AUSTIN (KXAN) — What’s become a cliché every March couldn’t have rang more true for the Texas men’s basketball team Thursday night in Charlotte.
Survive and advance.
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The Longhorns, seeded No. 7 in the Midwest Region in the NCAA tournament, held off a pesky 10th-seeded Colorado State squad 56-44 to win the opening round of March Madness.
Neither team played well in the first half, but Colorado State certainly played the worst of the two. The Rams made just five shots in 27 attempts during the first half, ending with 11 points, and even shooting below 40% for the half, Texas built a 27-11 halftime lead. Max Abmas scored the final five points of the half for Texas with the last shot coming on a 30-foot 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
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Texas forward Dillon Mitchell (23) and Texas guard Tyrese Hunter (4) celebrate a three-point shot against Colorado State during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas guard Tyrese Hunter (4) has his shot blocked by Colorado State guard Nique Clifford (10) during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Dillon Mitchell (23) steals the ball from Colorado State forward Patrick Cartier (12) during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Brock Cunningham (30) vies for a loose ball with Colorado State forward Joel Scott (1) during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Kadin Shedrick (5) loses the ball against Colorado State guard Rashaan Mbemba (21) during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas guard Tyrese Hunter (4) shoots against Colorado State guard Joe Palmer (20) during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Brock Cunningham (30) moves the ball after a steal against Colorado State during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas guard Max Abmas (3) moves the ball against Colorado State during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas head coach Rodney Terry speaks during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament against Colorado State, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Colorado State head coach Niko Medved reacts to play against Texas during the first half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Kadin Shedrick (5) vies for a loose ball with Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens (4) during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas head coach Rodney Terry celebrates during the second half of a first-round college basketball game against Colorado State in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Texas forward Dylan Disu (1) and Colorado State forward Joel Scott (1) work for a rebound during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens (4) moves the ball against Texas during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Dylan Disu (1) looses the ball as Colorado State forward Patrick Cartier (12) looks on during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Colorado State forward Patrick Cartier (12) vies for the ball against Texas guard Chendall Weaver (2) during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Dylan Disu shoots between Colorado State guard Joe Palmer and forward Patrick Cartier during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Colorado State guard Jalen Lake (15) blocks a shot by Texas guard Max Abmas (3) during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas guard Chendall Weaver (2) shoots over Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens (4) during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas guard Chendall Weaver (2) moves the ball against Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens (4) during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Colorado State forward Joel Scott (1) shoots against Texas during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Kadin Shedrick (5) dunks the ball against Colorado State during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Texas forward Kadin Shedrick shoots over Colorado State forward Patrick Cartier during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Texas guard Max Abmas (3) shoots against Colorado State guard Josiah Strong (3) during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in that NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart) -
Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens pulls a rebound away from Texas guard Chendall Weaver during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Texas guard Tyrese Hunter shoots over Colorado State guard Isaiah Stevens during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Colorado State guard Jalen Lake passes against Texas during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Texas guard Chendall Weaver shoots over Colorado State forward Patrick Cartier during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Texas forward Dylan Disu vies for the ball with Colorado State forward Joel Scott during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson) -
Colorado State forward Joel Scott fouls Texas guard Tyrese Hunter during the second half of a first-round college basketball game in the NCAA Tournament, Thursday, March 21, 2024, in Charlotte, N.C. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)
That was the offensive highlight of the night for both teams as buckets were hard to come by. The Rams chipped into the Texas advantage and cut it to six points on a Joel Scott layup with 4:11 left, but Dylan Disu came through when the Longhorns needed him with three points the hard way on the following possession. Disu struggled shooting and was 3 for 15 up to that point, but he hit a tough shot inside as he absorbed contact from Scott. Disu made the foul shot to stretch Texas’ lead back to 47-38 with 3:47 left. Disu finished with 12 points on 5 of 18 shooting.
“I tried to stay aggressive, and it’s hard to do that when the shots aren’t falling,” Disu said. “I was just trying to stay with it.”
Colorado State did a lot of damage to themselves with 19 turnovers, leading to 17 Texas points. The Rams came into the game averaging around 77 points per game but had its lowest offensive output in three seasons Thursday against the Longhorns. Colorado State point guard Isaiah Stevens was held scoreless in the first half and finished with 10 points on 4 of 16 shooting. Stevens came into the game averaging 16.2 points per game.
“He’s really important to those guys,” Longhorns head coach Rodney Terry said of Stevens. “People are going to see the box score and see Tyese Hunter with eight points, but he did a great job defending Stevens. He took that challenge on with a smile on his face. Tyrese is all about winning.”
Colorado State shot 29% from the field, 17 for 58, and 6 of 24 from 3-point range. Texas was 40% from the field but was abysmal from 3-point range shooting 1 for 14. The Longhorns were 11 for 17 from the foul line compared to Colorado State’s 4-for-6 performance.
Chendall Weaver provided a huge boost off the bench for the Longhorns with 11 points on 5 of 7 shooting in 29 minutes. Abmas finished with 12 points on 5 of 15 shooting and Ithiel Horton pulled down seven rebounds for Texas.
Texas (21-12) will play either No. 2 Tennessee or No. 15 Saint Peter’s in the second round Saturday.