Rodney Terry provides injury update on Brock Cunningham's hand
The Texas Longhorns men’s basketball team is gearing up for their opening-round showdown with Colorado State in the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Texas versus Colorado State is one of the more intriguing 7-seed, 10-seed matchups. However, the Longhorns do have some concerns entering the game.
One thing Texas and head coach Rodney Terry are closely monitoring is the health of forward Brock Cunningham. Cunningham suffered a hand injury during the regular season and has been toughening it out since then. But will it impact his status for the Longhorns tournament opener? Ahead of the contest, Terry addressed that question and provided some perspective on how the Longhorns and Cunningham have been approaching the situation.
“Brock’s a tough kid. If it was going to happen to anybody on our roster, you’d probably pick him to be the guy to do it,” said Terry. “No, he had a really bad hand injury in the Baylor game, and from that point on, he’s been toughing through it. Whether it be in practice, in games. It’s one of those situations that, at any time it could go a different direction for us. He’s been able to push through and work through the pain-tolerant part of it.
“But he’ll have it wrapped up, and he’ll go out and play the way he’s always played and try to play through that pain.”
Cunningham has been an integral part of Texas’s success this season. The senior has started in 14 of their 32 contests and has been a huge spark whenever needed. Fortunately for Terry and his Longhorns, it does not appear as if his lingering hand injury will stop him from taking the floor and helping his teammates win their opening-round matchup.
Odds for Colorado State vs. Texas
Texas is making its fourth straight NCAA Tournament appearance after a run to the Elite Eight this past season. The Longhorns are a veteran team led by seniors Max Abmas and Dylan Disu, and will hope to make yet another run this year.
Texas is favored by just 2.5 points against Colorado State entering the matchup according to FanDuel. The Longhorns have a moneyline of -144 compared to +120 for the Rams.
The over/under for the game is set at 144.5. Both teams entering the game averaging a combined 152.6 points per game. However, they also both run at a rather slow pace, with each ranking outside the top 175 in adjusted tempo according to KenPom.