Longhorns Notebook: No. 1 Texas' Offense Surges Late in 9-3 Win Over Lamar

Not all wins are created equal. Some games will see you pour on runs early and often, cruising to a blowout win, possibly in run-rule fashion. Others, though, are sensational pitcher's duels where runs are at a premum and one swing of the bat can change the game completely.

For the No. 1 Texas Longhorns (39-8), their final midweek game of the year against the Lamar Cardinals (37-15) managed to be both in the same game. What started out as a low-scoring affair wound up being a comfortable win for the Longhorns, as they would get the bats going late and pick up a 9-3 victory over a strong Lamar squad.

Now, here are three key takeaways from the Longhorns' 9-3 win over the Cardinals.

Texas Longhorns catcher Rylan Galvan (6) celebrates a home run by outfielder Tommy Farmer IV (43) during the Lone Star Showdown against Texas A&M. | Aaron E. Martinez/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Patience at the plate

In their sweep at the hands of the Arkansas Razorbacks, the Longhorns struggled mightily to show any signs of discipline at the plate. Over the course of the three-game series they struck out a combined 38 times, including double-digit K's in each of the first two games. That was far from the case against Lamar.

No, Texas seemingly did a complete 180 at the plate from Sunday afternoon to Tuesday evening. Every batter that stepped to the plated was patient, worked counts and forced pitchers to work. As a team they drew an astounding 16 walks, plus two hit batters, to rack up 18 free passes.

If this version of the Longhorns offense is who we see the final six games of the season and into postseason play, then they'll be an even harder team to beat.

Big hits come late

For the first seven innings of this one it was maddening to watch if you were a Longhorns fans. They loaded the bases five times, drew 10-plus walks but left an inexcusable 15 men on base in the process. Then in the eighth it appeared to be trending in that direction again.

Adrian Rodriguez got the inning started with a single, but two quick outs had the Longhorns on the brink of taking a 4-3 lead into the ninth. Casey Borba said no to that, though, as he launched a two-run shot to make it 6-3 and open the floodgates. Following him would be Rylan Galvan with a two-run double and Jalin Flores with an RBI single, as Texas scored five two-out runs to surge ahead 9-3.

Time to buckle up

With the win over the Cardinals, Texas officially has no more midweek games left this season. All that's standing between them and the postseason is two more conference series and then the SEC Tournament. First, a three-game home set against a hot Florida Gators squad.

As it currently stands, they hold onto a narrow two-game lead over the Razorbacks atop the SEC standings. Behind them are the Georgia Bulldogs and LSU Tigers in a tie for third at four games back. A conference title is still within grasp for the Longhorns, as long as they stay focused and handle their business over these next six games.

What's next for Texas?

The Longhorns are back in action on Friday evening, as they kick off their final home conference series of the season against the Florida Gators at 6:30 p.m. CT from UFCU Disch-Falk Field.