Entering the first round of the Continental Tire Las Vegas Invitational, Texas basketball was just looking to tread water against a vaunted top 10 ranked opponent in the North Carolina Tar Heels. Texas basketball was a nine-point underdog against the UNC Tar Heels in a game that looked like it might get lopsided.
The depth and scoring from head coach Roy Williams and his Tar Heels was much more than the Texas Longhorns saw in the four games previous. Head Texas basketball coach Shaka Smart put together a great start to his fourth season on the Forty Acres and to the Las Vegas Invitational itself.