Max Abmas Scores 26, Texas Holds Off Texas State

Originally posted on FanNation Longhorns Country
By Zach Dimmitt | Last updated 12/1/23

AUSTIN, Texas -- The Texas Longhorns certainly made things more interesting than they had to on Thursday night at the Moody Center against the Texas State Bobcats.

But despite facing the pressure of suffering a massive upset at home, No. 16 Texas (6-1) overcame its inconsistencies and pulled away from the Bobcats (3-5) in a 77-58 win.

The Longhorns got a season-best 26 points and six assists from guard Max Abmas while Kadin Shedrick and Dillon Mitchell both had 11 points and 11 rebounds apiece.

“Continuing to stay the course and trust my work, never getting too high or too low, that’s big for me,” Abmas said. “I’m going to shoot with a lot of confidence.”

Texas State got a team-high 15 points from guard Dylan Dawson while forward Brandon Love had 14 points and five rebounds.

The Longhorns jumped out to a 25-4 lead and looked like they’d cruise to another non-conference home win. Instead, Texas ended up going nearly seven minutes without scoring from this point as the Bobcats put together a 14-0 run. The Longhorns led 36-26 at halftime, missing out on their chance to put an early nail in Texas State’s coffin.

But the Bobcats weren’t done.

Texas State used that first-half momentum and built a 42-38 lead a few minutes into the second half.

The Longhorns quickly woke up after trailing 50-49 and used a 13-0 run to blow the game open. Texas’ starters stayed in till the very end to make what was once a close game appear like a blowout on paper.

The Longhorns have shown they can overcome slow starts and respond, much like they did in the 81-71 loss to UConn on Nov. 20. But this likely won’t fly in their second Big East matchup of non-conference play, as Texas will face arguably its toughest test of the season on Wednesday against the No. 3 Marquette Golden Eagles at Fiserv Forum.

This article first appeared on FanNation Longhorns Country and was syndicated with permission.

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