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AUSTIN -- With three games left in the regular season, the Longhorns still have to answer questions about their legitimacy as a contender in the Big 12.
Wednesday night's 75-66 win over TCU was promising, considering the Horns were down by as much as 10 in the second half on their home floor. Texas coach Chris Beard smiled and laughed with his guard tandem of Marcus Carr and Andrew Jones at the podium following the win, but the team's mantra has been clear all season: next game on the schedule.
No. 20 Texas (20-8, 9-6 Big 12) travels to Morgantown to take on West Virginia (14-14, 3-12) Saturday afternoon in what will be the second meeting between the two teams this season.
Texas opened up conference play on New Year's Day with an easy-going 74-59 win over the Mountaineers. Since then, the Mountaineers have won just three games in conference play and are currently last in the Big 12 standings.
Coach Bob Huggins' team was severely shorthanded in that game, making Saturday's matchup a bit unpredictable for both sides.
"West Virginia's three of four wins away from getting to the NCAA tournament," Beard said. "Whenever you play against a coach Huggins' team, the records really don't mean much. It's one of the toughest places to play in the country. We'll have to play our best 40 of the year.”
The biggest difference this time around? West Virginia guard Taz Sherman will be available after missing the first meeting due to health and safety protocols. He's the Big 12's second-leading scorer (18.5) behind Kansas' Ochai Agbaji.
"He’s one of the best scorers not only in our league, but in college basketball," Beard said in January. "He’s run his own race at Wear Virginia. He came into our league and ran his own race and developed from a guy that was playing a role to a guy that was a full-time player. Now he’s certainly taken advantage of this last season."
Sherman is the clear driving force for WVU and is arguably one of the most natural scorers in the country. There's a near six-point separation in scoring average between him and the team's second-leading scorer, guard Sean McNeil (12.7 points).
It should be an entertaining matchup of guard play, as Texas' Jones is on one of the hottest scoring streaks of his six-year career. He's posted double figures in six-straight games, including 20 or more in the past three contests.
Jones has been Texas' go-to 3-point shooter as of late, but spent no time behind the arc in the win over TCU, scoring a game-high 21 without a make from deep.
"Tonight was one of the better games I've seen (Jones) play," Beard said Wednesday. "I don't think he made a 3-point shot and he puts 21 on the board. He had the ball in his hands a lot and he only had one turnover. His basketball IQ was off the charts."
A win would help push the Longhorns up the standings in the Big 12 race headed into the postseason tournament. A late-season test in front of what should be a ruckus crowd in Morgantown could do wonders for the team down the stretch.
Saturday's tip is scheduled for 1 p.m. C.T.
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