The key for No. 2 Texas against No. 10 Penn State

Texas can’t let Andrew Funk touch the basketball.

Ignore their seeding. The Penn State Nittany Lions are one of the more dangerous teams in the NCAA Tournament.

Penn State played as a No. 10 seed in its conference tournament as well. A slow start put head coach Micah Shrewsberry’s team behind in the standings. Following a strong regular season finish and postseason dominance the Lions are a force to be reckoned with for Texas.

Rodney Terry might have to pick his poison: Stop Jalen Pickett penetration with multiple defenders or keep Andrew Funk from heating up from three.

As great as Pickett is at getting to the basket, and he is one of the best, Texas needs to eliminate the Penn State three-point attack as much as possible. That won’t be easy.

[pickup_prop id=”32294″]

On the year, the Nittany Lions shoot a strong 38.5% from long range. Texas would do well not to let Funk touch the basketball Saturday evening.

The toughest challenge of March could come tonight. Should the Longhorns emerge with a win they could set up well for a deep NCAA Tournament run.