Texas Basketball: 3 hot scorers that must continue to shine

Despite the loss to the No. 9 Kansas Jayhawks on the road at Allen Fieldhouse on Feb. 6, interim head coach Rodney Terry and No. 5 Texas basketball still sit in a good spot in the Big 12. Following the eight-point loss to the Jayhawks on Feb. 6, Texas is sporting a record of 19-5 (8-3 Big 12).

This is still the best start to Big 12 play in more than a decade for the Longhorns. The start was good enough to land the Longhorns in first place in the Big 12 standings a little more than halfway through conference play.

Texas has seven games remaining on the regular season docket before it is Big 12 Tournament time. And the remaining stretch of games should be at least a little bit more manageable for Terry and the Longhorns than the last few.

Texas just got done with the most difficult four-game stretch of the season, where it faced four top-11 ranked opponents in the span of a little more than one week. Three of those four games also came away from the friendly confines of the Moody Center in Austin.

The fact that Texas was able to split that four-game stretch, with a record of 2-2 is pretty solid. But more wins need to come along if Texas wants to hold off the likes of the Iowa State Cyclones, Kansas State Wildcats, Kansas, etc in the race for the Big 12 regular season crown.

Sir’Jabari Rice and Timmy Allen must continue their efficient scoring ways for Texas basketball to succeed down the stretch

Here’s a look at three hot scorers the Longhorns need to ride for the rest of the regular season if this team is to win the Big 12 regular season title.

Timmy Allen, F

One of the most versatile offensive threats among any forward in the Big 12 this season is the reigning All-Big 12 selection and senior Timmy Allen. The fifth-year senior is on pace for his second straight All-Big 12 season with the way he’s performed for Texas in conference play thus far.

After getting off to a slow start this season, Allen has averaged around 13 points per game, four rebounds, two assists, and one steal in Big 12 play.

He continues to be one of the most consistent offensive presences for Texas in Big 12 play this season. Allen ranks second on the team in points per game in conference play and fourth in offensive rating.

Allen really makes life difficult for opposing defenses since there are so many ways he can beat you. He’s able to beat you with his passing ability, off-the-dribble scoring, pulling up from the mid-range, and/or driving to the rim.

What makes Allen such a unique playmaker for the Longhorns is his combination of court vision from inside the arc and scoring ability from within 17 feet of the basket.

We’ve talked a lot about how good of a mid-range scorer Allen is for the Longhorns this season. He ranks in the top 10th percentile of Big 12 forwards in mid-range field goal percentage (per Synergy). But I don’t think he gets enough credit for how good of a scorer he is at the rim.

In Big 12 play, Allen is shooting 71 percent at the rim on more than 25 attempts.

Moreover, the numbers do a nice job of illustrating Allen’s ability to be a pretty dynamic playmaker for this offense. According to Sports Reference, Allen is the only forward in the Big 12 this season that is averaging at least a dozen points per game while posting an assist percentage of at least 14.0.

I also mentioned earlier that Allen has the ability to beat opposing defenses with his off-the-dribble scoring. He tops the Big 12 in points per possession on off-the-dribble jump shots this season.

For the second straight season, Allen is the most potent piece in Texas’ offensive frontcourt. He is a critical component to making this offense go, and he needs to remain productive down the stretch as a versatile scorer and an efficient facilitator from the elbow and the high post if Texas wants to make a deep postseason run.