Texas seized a crucial road victory at Missouri, overpowering their SEC rivals with a dominant second-half surge, solidifying their NCAA Tournament aspirations.
Texas' Saturday night contest against Missouri was a bubble showdown, as both teams found themselves in Joe Lunardi's last eight teams in the NCAA Tournament.
The Longhorns once again faced the pressure of what felt like another must-win game, but they didn't show any nerves, dominating their former Big 12 rivals 85-68 in a hostile Columbia, Missouri environment.
"Some teams take a week off from games. Next time they show up, they're flat," Texas head coach Sean Miller said after the win. "We had a week to get ready. I thought we took advantage of that week and came out with a very hard-fought SEC road win against a really good team."
The game was physical from start to finish, and Texas thrived in that game state, thanks to great performances from their tough transfers.
Vokietaitis set the tone in the first half, scoring 10 points, including eight of the Longhorns' first 14.
The Lithuanian center finished with a 19-point, 10 rebound double double, and is starting to become the player Miller envisioned him to be.
"I think that as the season has grown, he's improving almost each week," Miller said. "He made a couple of plays in tonight's game that I don't know how many big guys in the country can make."
His efforts helped Texas find itself up two heading into the locker room. And the second half was all Longhorns.
Texas was flaming hot in the final 20 minutes, scoring 52 points in that time span. The Longhorns were led by their main man, Dailyn Swain, who recorded 18 second-half after a somewhat sluggish first half from the third-year guard.
Texas guard Jordan Pope added 15 points of his own, 12 of them coming in the second half, playing a Robin role next to Swain as he has all season.
Swain has emerged not only as the Longhorns' closer but also as one of the best players in the Southeastern Conference.
"Swain in the second half did really what he's done all season for us, he carried us to the finish line," Miller said.
Texas continues to score in unconventional ways as it totaled only eight assists on 29 made field goals Saturday. It may seem unsustainable, but Miller believes this is his team's identity.
"That's how we're wired," he said. "The way our team is constructed, we score from the free-throw line. We score in the post. We have a number of guys that in that middle area."
The win marks the Longhorns' fourth straight win, the first time the program has accomplished that feat since the 2020-21 season.
March Madness is almost here, and Texas is peaking at the perfect time.