Texas will look to bounce back and take another step back towards the top 25 when they play New Mexico State on Thursday in Austin, Texas. The Longhorns (7-2) have four nonconference games remaining before they begin Southeastern Conference play in the new year. Texas lost 76-65 at home to two-time defending champion Yukon on Sunday, ending its winning streak at seven as freshman Tre Johnson’s 24 points weren’t enough to overcome a rocky first half. Arthur Calma added 20 points and nine rebounds in the loss, but he and Johnson were the only Texas players to score six or more points. The Longhorns trailed by 18 points at halftime, but never got closer than eight points in the second half. “The SEC is no joke,” Kalma opined. “Losses like that (at UConn) help you build film and look back and see what you really need to improve on. We have to learn a lot from that game, and we I feel like it’s going to be a lot better for that. ” Johnson went on to have a great rookie campaign. He has been either the team’s leading scorer or tied for the team’s leading scorer in all nine games in college. The Aggies (4-5) head to Austin after an 89-83 overtime road win over New Mexico on Saturday. New Mexico State was led by Christian Cook with 27 points, Robert Carpenter scored 20 points, and the Aggies ended their losing streak at five. New Mexico State overcame 17 turnovers and 20 fouls to score 10 of the first 12 points in overtime and easily held on for the win. “To really break (the losing streak), it doesn’t matter who we play,” Aggies coach Jason Hooten said. “Any win would be good at that point, but I know how much it (a win against the Lobos) meant to everyone.” Thursday’s matchup was the fifth in series history for both teams since 1979 and 2007. This will be the first time since November. The Longhorns have won three of the past four meetings. –Field level media
