Austin, TX – After a tough loss to the Michigan Wolverines on Wednesday, the Texas Longhorns rebounded with a hard fought 75-60 victory on Saturday against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.
Opening the game with a 7-0 run, the Longhorns were aggressive at the rim (16 points in the paint) and on the defensive end causing 12 turnovers in the first half. After struggling from the field in their last game, the Longhorns had a strong showing against the Bulldogs shooting 49 percent (24-of-49) on the day and 42.9 percent from behind-the-arc (6-of-14).
Dylan Osetkowski added another strong performance to his stellar season recording 22 points and seven rebounds (13 points in the first half) on the day. With Andrew Jones out indefinitely with a wrist injury, Osetkowski has emerged as the clear leader of this young Texas team. Over the past three games, he has shown the ability to stretch the floor and make defenses pay if they decide to not close out on him as a shooter ( 8-of-15 3PT in last 3 games).
Dylan Osetkowski
Although plagued with foul trouble for much of the game, Mohamed Bamba still recorded 14 points and nine rebounds in just 18 minutes of action. He tied his career high in blocks (5) which included a help side block on the first possession of the game that set the tone early. His growing chemistry with Osetkowski was apparent on Saturday afternoon as their two-man game / high-low actions resulted in a score on multiple possessions.
Louisiana Tech struggled on the offensive end of the floor much of the night shooting a season low 33.9 percent from the field. A four-minute scoring drought in the first half put the Bulldogs in hole that they couldn’t quite climb their way out of. The Bulldogs did manage to cut the Longhorn lead to just four points with 9:30 left on the clock before they fell victim to another scoring drought (one basket in 4:59).
Scoring 20 of his 24 points in the second half, DaQuan Bracey was a big part of the Bulldogs’ comeback effort. Clearly the fastest player on the court, Bracey used his speed to get to the basket throughout the second half, scoring at the rim on multiple occasions.
Two of the Bulldogs top scorers going into Wednesday’s contest, Jacobi Boykins (14 ppg) and Jalen Harris (16.4 ppg), were unable to find any success offensively shooting a combined 4-of-20 from the field (2-of-12 3PT).
One of the Bulldogs that shined was freshman Anthony Duruji. The athletic wingman was all over the floor defensively contesting shots, protecting the rim and jumping passing lanes. Duruji set career highs in points (10), rebounds (7), blocks (3) and steals (2).
Texas (7-3) will host Tennessee State this Monday.. Louisiana Tech (7-4) will play Alabama State next Thursday as part of the New Orleans Shootout.
This article was written by Justin Ullestad, a correspondent and scout for NetScouts Basketball. You can follow us on Facebook, or on twitter.
We are looking for those interested in our basketball scout certification program. For information contact us and forward your resume.
