Chris Beard Says Longhorns Had 'Never Worked Harder' in Prep for Arkansas-Pine Bluff

The Texas Longhorns clearly had some built-up motivation following a disappointing loss to Illinois.

It likely comes as a surprise to few that that Arkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions are not a typical household name in the college basketball world.

But in the minds of the No. 2 Texas Longhorns, they might as well be.

Coming off the first loss of the season, Texas blew past Pine Bluff for an 88-43 win at Moody Center on Saturday in a win that was more impressive than the final score would indicate. In the eyes of Texas coach Chris Beard, it's a win he feels his team desperately worked for considering what the Golden Lions had proven so far this season.

"That's a team that had our full attention today," Beard said. "We've never worked harder in scouting than we did for this game."

To hear this kind of comment from Beard regarding a program that has just one NCAA tournament appearance in its history might be a surprise to some. But considering what Pine Bluff has done this season, Beard made sure the team had intentions in order.

The Golden Lions took a pair of Big 12 teams to the brink on the road in early November, as they missed a game-winning shot against the then-No.14 TCU Horned Frogs in a 73-72 season-opening loss before having the lead slip away late in a 66-58 loss to the Oklahoma Sooners in Norman two games later. 

The Longhorns didn't want to be the third team in their conference that got caught off guard against Pine Bluff and clearly prepared as such.

Texas hosts the Rice Owls on Monday at Moody Center.

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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