Florida A&M @ Texas preview

Texas returns home from the PK80 Invitational with a pair of overtime losses to No. 1 Duke and then-No. 17 Gonzaga. Coach Shaka Smart hopes his Longhorns continue to learn from those games when they host Florida A&M on Wednesday.

"We learned a great deal about our team in Portland," Smart told the media Tuesday. "One of the things we demonstrated is certainly for stretches of games we can be really effective against the best teams in the country. The next step -- the challenge right now -- is to get to the point where we can be equally effective for the entire game against some of the best teams in the country." The Longhorns lost a 16-point lead to Duke and erased a 21-point deficit to Gonzaga but couldn't close out either game. Texas sophomore Andrew Jones was a bright spot -- averaging 16.7 points on 50-percent shooting during the tournament -- when Texas had some shooting struggles. The Rattlers are winless on the road with seven losses in seven different states.

TV: 8 p.m. ET, Longhorn Network

ABOUT FLORIDA A&M (1-7): Senior guard Marcus Barham leads the Rattlers -- who won their only home game against Division II Albany (Ga.) State -- with 16.1 points. Senior forward Desmond Williams adds 12.9 points while 7-0 junior center Isaiah Martin adds 10.3 points on 66-percent shooting and 7.1 rebounds. The Rattlers -- who allowed Stephen F. Austin to shoot 69 percent in the second half of Sunday's game -- are ranked 346th nationally in scoring with a 60.0 average.

ABOUT TEXAS (4-2): Jones (14.8 points) leads four Longhorns in double figures while freshman point guard Matt Coleman contributes 9.3 points, 4.2 assists and 1.8 steals. Freshman Mohamed Bamba is averaging 10.4 points and 10.0 rebounds after four straight double-figure rebound performances. Starters Dylan Osetkowski (12.7 points, 8.0 rebounds) and Kerwin Roach (11.8 points) have been consistent scorers while the Texas bench is averaging 19.8 points.

TIP-INS

1. Martin has 18 blocks while the 6-11 Bamba has 20.

2. Florida A&M has six more non-conference road games -- in five different states -- before the end of December.

3. Texas will celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Erwin Center -- where the Longhorns have a 490-119 record since Nov. 29, 1977 -- on Wednesday.

PREDICTION: Texas 88, Florida A&M 55