The Horns try to bounce back from an ugly second half against the Aggies, but it won’t be an easy task.
The SEC home debut for the Texas Longhorns comes on Tuesday at the Moody Center against the No. 2 Auburn Tigers as head coach Rodney Terry’s team tries to recover from an 80-60 loss to the then-No. 13 Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday in College Station.
It’s not just the second conference game for the Longhorns in their inaugural season in the nation’s best basketball league, it’s also the second of five consecutive games against top-25 opponents, a grueling start for Texas, and the third all-time meeting between the two programs. The last meeting came in 1955 in Montgomery, Ala.
“If you want to be one of the best teams in the country, you’ve got to be able to win on the road,” Auburn forward Johni Broome said. “We wanted this, to test ourselves again. Going to Texas and South Carolina will be a good test for us.”
The odds reflect the challenge for Texas — the Horns are 10.5-point underdogs against the Tigers for the 8 p.m. Central tip in Austin on ESPN2, the first game in an historic stretch that will see Texas face the No. 1 and No. 2 teams in the country in consecutive games for the first time in program history.
“They’re looking for a signature win. One they could hang their hat on. This is their first opportunity in the league at home. I would imagine they’re going to be fired up to play the No. 2 team in the country in their building,” Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said.
“The prize on our head is significant. When you can beat teams that are ranked, it’s a separator. We’re going to have to play our best to win.”
BartTorvik.com gives Texas an 18-percent win probability against Auburn with a projected score of 81-71, so the team’s overall trajectory is arguably more important.
Against Texas A&M, there were multiple concerning signs for Texas, including a 56.1 percent free-throw rate for the Aggies, making it by far the worst defensive performance of the season for the Horns in that category.
The free-throw rate wasn’t just a result of the physical dominance for A&M and its powerful frontcourt — it was a result of poor fundamentals on defense by Texas, which couldn’t stay in front of opposing players off the bounce even though the Aggies went 2-of-19 shooting from three and spent most of the game reaching and hacking on defense yet somehow committing soft fouls that frequently allowed A&M players to finish through contact. When the Horns gave up dribble penetration, the first and second rotations were slow and ineffective.
The size and strength advantage of the Aggies did have a wide-ranging impact, too, especially when A&M players sealed Texas defenders around the basket, contributing to 17-of-24 shooting on layups by the home team.
Offensively, the Longhorns only attempted 10 layups, making seven. Tre Johnson was made a jump shooter as Texas A&M focused its defensive efforts on the star freshman guard, who lost enough rhythm throughout the game to miss a handful of open shots he typically makes, finishing the game with 11 points on 2-of-13 shooting, missing all five three-point attempts, his first college game without a made three.
The reality for this Texas team is that it can’t win against SEC opponents if it can’t defend at a higher level and receive more consistent performances from Johnson.
With the nation’s No. 1 offense in adjusted efficiency and the No. 15 defense, Auburn brings an elite team to Austin under Pearl led by Broome, an all-around performer for the Tigers who can do it all — shoot some from distance. hit mid-range jumpers, finish around the rim, make sound decisions with the basketball, find open teammates, clean up the glass on the offensive and defensive ends, and block shots. Broome is averaging a double-double at 18.6 points per game and 11.1 rebounds per game while also leading Auburn in assists with 46.
Three guards also average double-digit scoring and serve as playmakers — Tahaad Pettiford, Denver Jones, and Chad Baker-Mazara. All three have 39 or more assists and shoot 38 percent or better from three-point range, allowing the Tigers to stretch the court around Broome to allow him room to operate.
Overall, the Auburn offense ranks second nationally in effective field-goal percentage and two-point field-goal percentage, ninth in turnover rate, 35th in offensive rebounding rate, and 37th in three-point shooting percentage. Defensively, the Tigers defend the paint well, blocking shots at the seventh-best rate nationally while limiting opponents to the sixth-best two-point field-goal percentage in the country.
In an 84-78 loss to No. 4 Duke in early December, the only defeat of the season for 13-1 Auburn — and the only true road game for Pearl’s team this year — the Tigers struggled to get to the free-throw line and couldn’t turn the Blue Devils over, but there aren’t any glaring weaknesses for Auburn’s team.
And that means things could get ugly again for the Longhorns if they can’t play with better fundamentals on defense and receive a more efficient performance from Johnson.