previous three possessions. Justin Mason brings the ball up the court, finding Abrams on the right wing tightly guarded by Bryan Petersen. Gary Johnson posts up on the right block, but Abrams passes out top to Damion James, who shot fakes, then shoots, looking relatively out of rhythm and leaving the ball short on the front of the rim again.

Fifth possession

Following a Gary Johnson foul, Justin Mason brings the ball up the floor, finding Abrams once again on the right wing. Abrams enters the ball to Gary Johnson, but good defense in the post and good denial by Petersen on the wing force Johnson to catch the ball near the three-point line and close to the baseline. Iowa State immediately sends a double team by Diante Garrett, the man guarding Justin Mason, leaving the non-shooter alone in the opposite corner. Johnson dribbles twice out of the double team, which leaves Johnson, who finds Damion James standing on the edge of the Texas coast, 10 feet beyond the three-point line. Connor Atchley sets a screen at the top of the key as James dribbles left. Stopped by the hedging defender, James finds Atchley at the three-point line, slightly to the right of the top of the circle. The Iowa State defender closes out well, so Atchley dribbles right into a handoff with AJ Abrams, who shoots quickly. Just long off the back of the rim.

Sixth possession

Varez Ward pushes the ball up the court after a nice banker by Diante Garrett, attempting to push the tempo. Ward penetrates right side, getting all the way down to the right block, where he takes a contested and forced five footer that gets a piece of the backboard and the back of the rim. Gary Johnson, on the weak side, gets the rebound and makes the put back, fouled in the process.

Verdict

While watching the game, I thought that James' shots early in the shot clock weren't horrible decisions on his part. With an offense that often struggles in the half court, early shots, if they are reasonably high-percentage looks, aren't negative plays because they come early in the shot clock, therefore lengthening the game and allowing the Longhorns more possessions. In other words, not all bad shots are created equal. A bad shot early in the possession is much less damaging than a bad shot late in the possession since so much more time expires. However, Mike D'Antoni demonstrates that such shots need to be taken with confidence and without fear that the coach will bench a player for a quick shot. Just coming down and jacking up shots isn't the idea, rather, the shot should come within the flow of the offense, which is designed to facilitate such quick shots.

That being said, the Longhorns failed to penetrate to the basket during this stretch, which breaks down the defense, forces rotations, and creates scramble situations for the defense. The first shot for James was a heat check after making his jumper on the previous possession, but the next two probably fall under the category of forced shots. Likewise for the Abrams jumper, when he failed to use a shot fake to give himself an easier look, a consistent problem for Abrams, who seems to believe that he doesn't need a shot fake because he needs so little room to get a shot off. Not true, AJ.

As for the shot by Varez Ward, it was forced, but he still broke down the defense off the dribble, forcing a weakside defender to come over to contest the shot, opening up the offensive glass for Gary Johnson. Basically, Ward took a bad shot, but it wasn't as bad as the shots by James and Abrams because it come off of dribble penetration and gave his teammate a chance for the offensive rebound, which was secured and led to three Longhorn points.

As if the extent of the loss of DJ Augustin needed further illustration, this stretch provides it. Rick Barnes told Augustin last year to hunt his shot if the Longhorns failed to score for three consecutive possessions. In this instance, the Longhorns went five consecutive possessions without making a basket, but had no playmaker to turn to when the drought needed to end. Instead, freshman Varez Ward, not known for his offensive ability coming out of high school, overpenetrates, but draws enough help to allow his teammate to grab the offensive rebound. What the play does illustrate, besides how much losing Augustin hurts, is that dribble penetration is the remedy for many offensive woes.

During the stretch, Iowa State reduced the Longhorn lead from 29-16 to 29-22, a significant move at the end of the half that allowed the Cyclones to keep the game close for most of the remainder of the contest. Had the Longhorns made several of their baskets during this stretch and defended without fouling, they would have taken a significant lead into halftime that may have discouraged any attempts at a comeback in the second half. As a firm believer in the importance of finishing halves well, this was an unacceptable performance over the course of several minutes by the Longhorns and forced them to expend much more energy than they might have had to otherwise.

Fatal Flaw? Longhorns Chunking Bricks From the Charity Stripe

GhostofBigRoy — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 01:24:17 -0000

The Problem

In the second half against Villanova, as the Longhorns attempted to gain and eventually hold the lead against the Wildcats, they missed 10 of their first 14 free throw attempts, including AJ Abrams, normally the only good free throw shooter of the bunch, splitting free throws on each of his first three two-shot trips to the line. When he made both free throws with 23 seconds left in the game, Abrams became the first Longhorn foul shooter to make both of his free throws during a trip to the line, ending an 0 for 10 streak that included Gary Johnson and Damion James missing both attempts once apiece. For James, the excuse might be that it was late in the game, which can have a player feeling cold at the line, but it was Johnson's third trip to the line, leaving no excuse for him.

Bricklayer of the Game Awards

Besides rampant mediocrity for most players most games, which results in splitting two free throws the great majority of the time (eight out 11 trips against the Wildcats), most games are punctuated by one player having an absolute nightmare at the line. The revolving door let Gary Johnson through against 'Nova, as seen by his 1-5 performance. Against UCLA, it was Clint Chapman, drawing a blank on four attempts. Oregon? That would be Justin Mason, clanging four of his six tries. That one point loss to Notre Dame? Mase, the culprit again, making one of four. How about a Chappy/Mase brick party? Four of eleven against Tulane. In Chappy's defense, that was the game that he made his only free throw of the season. He's 0 for the rest of 08-09.

And now, the first ever Ultimate Bricklayer Award

Coming to the end of the line in the backwards review of the season, we find Varez Ward waiting to claim the title of absolute worst performance amongst the veritable brickyard of the season. Treating Longhorn fans to their viewing of his college career, the Montgomery, Alabama product missed all six of his attempts. Congratulations, Varez. There was some stiff competition, but you win the initial Bricklayer Award of the season (more to come, folks! Stay tuned).

Sunshine Pumping Time

For those who enjoy a little sunshine pumped into their nether regions, I'll oblige. But only because you ask. Oh look. There are the Longhorns hitting 18 of 24 against Rice, one of two 70%+ performances on the year! Go team! That game included everyone shooting 50% or better. The other good performance was against St. Joe's , when James, Abrams, Johnson, and Wangmene combined to go 10-11. Wow, that's legitimately good! Yay, 'Horns!

Getting Alexis Wangmene back from injury may help. Although his sample size is extremely small (2-2), when combining how pure his strokes looked on those free throws to his stroke around the basket and now extended out to 15-18 feet, Wingman looks like he has the most potential of all the big men to be a solid foul shooter, with Gary Johnson slightly behind.

Enough of that, how about some history?

Memphis was famously bad from the line last season, converting 61%, with only Derrick Rose and Chris Douglas-Roberts converting over 70%. John Calipari equally famously said that he wasn't worried about his team's free throw shooting, but lo and behold, it cost Memphis a championship when Derrick Rose missed free throws at the end of the game. Given the choice between taking back his comments downplaying the importance of free throws and a national championship trophy, Coach Cal would have to take back his comments, right?

Looking at the 16 squads that have comprised the last four Final Fours, the horrific foul shooting of Memphis is a relative anomaly. Only UCLA in 2005-06 and George Mason in 2005-2006 were close at 66%, respectively. Eleven of the 16 teams shot 70% or better, with Michigan State's 2004-05 team leading the way at 77%, followed by last year's UNC team at 75%, with the average sitting at 71%. The 2006-2007 Florida group was the only one to win a national championship shooting less than 72%, at 69%. It's a relatively small sample size, but I think the results are reasonably conclusive: Teams shooting well less than 70% struggle to get to the Final Four, with any team overcoming their poor free throw shooting being a relative anamoly.

The importance of the core

There's rightfully a great deal of discussion among Longhorn fans right now about whether it will cost Texas in March. Most if it along the lines of speculating how deep hte team can get in the tournament before free throw shooting costs a game. I certainlyl agree with that position. The team sits at 58% this year, worse than Memphis and worse even than the worst free throw shooting team in 2007-08, West Virginia, which managed only 59%. It will remain a struggle this year at the line--the key is for the high volume ball handlers (Abrams and Mason) and the players who draw a high volume of fouls (James and Johnson) to hit at a higher clip than they have been. It's unrealistic to suddenly expect a team that shoots poorly from the line to all start hitting at an 80% clip. Instead, it's about a core group of players, well, stepping up to the line and delivering that can save a deep tournament run.

That core group of four includes the two players most likely to handle the ball at the end of games (Abrams when the other team is in fouling mode) and the guys who will get to the line the most. In fact, Abrams, James, and Mason have all taken 27 foul shots on the year, with Johnson one behind at 26. Each needs to perform at a higher level and the team can survive poor foul shooting from the group of Dexter Pittman, Varez Ward, and Clint Chapman.

Setting Expectations

For Abrams, that means deciding if he is the 87-90% shooter he was in his first two years, or the 80% shooter he has been the last two years.The heavy minutes may hurt Abrams a bit because he runs so much and now actually exerts energy defensively, but he's in such good shape and has such a pure stroke the Longhorns need clutch shooting from Abrams at the end of games, when Rick Barnes is likelyto let him hunt shots. With AJ's stroke, there's no excuse for him not to shoot 85% or better.

For James, it means improving into at least the high 60% range (he's at 63% right now) after regressing last year (57%) from his freshman campaign (59%). James is a junior now and he's too important to this team and has too good of a touch to shoot so poorly. Last year, it was inconsisteny that plagued him, alternating between games of shooting well (three games at 4-6, one 4-4, one 6-8) and absymal performances (1-8, 2-7, 3-7, 4-8). James missed both of his free throws against Villanova, but has avoided any other poor performances. Maintaining consistency is the expectation for James, since the poor trajectory on his shot will always limit him at the line in a way that it doesn't from the field because of his superior elevation.

Gary Johnson has the stroke to hit in the 70-75 range. He leaves his elbow out a little more than desired, but not enough to disrupt the purity of his release. Johnson went a combined 10-11 in Maui, so his performance against Villanova was the outlier for the season, still leaving him nearly 10 percentage points higher than his average last season (65% to 57%). It looks like he has worked hard on both his stroke in the offseason, evidenced in the improvement in his foul shooting and mid-range jump shot, work that has led to the first three attempts from long range of his career, all three of which he has missed. Prediction: Johnson will not be a liability at the line this season, instead contributing consistently, while becoming the most high volume foul shooter on the team.

Justin Mason is the final number of the core and the worst foul shooter of the four, at 44% for the year, which is obvoiusly atrocious for a guard, not to mention the primary ball handler. Rick Barnes has to get on Mase about being aggressive as much as anyone on the team not named Connor Atchley and the Longhorns are at their best when Mason is using his quickness off the dribble to get into the lane and create for himself and his teammates. To put it succinctly, Mason is the best combination of making plays for himself and teammates, with an affinity for big moments. That affinity hasn't extended to the foul line this season, as he is 20 points beneath last season's accpetable (for him) 66% performance.

Mason found himself on the other end of the spectrum from Gary Johnson's suberb performance from the foul line in Maui, hitting a measly three of 10. For the Longhorns to succeed in March, Mason must remain aggressive attacking the basket and hit between his career averages of 58% (freshman year) and 66% (sophomore year). The limiting factor with Mason's free throw shooting lies with his follow through, or more precisely, the lack thereof. He doesn't break his wrist when shooting, almost like Shaq shooting free throws, failing to "put his hand in the cookie jar," as the saying goes. Hence, shots with little touch and too much arc, thrown up their more with a prayer than with confidence.

The Final Word

Obviously, the foul shooting of the team will remain under scruitiny for the rest of the season, as concerns of regression will accompany any on the court improvements. Varez Ward and Clint Chapman have shot extremely poorly from the line and should improve as the season continues, but the fate of the team will not rest on them. Instead, as mentioned above, the core four of James, Johnson, Abrams, and Mason will have find some consistency in the 70% range (Johnson and James) or return to the same level of their career best performances (Abrams and Mason). There are no miracle cures, but simple improvements by or the return to form of the team's most important players will keep foul shooting from becoming the fatal flaw of the 2008-09 Longhorn basketball team.