Texas Longhorns forward Dylan Disu shoots the ball while defended by Colorado State Rams forward Joel Scott. Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Texas wins low-scoring NCAA Tournament rock fight vs. Colorado State

Texas' 56-44 win on Thursday night over Colorado State certainly wasn't pretty, but it's the kind of game a team can build upon in March.

Texas held Colorado State to just 11 points in the first half and held on over the final 20 minutes to advance to the Round of 32, where the Longhorns will face the winner of the Tennessee-Saint Peter's matchup that takes place later on Thursday evening. 

Colorado State was held to a paltry 29.8 percent mark from the field, and while Texas wasn't much better, the Longhorns had enough offense to pull away and end the Rams season. Colorado State's two main woes were three-point shooting (6-of-24) and turnovers. The Rams committed 19 turnovers to Texas' 12, the death knell for a CSU squad that simply couldn't put the ball in the bucket, despite being given multiple wide-open looks from beyond the arc. 

Max Abmas and Dylan Disu led the Longhorns with 12 points each, while Joel Scott and Isaiah Stevens led the Rams with 10 points apiece. 

While Texas certainly won't want to watch the film of this game on repeat, you'll take a win however you can get it when the NCAA Tournament comes around. If the Longhorns are involved in another tight rock fight later in the tournament, they can rely on their experience in this game to propel them forward. 

The Longhorns will take on the winner of Tennessee and Saint Peters on Saturday. 

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