Texas freshmen capable of a thriller every time out

	RELATED • Texas outlasts Texas A&M in double OT

AUSTIN, Texas -- Right about now, the folks at CBS headquarters in New York ought to be breaking out their burnt orange. It would behoove them for Texas to make a deep run come NCAA tourney time. Not only do the 'Horns boast the nation's brightest star, Kevin Durant, but they're almost guaranteed to deliver a thriller when a nationwide audience is watching.

The 'Horns' latest installment of must-see TV took place here Wednesday night in the form of a 98-96 double-overtime victory over seventh-ranked rival Texas A&M. Previously, the season's "game of the year" was considered to be another multi-OT game involving Durant and Co. -- their 105-103 triple-overtime loss to Oklahoma State on Jan. 16 -- but considering the higher stakes, the abundance of drama and the dazzling display of one-upmanship down the stretch between Durant and Aggies star Acie Law, this one may have just topped it.

"It was entertaining. That's what the fans pay their money to come watch," Texas guard Damion James said afterward. "I just wanted it to be over."

Entertainment has been Texas' specialty for much of the season. Who doesn't enjoy watching Durant, who poured in a typical 30-point, 16-rebound performance against the Aggies, complete with a logic-defying 3-pointer with 19 seconds left that would have won it if not for Law's subsequent heroics? And who doesn't get a kick out of watching a team that starts four freshmen and a sophomore and plays a style of basketball part frenetic, part frustrating?

But it might be wise to start viewing Durant and the rest of his troupe as something more than a mere novelty act. Suddenly the 'Horns, once a borderline NCAA tourney team, have won six straight and nine of their past 11 to put themselves in position for a potential top-five seed. And suddenly Texas' season-finale at Kansas on Saturday is for a share of the Big 12 regular season championship.

"All year I've said I'm not going to talk about youth, because I don't want them to buy into it, but there are times we play like four freshmen and a sophomore out there," said 'Horns coach Rick Barnes. "But at this point, they're not freshmen and sophomores. We went through a time when we didn't really have an identity, and it took them a little while to understand defense. But this second time around [through the Big 12 schedule], you can definitely see the improvement."