BEVO BEAT Men's Basketball
Men’s preview: Texas vs. Connecticut
Posted December 28th, 2015
Time: 8 p.m. Tuesday
Where: Erwin Center (capacity 16,540)
TV/Radio: ESPN2/104.9 The Horn
Series history: UConn leads the all-time series, 5-3. The Longhorns won the last matchup on Jon Holmes’ last-second 3-pointer, 55-54, at Gampel Pavilion on Nov. 30, 2014.
| TEXAS (8-3 overall) | |||||||
| No. | Pos. | Player | Class | Ht. | Wt. | PPG | RPG |
| 1 | G | Isaiah Taylor | Jr. | 6-3 | 185 | 14.7 | 5.1* |
| 2 | G | Demarcus Holland | Sr. | 6-3 | 190 | 4.5 | 2.3 |
| 3 | G | Javan Felix | Sr. | 5-11 | 205 | 10.4 | 1.7* |
| 21 | F | Connor Lammert | Sr. | 6-10 | 235 | 5.9 | 5.1 |
| 44 | C | Prince Ibeh | Sr. | 6-11 | 265 | 1.2 | 3.0 |
| Coach: Shaka Smart (8-3, 1st year at Texas; 171-59, 7th year overall) | |||||||
| *-indicates assists per game | |||||||
About the Longhorns: Coach Shaka Smart’s team enjoyed a nine-day holiday break since its last game, a two-point road win over Stanford. But there was a significant setback during practice on Sunday when center Cameron Ridley suffered a broken left foot. He’ll have surgery on Tuesday. Prince Ibeh likely fills his spot in the starting lineup. … Texas ranks last in the Big 12 in free-throw shooting percentage (.611). … This is the last tuneup before Big 12 play begins at Texas Tech on Saturday. … Isaiah Taylor (14.7) is the only Texas player among the top 15 scorers in the league. He’s scored at least 20 points three this so far this season.
| CONNECTICUT (8-3 overall) | |||||||
| No. | Pos. | Player | Class | Ht. | Wt. | PPG | RPG |
| 2 | G | Jalen Adams | Fr. | 6-3 | 187 | 6.0 | 2.5 |
| 4 | G | Sterling Gibbs | Sr. | 6-2 | 191 | 11.5 | 2.3 |
| 44 | G | Rodney Purvis | Jr. | 6-4 | 205 | 15.2 | 2.9 |
| 5 | G/F | Daniel Hamilton | Soph. | 6-7 | 195 | 13.0 | 5.9* |
| 32 | F | Shonn Miller | Sr. | 6-7 | 222 | 13.0 | 5.4 |
| Coach: Kevin Ollie (80-36, 4th year at UConn) | |||||||
| *-indicates assists per game | |||||||
About the Huskies: Coach Kevin Ollie’s team also is battling injuries. Center Amida Brimah recently had surgery to repair a broken finger. He’s expected to miss at least six weeks. Brimah ranked ninth nationally with 3.0 blocks per game. Reserve guard Sam Cassell Jr. is fighting through a sprained ankle. … Still, the Huskies are one of the best shooting teams in Division I. UConn hit 58.1 percent of its shots in a 92-52 win over Central Connecticut before Christmas. Ollie praised Shonn Miller after scoring 25 points in the win. “The ball in his hands, he’s magical,” said Ollie, who is a personal friend to Texas coach Shaka Smart.
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