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Texas Basketball: 5 takeaways amid NIT victory vs. Xavier

By Andrew Miller

NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 21: Kerwin Roach Jr. #12 of the Texas Longhorns reacts against the Northwestern Wildcats in the first half of the 2016 Legends Classic at Barclays Center on November 21, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - NOVEMBER 21: Kerwin Roach Jr. #12 of the Texas Longhorns reacts against the Northwestern Wildcats in the first half of the 2016 Legends Classic at Barclays Center on November 21, 2016 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /
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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 23: Jericho Sims #20 of the Texas Longhorns grabs a rebound against Joshua Langford #1 of the Michigan State Spartans during the championship game of the 2018 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena on November 23, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images)
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 23: Jericho Sims #20 of the Texas Longhorns grabs a rebound against Joshua Langford #1 of the Michigan State Spartans during the championship game of the 2018 Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational basketball tournament at the Orleans Arena on November 23, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Sam Wasson/Getty Images) /

5. Jericho Sims continues to excite

The potential for the frontcourt for the Texas basketball program is actually looking a lot brighter than it originally appeared. With the looming departures of senior center Dylan Osetkowski and freshman forward Jaxson Hayes, the two frequent starters in the frontcourt were set to be needs that are difficult to fill.

However, the emergence of late of sophomore big man Jericho Sims is something that will help ease the transition for the frontcourt rotation this off-season and heading into the 2019-20 campaign. A good portion of the significance of the NIT run in general for the Horns is the ability to give younger and less experienced players like Sims extra game action.

And, opponents like South Dakota State and Xavier give the younger Horns players much different looks than you would get in Big 12 play. Another big that is very promising for the Horns at the moment is growing sophomore forward Royce Hamm Jr., who got more playing time in significant parts of the game during the NIT than he did during the regular season.

We anticipated that Sims would get a lot bigger role this season after the departure of elite center Mohamed Bamba, but that didn’t play out with Hayes rising to the top of the Big 12. But, Sims posted 11 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks to help the Horns grab the win. He also had the block that forced this game into overtime in the first place.

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