OTF Premium Tre Johnson owns 0-for-14 night in loss to Oklahoma, vows to be ready when Texas begins SEC Tournament play

AUSTIN, Texas — If Saturday’s 76-72 loss to Oklahoma was Tre Johnson’s last game at Moody Center, it unfortunately mirrored what’s expected to be the freshman phenom’s lone season on the Forty Acres.

Johnson did his best to help Texas get a win with the fate of the 2024-25 season hanging in the balance, grabbing seven rebounds, dishing out a season-high six assists and recording two steals in a de facto NCAA Tournament elimination game. Nevertheless, the 6-foot-6-inch projected lottery pick in the 2025 NBA Draft’s probable home finale saw him endure an 0-for-14 night from the field, including an 0-for-4 effort beyond the arc.

The loss dealt a likely fatal blow to the Longhorns’ hopes of being a part of March Madness. While Johnson did a lot to put Texas (17-14, 6-12 SEC) in a position to end the regular season with what would’ve been a significant victory as far as the postseason outlook is concerned, the Longhorns needed more than seven points (7-for-7 from the free-throw line) from their standout rookie to get over the hump.

“He's not going to shoot it well every night. We like to think he's going to have a cape on every night and do it every night. He's done it in this league every night against older players consistently,” coach Rodney Terry said. “This is the first game where he hasn't put the ball in the basket, but give him credit. He had six assists, he made great reads and some of the offense went through him to get offense for other guys.”

Johnson showed up for the postgame press conference alongside Terry and guard Jordan Pope, who scored a game-high 21 points on 7-for-10 shooting with a 4-for-6 showing from beyond the arc and a 3-for-3 night from the foul line. Johnson said he went to the Moody Center media room “because I was told to,” a laugh-inducing one-liner that eased the tension in the room.

Regardless, the Link (Mo.) Academy product by way of Lake Highlands owned his largely forgettable night.

“Everybody knows I didn’t make a shot,” Johnson said. “Owning up to it and being able to talk about it prepares me for the next level."

Johnson’s ability on the offensive end of the floor is why he's expected to contribute early in his NBA career. While he credited the Sooners with trapping and doubling him throughout the night, Johnson’s missed layup on a relatively clean path to the basket with 30 seconds to play summed up a frustrating end to the home schedule.

“I missed a lot of open shots,” Johnson said. “I missed a layup at the end and I was at the rim by myself. That's mostly on me.”

His most recent performance notwithstanding, Johnson heads into the postseason with one of the program's best freshman regular seasons under his belt.

A five-time SEC Freshman of the Week, Johnson ended the regular season as the leading scorer in the conference. His average of 20.2 points per game is the best output by a Longhorn freshman since Kevin Durant’s 2006-07 season (25.8 points per game); it has him on pace to be the first Texas player to average at least 20 points per game since J’Covan Brown during the 2011-12 season (20.1 points per game).

The 2024 McDonald’s All-American delivered a tremendous effort in Tuesday’s 87-82 overtime win over No. 25 Mississippi State in Starkville. Johnson finished the game with 23 points (8-for-16 from the field and 6-for-9 from beyond the arc), four assists, three rebounds and one steal in a career-high 43 minutes, setting the table for Saturday's showdown.

Oklahoma coach Porter Moser encouraged his club to take a one-possession-at-a-time approach to defending Johnson, who scored 16 points in a 77-73 win over the Sooners at the Lloyd Noble Center on Jan. 15.

“You can't take plays off with him because he can get you in transition, so it was a possession-by-possession thing,” Moser said. “We tried to run multiple guys at him.

“It was a group effort.”

The shooting struggles weren’t limited to Johnson. Texas shot 39 percent (23-for-59), failing to reach 40 percent from the field for the fifth time in 31 games (1-4 record).

What Johnson is taking away from the second game of his brief career in which he failed to score in double figures should make him more of an offensive threat when he scores to his capability.

“When I am scoring, some of those same reads are still there, so keeping my head up when I am having one of my better nights,” Johnson said. “Still finding my teammates, getting everybody going.

“Everybody else played up to their role and did what they were supposed to do,” he added. “I was the only missing factor there, so if I'm playing good and I'm able to get them going, we're going to be a hard team to stop.”

Making a lengthy run in the SEC Tournament, a journey beginning at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena against Vanderbilt (20-11, 8-10) on Wednesday (2:30 p.m., SEC Network), is the only path Texas has to making the field of 68. To avoid snapping the program's streak of four consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament, Johnson knows the Longhorns need him to put Saturday's outing behind him.

The proof will be in the pudding, but Johnson sounded ready to take the court with a vengeance against the Commodores.

“I've got to look at myself in the mirror, take it on the chin and just get ready for Wednesday,” Johnson said.