BEVO BEAT Men's Basketball
Men’s preview: Texas vs. Central Michigan
Longhorns-Chippewas meet at 1 p.m. Saturday at the Erwin Center as Shaka Smart's club continues its 8-1 start
Posted December 13th, 2019
Texas vs. Central Michigan
When: 1 p.m. Saturday
Where: Erwin Center (capacity 16,540)
TV/radio: Longhorn Network/104.9 The Horn
About the series: First meeting
TEXAS (8-1)
No. Pos. Player Class Ht. PPG RPG
2 G Matt Coleman III Jr. 6-2 13.1 4.8*
3 G Courtney Ramey Soph. 6-3 9.6 4.4
13 G Jase Febres Jr. 6-5 9.6 2.3
0 F Gerald Liddell Soph. 6-8 5.9 4.4
20 F Jericho Sims Jr. 6-9 8.6 6.7
Coach: Shaka Smart (79-67, 5th year at Texas; 242-123, 11th year overall)
*-indicates assists per game.
About the Longhorns: New assistant coach Luke Yaklich has brought a renewed emphasis on defending the 3-point line. It’s working. Texas ranks 13th nationally in made 3-pointers allowed (42) and ninth nationally in opponents’ 3-pointers attempted (132). Opponents are hitting 31.8% against Texas from beyond the arc. “Any time you can hold a team at 30% or below that or a little bit below that, that’s terrific,” coach Shaka Smart said. “But you’re 2-point percentage really matters, too. You don’t want to give up a bunch of layups.” Opponents are hitting 44.9% of their 2-point shots against Texas, which ranks 74th nationally. At 8-1, this is the best start in Smart’s five seasons with the Longhorns.
CENTRAL MICHIGAN (7-3)
No. Pos. Player Class Ht. PPG RPG
2 G Devontae Lane Jr. 6-2 9.4 4.1*
14 F David DiLeo Sr. 6-7 13.0 4.0
20 G Kevin McKay Sr. 6-5 15.7 6.1
5 F Rob Montgomery Sr. 6-6 12.1 5.7
23 G Dallas Morgan Sr. 6-1 14.1 4.2
Coach: Keno Davis (128-112, 8th year at Central Michigan; 202-167, 12th year overall)
*-indicates assists per game.
About the Chippewas: Big 12 teams have been pushed hard this week and came out on top. Texas Tech took down No. 1-ranked Louisville. Baylor beat No. 12 Arizona and No. 18 Butler in a four-day span. Central Michigan hasn’t played since Sunday’s 77-55 loss at Valparaiso. In that game, McKay became the 35th Chippewa in school history to reach the 1,000-point club. He’s having a career-year scoring wise while shooting 63.1% from the floor. As a team, Central Michigan shoots 34.4% from 3-point range. It’s Star Wars day at the Erwin Center, too. The first 1,500 fans will receive a Star Wars shirt, and movie characters will be available on the concourse for pictures. Doors open at 11:30 a.m.
Contact Brian Davis at 512-445-3957. Email bdavis@statesman.com.
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