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Texas Basketball vs. Radford: 5 bold predictions against Highlanders

By Andrew Miller

DAYTON, OH - MARCH 13: Ed Polite Jr. #24 of the Radford Highlanders grabs a loose ball during the game against the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds at UD Arena on March 13, 2018 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images)
DAYTON, OH - MARCH 13: Ed Polite Jr. #24 of the Radford Highlanders grabs a loose ball during the game against the LIU Brooklyn Blackbirds at UD Arena on March 13, 2018 in Dayton, Ohio. (Photo by Kirk Irwin/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 22: Cameron Johnson #13 and Garrison Brooks #15 of the North Carolina Tar Heels trap Elijah Mitrou-Long #55 of the Texas Longhorns during the 2018 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena on November 22, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Texas defeated North Carolina 92-89. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 22: Cameron Johnson #13 and Garrison Brooks #15 of the North Carolina Tar Heels trap Elijah Mitrou-Long #55 of the Texas Longhorns during the 2018 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena on November 22, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Texas defeated North Carolina 92-89. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images) /

2. Texas turns the ball over 10 times

Depending on which college hoops team you’re talking about, turning the ball over 10 times per game against a non-major conference team isn’t a great mark. Against a solid team from the Big South in Radford that could boast one of the best defenses in the conference, turning the ball over less than 15 teams is a key to victory.

Texas basketball is one of the more efficient teams in the nation in terms of managing turnovers. Funny enough, that is something that both the men’s basketball program and football program can boast this season. Texas ranks in the top 50 teams in the nation in total turnovers this season, which is a good sign with such a grueling slate upcoming.

Most of the burden to avoid turnovers will fall on sophomore point guard Matt Coleman. The strengths of Coleman lie more on his defensive ability, but he has to improve on the other end of the court too. The correlation between Coleman’s usage rate and turnover rate is too close to be an efficient point guard in the Big 12.

Coleman’s turnover rate is getting better, but is still over 14 percent, and his usage rate is barely above 20 percent. His offensive rating, defensive rating, and player efficiency rating are on the decline this season. However, it is early and Coleman can get back on track with a solid performance minimizing mistakes for the Horns.

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