5 Takeaways from Texas Basketball Win vs Incarnate Word
By Tyler Brett
With Kerwin Roach and Tevin Mack suspended for this game, the Texas bench was razor thin. The Longhorns dresssed 10 players for this game and played only eight. That meant extended minutes for many players who may not have been expecting it and it showed with signs of fatigue in the second half.
On the night, four players logged at least 32 minutes with Allen playing 36 minutes in his first college game. Freshman James Banks logged 24 minutes in this game off the bench when starting center Shaq Cleare got into foul trouble, ultimately fouling out in just 11 minutes of playing time. Walk-on Ryan McClurg played in the first half and logged six minutes for the game.
The result was tired legs for the Horns in the second half. Guys who were not ready to play that many minutes got pushed beyond their comfort level and that opened the door for UIW to make a run and eventually take the lead. Yancy himself admitted “Some of us got a little fatigued” and that can’t happen to Texas when the games get bigger.
Roach and Mack returning will be a big help. Adding two more viable players who can take on some of those minutes will ease the burden to the entire team. Texas found a way to push through their fatigue in this game to get the win but need to handle that kind of adversity better in the future.