No. 14 Texas Uses 2nd-Half Rally to Beat No. 17 Kansas in Overtime, 75-72

The No. 14 Texas Longhorns earned a much-needed win.

Texas defeated the No. 17 Kansas Jayhawks 75-72 in overtime in Tuesday's Big 12 showdown at Frank Erwin Center. Courtney Ramey, Matt Coleman III and Andrew Jones led the way for the victors, who improved to 14-6 overall and 8-5 in conference play while snapping a rough streak that saw them go just 2-4 in their previous six games.

Solid showings from Jalen Wilson and Ochai Agbaji were not enough for the Jayhawks, who saw their five-game winning streak come to an end as they fell to 17-8 overall and 11-6 in the Big 12.

Notable Player Stats

• Courtney Ramey, G, TEX: 15 PTS, 3 AST
• Andrew Jones, G, TEX: 13 PTS, 10 REB, 2 STL
• Matt Coleman III, G, TEX: 11 PTS, 9 REB, 5 AST
• Ochai Agbaji, G, KAN: 17 PTS, 5-of-11 3PT
• Jalen Wilson, F, KAN: 16 PTS, 134 REB, 3 AST

Texas Avoids Another Heartbreaking Loss with Comeback

It's easy to look at Texas' resume and think about what could have been.

After all, it lost to Villanova by four, Texas Tech by two, Oklahoma by one, Oklahoma State in double-overtime and West Virginia by two after blowing a commanding lead. If those close games went the other direction, the Longhorns could be battling for a No. 1 seed instead of somewhere in the Nos. 3-5 range.

One game that wasn't close was its blowout win over Kansas in the first matchup, but Tuesday was a much different story in the early going.

In fact, the only reason the Longhorns were even within striking distance by halftime was their ability to get to the free-throw line. They struggled to create anything against the Jayhawks' strong defense and quickly found themselves in a double-digit hole.

Texas flipped the switch by dialing up its own defensive intensity and stringing enough stops together to give its offense a chance to find its footing. It finally did when Greg Brown hit from the outside, Coleman battled for boards and facilitated, and Jones drilled a deep three to give his team a lead with less than 10 minutes remaining.

Ramey's penetration and playmaking, along with Kai Jones' presence down low, also helped the extended run that once again put Texas in a close game in crunch time.

While the Longhorns didn't score a single point in the final three minutes of regulation, their defense held Kansas to just two during that stretch. That effort, along with enough free throws in overtime, was enough to prevent yet another heartbreaking loss.

Kansas' Winning Streak Comes to an End with Collapse

A major theme of this college basketball season has been the struggles of blue bloods with Duke, North Carolina, Kentucky and Michigan State all dealing with inconsistency and, perhaps, tournament-less fates.

It appeared as if Kansas were going to be included on that list during a 2-5 stretch in January and early February that dropped it to 12-7. It also had a stunning 25-point home loss to Texas on Jan. 2 weighing down its resume in a game that seemed to suggest it was a step below the top teams in the conference.

The previous five wins largely changed the narrative for the Jayhawks, and Tuesday was an opportunity to prove the first game against the Longhorns was an aberration.

They did just that in the first half by swarming outside shooters and pressuring ball-handlers on the defensive end. As a result, Texas had nine turnovers and a 1-of-13 shooting mark from deep by halftime while struggling to consistently get into its offensive sets.

It wasn't all defense, as Agbaji caught fire from deep, Bryce Thompson provided a spark off the bench and Wilson controlled the boards while getting to the line.

However, everything that went right in the first half for the visitors went wrong in the second half. The red-hot shooting disappeared on the offensive side, and they struggled to keep the Longhorns out of the lane on the defensive side. The defensive issues necessitated a switch to a 2-3 zone for a stretch after they set the tone on that side of the ball at the start.

Even with all that, Kansas had an opportunity to win with even average offensive play in crunch time.

Yet it scored two points in the last three minutes of regulation off a David McCormack shot in the final 10 seconds and managed just six in overtime. Wilson still had a chance to force double-overtime with a wide-open drive down the lane while down two in the closing seconds, but he turned it over to complete the Jayhawks' collapse.

What's Next?

Both teams are in action Saturday when Kansas hosts Baylor and Texas is at Texas Tech.