Texas Men's Basketball Drops In Latest AP Poll Rankings
The Texas Longhorns men's basketball team should remain at the forefront of the Big 12 standings entering the second half of the season. That said, the Longhorns did lose ground in the national standings following a mixed week on the court.
The Longhorns dropped from No. 7 to No. 10 in the latest Associated Press men’s college basketball poll after going 1-1 in Week 11. Texas lost on the road against No. 12 Iowa State in a 78-67 upset on Tuesday, but picked up a 69-61 win against West Virginia at the WVU Coliseum on Saturday afternoon.
Marcus Carr was the driving for the Longhorns (16-3, 5-2 Big 12) on Saturday in the second half, scoring 19 of his 23 points in the final 20 minutes of action. The senior finished 8-for-14 from the field and was 5-of-6 from the free-throw line.
“Marcus all year long has let the game come to him,” Texas interim coach Rodney Terry said. “He doesn’t come out and force it. He got a couple of really good looks. Once he sees that basketball go through the basket, it opens up a lot for him. It really creates a whole different way of carrying himself on that end of the floor.”
Since the firing of Chris Beard, Terry has made the case to remain the permanent head coach following the season's conclusion. Under his watch, the Longhorns are 9-2 overall and 5-2 in conference play.
The Longhorns welcome Oklahoma State to the Moody Center on Tuesday night for an 8 p.m. tip-off before hitting the road once more to face No. 4 Tennessee as part of the Big 12-SEC Challenge. The Volunteers (16-3, 6-1 SEC) are currently on a two-game winning streak following their 63-58 loss to Kentucky earlier this month.
Purdue moved back to the No. 1 spot Monday following Houston's upset loss to Temple Sunday, receiving 39 of 62 first-place. Alabama was second with 23 first-place votes, while the Cougars dropped to No. 3.
Other Big 12 teams ranked inside the top 25 include No. 5 Kansas State, No. 9 Kansas, No. 11 TCU, No. 12 Iowa State, and No. 17 Baylor. The Longhorns will face the Bears at home and the Wildcats and Jayhawks on the road following their trip to Knoxville.
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