Confidence abounds for Horns
MILWAUKEE — Before Courtney Ramey took his seat at the elevated podium inside Fiserv Forum on Saturday afternoon, the Texas senior flashed his pearly whites and looked out at the media peppered across rows of seats below.
“You guys look great today,” Ramey said, almost in singsong fashion.
Yeah, Texas was loose on this cold, soggy Saturday. The reason: About 19 hours earlier, the sixth-seeded Longhorns (22-11) beat dangerous No. 11 seed Virginia Tech 81-73 in the first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament, the program’s first March Madness victory since 2014.
A weight, it seemed, had been lifted. The starters smiled wide and radiated confidence, though not quite enough for senior forward and proverbial “Big Fun Guy” Timmy Allen to showcase his dance moves in public.
Still, Friday’s impressive win over the ACC tournament champions clearly did something for the Longhorns’ psyche ahead of Sunday night’s daunting second-round matchup with East Regional No. 3 seed Purdue (28-7). Especially for those four returners who spent the past year living with the agony of that firstround loss to No. 14 seed Abilene Christian.
“The first game is always the hardest game and especially with a bunch of guys who haven’t won a game in a tournament,” Ramey said. “I think that helped us out, getting that tough-fought win. And then preparing for Purdue and trying to get the win tomorrow. It’s going to be a great battle. We just want to win again.”
For Texas, battling with the Boilermakers won’t be as happy-go-lucky as its press conference was.
Purdue owns the nation’s second-most efficient offense, scoring 121.2 points per 100 possessions. Only No. 1 overall seed Gonzaga produces at a more prolific rate.
Sophomore Jaden Ivey (17.6 points, 3.1 assists per game) plays like he’s running on a Formula One engine. His limbs go on for days and make the 6-foot-4 guard’s attacks to the rim look effortless, graceful. He’s the tip of the spear.
Then there’s 7-4 mountain Zach Edey — a full 9 inches taller than Texas’ loftiest starter (6-7 Christian Bishop).
The sophomore averages 14.6 points (on 65.3 percent shooting), 7.8 rebounds, 1.3 blocks and 1.3 assists in just 19.2 minutes per game. Edey required only 20 minutes to score 16, grab nine boards and block three shots in Purdue’s 78-56 win over No. 14 seed Yale on Friday.
Texas also has to worry about 6-10 senior Trevion Williams, the Big Ten sixth man of the year who’s averaging 11.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists.
The Longhorns will have to counter with speed and guile. Ramey and the guards will have to dig down on post touches and try to harass Purdue’s bigs into mistakes without leaving the nation’s fourth-most efficient 3-point shooting team (38.9 percent) too much freedom around the arc. Some quality minutes from 6-9 backup forward Dylan Disu wouldn’t hurt, either.
“In my opinion, a part of Purdue’s identity is their size,” Texas coach Chris Beard said Saturday. “Coach (Matt) Painter’s teams always seem to have some of the biggest players in college basketball, so all sorts of challenges with that. I think there’s some challenges (for them) on the other end, though. It goes both ways.”
Beard knows Painter well, calling the longtime Purdue coach “one of my mentors in coaching.” But Beard’s had the edge over his friend in March.
Back in 2016, Beard’s first and only season at Little Rock, the 12th-seeded Trojans beat Painter’s fifthseeded Boilermakers in a first-round double-overtime thriller. Beard got the best of Painter again two years later when Texas Tech topped Purdue in the Sweet Sixteen.
Texas senior guard Marcus Carr is familiar with Purdue’s brand of ball, too. He faced the Boilermakers three times over the past two years while at Minnesota, averaging 17.3 points, five rebounds and 4.7 assists with a 1-2 record.
“I’ve had some great battles with Purdue and Coach Painter,” Carr said. “They’re a great team. Obviously, it’s nice to know an opponent, but me playing them, that was last year and two years ago. And this is a whole new season.”
And it could be that we’re seeing a whole new Texas, one capable of advancing to the NCAA Tournament’s second weekend for the first time since 2008. At least that’s the impression the Longhorns gave Saturday afternoon.
They’re enjoying the moment. They also want to seize it.
“We have a twofold plan in March Madness,” Beard said after his players strutted off stage. “One is always to be us. That means when it’s time to work, we’re going to work. But when it’s time to enjoy ourselves, we’re not gonna act like we’re a funeral line here. We’re in March Madness, we’re one of 32 teams left in the tournament and we want to enjoy it. We definitely want to enjoy the ride and smell the roses.”