Top-10 list grows as freshmen soar
AUSTIN — Once per week, Texas coach Shaka Smart hosts freshman orientation. He pulls Eric Davis, Tevin Mack and Kerwin Roach away from the rest of his team and spends an hour exploring themes ranging from confidence to commitment.
Why does he treat the teenagers differently?
“They are separate,” Smart said. “They might as well be from a different universe.”
In No. 24 UT’s 85-78 victory over No. 10 West Virginia at the Erwin Center on Tuesday night, the extraterrestrial efforts of the Longhorns’ young trio proved enough to make a difference in this world, too.
Davis, Mack and Roach combined for 33 points and committed only one turnover, lifting UT to its fifth upset of a ranked opponent this season. It marked the third time the Longhorns have beaten a team in the Top 10 and the second time they knocked off the Mountaineers.
And although junior point guard Isaiah Taylor led UT with 23 points and seven assists, it was Davis who changed the game in the final 6:36 before halftime. In that stretch, he swished four 3-point-
ers and scored all 15 of his points in a flurry he said he expected despite his recent shooting slump.
“I’m always confident,” Davis said. “Make or miss, I’m still hot.”
Davis’ outburst was needed after the Longhorns (17-9, 8-5 Big 12) stumbled their way through a sloppy start, digging themselves an eightpoint hole in the first seven minutes.
With 8:55 remaining in the first half, the Mountaineers (20-6, 9-4), who already were playing without guard Daxter Miles due to an injured hamstring, suffered another blow. Leading scorer Jaysean Paige sprained his ankle and didn’t return.
UT took advantage. Davis, who had scored only seven points in his previous four games combined, took aim at the rim over and over again, and before long his teammates were in on the act, too.
“That run was big for our team,” Smart said. “He really transformed our approach.”
The way West Virginia coach Bob Huggins saw it, once the Longhorns started rolling, there was little he could do to stop them. With his top two guards unavailable, the Mountaineers couldn’t press the way they normally do and couldn’t keep up with the Longhorns, either.
“We got tired,” Huggins said. “I tried to play zone, which obviously was not the right thing to do. They made shots. … When they make shots like that, they’re pretty good.”
Smart said it was no coincidence Davis played one of his best games Tuesday. After a rough outing at Iowa State three days earlier, Smart challenged his precocious guard to get sweating.
“You’ve got to get in the gym, man,” Smart said he told Davis. “You’ve got to work on your game. This isn’t high school, when it’s easy.”
So after practice Sunday and Monday, Davis put in what Smart estimated was an extra hour and a half of individual work. And after he, Mack (10 points) and Roach (eight points) all starred Tuesday?
They figured they could get used to it.
“We’re freshmen,” Davis said. “We don’t know any better.”