Jones, Texas suffer first loss

After a strong start to the season, undefeated through four games and capturing the Camping World Maui Invitational title, Bahamian Kai Jones and the University of Texas Longhorns dropped their first game of the season, falling to the Villanova Wildcats, 68-64, on Sunday.

Despite the loss, given their impressive start to the season which included a win over the higher ranked University of North Carolina (UNC) Tar Heels, the Longhorns moved up four spots in the latest Associated Press (AP) Top 25 Rankings that was released on Monday. Jones and the Longhorns (4-1) are now tied for 13th in the AP Rankings and are at number 12 in the Coaches Poll. The Wildcats (4-1) are at number nine in the AP Top 25 and number six in the Coaches Poll. The Tar Heels (3-1), who lost to the Longhorns in the championship game of the Maui Invitational, are at number 16 in the AP Top 25 and number 14 in the Coaches Poll.

On Sunday, playing on the Longhorns’ home floor, at the Frank C. Erwin Jr. Special Events Center in Austin, Texas, the game was close throughout with neither team up by double digits.

Coming off the bench, Jones finished with seven points on 3-for-5 shooting with two rebounds and a steal in 20 minutes of play. It was arguably his least productive game of the season. Through five games, the 6’ 11”, 218 lbs. sophomore forward is averaging 10 points, five rebounds and one assist per game, and is shooting a stunning 86.4 percent from the field (19-for-22). He hit his first 14 shots of the season before missing a dunk in their game against UNC which ended his perfect streak. Jones missed his other two shots on Sunday, both from three-point range. He has come off the bench in four of five games for Head Coach Shaka Smart this year, and is averaging 20 minutes per contest.

Five points in a row by Jones, a three-pointer and a dunk off an assist from Andrew Jones, gave the Longhorns their biggest lead of the game, 27-20, with 6:53 remaining in the first half against Villanova on Sunday. The Wildcats responded as they scored seven straight to even the score at 27, and ended the half on a 12-3 scoring run to take a 32-30 lead into the intermission.

Guards Courtney Ramey and Matt Coleman III, the hero from the UNC game, led the Longhorns with 17 points apiece. Forwards Jones, Greg Brown and Jericho Sims dropped in seven points apiece.

Justin Moore and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl paced the Wildcats with 19 points apiece. Collin Gillespie added a dozen and Jermaine Samuels and Cole Swider dropped in eight apiece. Samuels collected a game-high 12 rebounds.

Jones scored his final basket of the game, a jumper with 18 seconds remaining, to pull the Longhorns to within two points, 64-62. He missed the ensuing free shot as he was fouled on the play, and Gillespie hit four free shots down the stretch to seal the win.

The Longhorns were just 3-for-6 for the game on free throws while the Wildcats finished 14-for-19. Otherwise, all of the other statistics were pretty much comparable between the two teams.

Jones and the Longhorns host Texas State on Wednesday night in the their final non-conference game before starting Big 12 play while Villanova plays at Georgetown on Friday in their Big East opener.

The Longhorns play out of the Big 12 Conference in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I.

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