It was the tale of two halves in Austin tonight, as a tremendous first-half effort was nullified by fouling, poor defense and missed free throws closing out the game. Still, Texas was able to hold on late thanks to its cushion from the first, taking home an 88-83 win over LSU.

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The game didn’t start out fully in Texas’ favor, being notted up at 17 with around 10 minutes to go. Dailyn Swain was forced to check out of the game after his second foul, and it seemed like a prime time for LSU to take advantage of a lethargic Texas team and go on a run.

Instead, Texas took the advantage. A mixture of forced turnovers, smooth shooting and tremendous effort on the offensive end gave Texas a 15-point lead at the half. Swain didn’t even check back into the game until the start of the second.

Texas shot 6/9 from three in that first half and over 60% overall from the field, scoring 48 total points in the first. The team ended on an 11-4 run that extended their minutes without Swain to a 31-16 difference.

“One of the things I’m the most proud of about our team tonight is we did play almost the entire last 10-12 minutes of the first half without him, and, you know, we were up 15 into the half. We really had some guys step up,” Texas head coach Sean Miller said.

But as the second half started, much of what we fear about this Texas team came to play.

LSU slowly dwindled the lead down thanks to a star effort from guard Max Mackinnon. It felt like the Australian couldn’t miss, as six made shots and 13 total points in the first 10 minutes of the period brought LSU within four. He wouldn’t stop his onslaught, scoring 29 points on 67% shooting as the Longhorns struggled to guard his jump shots, no matter who was on him.

But Texas kept relenting, and even in a poor second half, Matas Vokietatis gave Texas good play on both ends, scoring 11 in the second and making five of his six free throws.

But as the minutes began to tick down, Texas’ lead continued to feel light as the Tigers threatened Texas’ defense. It turned into somewhat of a foul circus, with the teams combining for 39 fouls on the night, 26 which came in the second half.

Texas led by nine at points late, but Mackinnon almost by himself kept the Tigers in it. With 1:39 left, Texas was only up by 3, but with Texas G Jordan Pope getting fouled and Texas deep in the double-bonus, Texas looked to be in the drivers seat.

But Pope missed both of his free throws, and the entire Moody Center was at the edge of their seat.

Thankfully, the Horns got a stop, and when he was needed in the clutch, Pope hit a late-in-the-clock driving layup, putting Texas up five.

“I thought Jordan Pope did a really good job,” Miller said. “You know, surprised he missed free throws at the end. He’s usually the guy who knocks them in. That happens from time to time. I know he was disappointed that he missed them, but, you know, he was five for eight from the floor. He was three for three from three. Tonight, while Dailyn was out, I thought Jordan rose and made some big shots. And, you know, he finished with, really, almost a quiet 18 points.”

LSU’s Michael Nwoko hit just one of his free throws on the other end, but the Horns still found a way to make it interesting with Swain missing both of his free throws on the other end.

But a block by Vokietatis and a strong defensive possession for the Horns brought the crowd to its feet, and the Longhorns walked away with a close win in a game they needed to keep the tournament hopes strong.

“Coach always tells me to play vertical when someone is driving,” Vokietatis said. “So I just tried to play vertical and it was a block.”

Texas has now won five straight games in the SEC, rising to 8-5, one of five SEC teams with eight wins in conference play. It’s a wide-open conference, and with another win, Texas could be seen as a top-five team.

Texas played yet another strong game offensively, shooting over 55% from the field and 54% from three. They scored 88 points, and if just a few more free throws had gone down, they would’ve eclipsed 90 points for the first time since the Alabama upset five weeks ago.

“I think we’ve improved. You know, we’re just, we’re just better overall. You know, up until tonight, what I’ll tell you is, quietly, we’re getting better on defense,” Miller said. “I thought in the second half, we gave that back here tonight, but we’re just more sure of ourselves, more steady.”

They’ll head to Georgia on Saturday to face the Bulldogs, hoping to extend that streak to six.