Texas men’s basketball team fell 86-74 to Gonzaga, after junior forward Drew Timme had a career night for the No. 1 Bulldogs in Spokane, Washington. Timme’s career-high 37 points, along with Iowa State transfer Rasir Bolton’s 16, were enough to put away the No. 5 Longhorns by double digits on Saturday night.
Texas started off like a deer in headlights, after its offense couldn’t get going and Timme continued to rattle home shot after shot, but would ride a resurgent second half to a respectable margin of defeat in the end.
Here are three key takeaways from Texas’ 86-74 loss to Gonzaga:
—Offense needs time to jell
Texas got off to a really rough start against Gonzaga, only managing 27 points on 10 of 28 shooting in the first half. Just as they did against Houston Baptist in the season opener, the Longhorns really struggled in half court sets from tipoff. The offense looked very stagnant, as it became apparent Texas’ transfer-laden lineup needs more time on the floor together to develop a familiarity not only with each other, but with first-year coach Chris Beard’s new offense. Playmakers like guard Marcus Carr looked timid and not themselves, as if the team has been so bought in to playing strong as a unit, that they forgot how to play like themselves as individuals.
After shooting the lights out in the season opener, Texas went only 3-13 from beyond the arc in the first half. Part of that was down to poor shot selection, but also just shots not falling. The lack of offensive efficiency wasn’t the only issue for Texas, the Longhorns really struggled to create shots in the first place. Texas had two shot clock violations in the first half, and forced plenty of bad looks with time expiring. Give-aways were also an issue, with Texas turning the ball over seven times and only managing four assists in the opening 20 minutes.
—Second half resurgence
After heading into the tunnel down 47-27, Texas finally started playing like the talent on its roster suggests it should. The Longhorns actually outscored Gonzaga 47-38 in the second half, providing fans with a glimpse of how the team should look when chemistry is forged and players settle into the offense. After shooting so poorly in the first period, the Longhorns went 6-11 from three and 16-31 from the field, a stark difference from the first half.
Timmy Allen in particular really thrived in the second half, putting up 11 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists in the final 20 minutes of play. The Longhorn forward led all Texas scorers with 18 on the night. Interestingly enough, starting guard Andrew Jones only played five minutes in the second period, with freshman guard Devin Askew going 4-4 and putting up 9 points. Carr also looked a lot more comfortable after the break, as he started to attack the rim himself like he did when he averaged 19 points for Minnesota last season. The Longhorns ended the second half with only four turnovers, a very respectable figure, going up against a team with as much length as Gonzaga has.
—No answer for Timme
At the end of the day, the difference was made by CBS Sports and The Athletic’s preseason player of the year, Gonzaga’s Drew Timme. The Pearce product had a ridiculous night putting up 37 points on 15-19 shooting. Anytime Timme gathered the ball in the post, he seemingly scored at will. Texas forward Brock Cunningham was tasked with guarding the 6-foot-10 forward for much of the night, a matchup Timme loved to exploit. There was nothing complex about his effectiveness, as most of his points came in the paint as he put on a footwork clinic in “The Kennel.” Timme also added 7 rebounds and 3 assists to round out what was a truly remarkable performance from the Texan.
Iowa State transfer Bolton also had a phenomenal night for the top-ranked Bulldogs, going 4-6 from three. The senior guard put up 16 points, including a half-court heave with time expiring in the first half, as everything seemed to his way. Returners Anton Watson and Andrew Nembhard had strong games for Gonzaga, putting up 10 and 9 points respectively, but it really just was the Timme and Bolton show on Saturday night. The top recruit in the nation, Chet Holmgren, only chipped in with two points on three shots, as the freshman sat back and let his front court mate go to work on Texas forwards Cunningham and Christian Bishop.
It’s safe to say Texas won’t be going up against an offensive threat quite like Timme for a while, as the Longhorns welcome Northern Colorado to the Frank Erwin Center on Wednesday night, before taking on San Jose State back at home again on Saturday night.
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