Roach, role players keep Texas alive

Texas owes it’s still-breathing status not only to Kerwin Roach II who beat the buzzer and Oklahoma State Saturday but also to a pair of unheralded role players whose minutes have increased lately.

Roach’s ‘Snoop Scoop’ saved Texas’ season for the time being but there is much work to be done, and if the Horns are to find a away to sneak into the NCAA Tournament in what’s been a tough campaign to say the least, they will need production from some unlikely sources.

Jacob Young and Jericho Sims weren’t at or near the top of the Texas pecking order at the beginning of the season and still aren’t. The sophomore shooting guard, the son of Phi Slama Jama royalty and the mild-mannered freshman power forward from Minneapolis knew they would take a backseat to names like Mo Bamba, Andrew Jones, Dylan Osetkowski, and Roach but time and circumstances have moved them up a couple of notches on what’s left of the depth chart.

If this up-and-down season has taught the Texas Longhorns anything, it’s to be ready when your number is called.

Meanwhile, coach Shaka Smart has tried every conceivable lineup to get a spark going, but Texas continued on this bumpy ride since conference play started. Eighteen games have come and gone and Texas has yet to put together a two-game winning streak.

Thanks to illness, injury, and Yahoo Sports, Shaka’s lineup deci- not Kawhi