IT Week in Review: UT players endorse Rodney Terry, the best version of Dylan Disu, Xavier, baseball
The Inside Texas week in review looks at how Texas players reacted to Rodney Terry leading the Longhorns to the Sweet 16, the play of Dylan Disu, a look at Xavier, and how Longhorn baseball has made the most of a lengthy homestand.
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Texas players make their thoughts on Rodney Terry known
After the Big 12 Tournament title, Texas players made it clear their respect for interim head coach Rodney Terry was a significant motivating factor during their run to the conference tournament championship.
After the Longhorns’ first round win over Colgate in the NCAA Tournament, the first March Madness win for Terry as a head coach, the players took a moment to congratulate Terry in the locker room for the accomplishment.
And after Texas’ second round win on Saturday over Penn State to advance the program to the second weekend of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2008, Longhorn players Sir’Jabari Rice, Timmy Allen, and Dylan Disu were crystal clear regarding their preference when asked if Terry should be the UT’s permanent choice.
Question: If you were to bump into CDC in the hallway after the game, what would you say to him about RT’s interim status?
SIR’JABARI RICE: I don’t think we have to say anything, honestly. He’s in the locker room with us. All we gotta do is raise up RT and he should know, honestly.
TIMMY ALLEN: Lock in, lock in.
RODNEY TERRY: I think everything is on these guys. They’ve done an incredible job this year. It’s not about me, not about me at all. These guys have done it, they’ve stayed the course. They’ve been incredible to, work with every day. I love these guys. I love ’em to death. I love ’em not only as basketball players, I love ’em as people. They’re incredible guys with incredible characters and I couldn’t ask for a better group of guys to work with every day.
TIMMY ALLEN: But give RT his credit.
DYLAN DISU: Why not RT?
SIR’JABARI RICE: Why not RT?
The version of Dylan Disu Texas envisioned arrives at the right time
Circumstances around programs obviously affect how players are individually utilized, but there’s little doubt the version of Disu that led Texas past Penn State and into to the Sweet 16 was the version Chris Beard and Rodney Terry saw prior to his knee injury at Vanderbilt.
Sure, without as much talent around him in Nashville, Disu was asked to be more of an individual playmaker for the Commodores. Before his injury in the 2020-21 season, Disu averaged 15.0 points and 9.2 rebounds per contest, making just over five field goals per game.
The injury made development at Texas following his transfer tough to come by during the 2021-22 campaign, but Disu has undoubtedly advanced his game throughout the current season. His Saturday night flourish functions as a realization of the player Texas saw in the portal after the 2021 campaign.
A player can put up 20 field goal attempts in a variety of ways. In Disu’s case, where 19 of those 20 were two-point shots, it wasn’t because he was forcing the ball to the rim. He utilized his consistent size advantage over the Nittany Lions to convert excellent looks in his preferred spots.
Plus, he crashed the boards, and not with reckless abandon. Rather, Disu gave a concerted effort to make sure he, the tallest player on the floor, recorded a rebound on 10 separate occasions.
Texas will face more size as it attempts to make its deepest run in March in over a decade. Other players will need to step up their efforts, especially after a 1-for-13 night from three.
But Disu played the type of game the Longhorns wanted to see from him when he committed to his hometown team, and at the most opportune time for the program no less.
The Longhorns will play the No. 3 seed Xavier Musketeers
Texas knows who it will face in Kansas City, Mo. with a spot in the Elite Eight on the line. The Xavier Musketeers (26-9, 15-5 Big East) defeated No. 11 seed Pitt on Sunday to advance to XU’s ninth Sweet 16 in program history.
The Musketeers are coached by Sean Miller, who has some NCAA Tournament history with the Longhorns.
Xavier has five players who average double figures, including leading scorer Souley Boum.
Boum has a link to Texas as he played two seasons for Terry at UTEP before transferring to Xavier for this season. Boum averages 16.5 points on 45% shooting with a 42% mark from three.
He’s joined by Adam Kunkel, Jack Nunge, Colby Jones, and Zach Freemantle as 10-plus points per game scorers.
Areas where Xavier excels include field goal percentage (49.4%, 6th nationally), three-point percentage (39.1, 4th nationally), and assists per game (19.2, 1st nationally). Problem areas for the Musketeers include three-point shot volume (18.9 per game, 294th nationally) and fouls (15.9 per game, 270th nationally).
Baseball gets right before conference play
Texas bounced back from a 4-7 start featuring losses to several stout SEC teams and a road series surrendered to Cal State Fullerton with 10 straight wins, including the recent series sweep over New Orleans. Now, only a midweek contest with Incarnate Word stands between the Longhorns and the beginning of Big 12 play. No. 22 Texas Tech heads to the Disch next weekend to start league play for David Pierce’s club.
Aside from Fullerton, the schedule during most of month of March was filled with teams that Texas was expected to handle. Sam Houston is currently No. 105, Mercer is No. 121, Manhattan is No. 262, North Dakota State is No. 253, and New Orleans is No. 171 in RPI according to WarrenNolan.com.
While the opponents did no favors for Texas’ strength of schedule, with the Longhorns still without a “Quadrant 1” win, UT did what was necessary to ensure they stacked up victories and moved well above .500 before the 24 games of Big 12 play.
There have been several revelations for the Longhorns during the course of the lengthy homestand at the Disch, the most important one being the play from Peyton Powell. A junior from the Waco area, Powell is hitting .439 and has been a mainstay in the lineup since March began. He’s been assisted by senior standout Eric Kennedy, who is hitting .376 with a team high 32 hits and seven homers.
Lucas Gordon has been a steady presence for the Texas pitching staff which remains in a state of flux with some roles still not yet solidified, though Charlie Hurley has been a pleasant surprise out of the bullpen in 21.0 innings of work.
Plus, Lebarron Johnson has made his move into the weekend rotation with his Sunday start versus the Privateers. He pitched four innings of one-hit ball with two earned runs, three walks, and six strikeouts on relatively short rest.
Texas Tech will serve as the toughest weekend series against one singular opponent to date, and as a measuring stick to see what Texas learned about itself during the homestand against lesser teams.
The Big 12 schedule does have some balance, as after the series with the Red Raiders the Longhorns will head to Stillwater to face a challenging Oklahoma State squad. Then, they’ll return to Austin to face a middle-of-the-pack Kansas State team.
Conference play will play a larger part in telling the tale of the Texas season than any of the games from the recent homestand. But the way the Horns traversed the most of the non-conference stretch in Austin without a blemish could foreshadow improved results compared to the ones turned in at the beginning of the year.
