Ramey, Brown lead No. 11 Texas past Sam Houston State 79-63

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Courtney Ramey and Greg Brown scored 17 points apiece as No. 11 Texas beat Sam Houston State 79-63 on Wednesday night.

Ramey also had six assists. Brown, a freshman, grabbed 10 rebounds, made two steals and blocked two shots.

Ramey, a junior, matched his career best with five 3-pointers. He made his fifth with 16 minutes remaining but only attempted two more. Ramey hit five 3s in a game twice as a freshman, when he shot 38.6% from behind the arc. Last season he slipped to 31%.

Andrew Jones added 13 points for Texas (6-1).

Zach Nutall led Sam Houston State (3-5) with 23 points. Donte Powers scored 11.

Sam Houston never was in contention. Ramey gave Texas an 8-0 lead with 18:22 left in the first half, prompting a timeout by Sam Houston coach Jason Hooten.

When play resumed, Ramey made another 3-pointer. The Longhorns led 44-26 at halftime.

Texas led by 27 around midway through the second half. Then the Longhorns went through a stretch of missed shots, turnovers and improved shooting by Sam Houston State that enabled the Bearkats to reduce the deficit to 16 in a span of less than three minutes.

BIG PICTURE

Sam Houston State: Nutall, an All-Southland Conference guard last season, was averaging 21 points per game coming in, but Power Five opposition has been rough on him. Nutall shot 5 of 17 at Texas Tech and 3 for 13 at LSU. He was 3 for 11 at one point in the second half against Texas before heating up and finishing 8 for 18.

Texas: The Longhorns don’t have great shooters. They ranked 169th nationally in 3-point shooting at 32.8% before Wednesday. But they have capable shooters. Texas went 8 of 17 from long range in the first half against Sam Houston, led by Ramey’s 4 for 4. The Longhorns finished 10 for 31.

UP NEXT

Sam Houston State: The Bearkats host Rice on Saturday. They beat the Owls 75-61 last season in Houston.

Texas: The Longhorns open Big 12 competition by hosting Oklahoma State on Sunday. The Cowboys already played a conference game, losing to TCU on Wednesday. Texas was initially scheduled to play at No. 2 Baylor on Sunday, but the game was postponed because of COVID-19 protocols within the Bears’ program.

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