AUSTIN, Texas -- P.J. Tucker didn't start for No. 15 Texas on Wednesday night as punishment for returning late from Christmas vacation.
He only scored two points in the first half of a surprisingly close game against Texas-San Antonio, but then had 19 in the second half to lead the Longhorns to a 100-82 victory.
"It was my job to be a leader and step up," said Tucker, who had 12 rebounds. "We all knew that they were not going to quit, so we kicked it up."
Texas (9-2) fell behind 70-66 on a layup by David President midway through the second half. But Tucker then scored six points in an 11-1 run that gave Texas the lead for good. The Longhorns then went on a 14-4 run to put the game away.
Texas coach Rick Barnes wondered whether the slow first half was in part because his team was tired after returning to practice following a long holiday layoff.
"The only two guys who had much bounce were P.J., who missed practice due to his airplane problems, and Kenton Paulino who was nursing a pulled left hamstring," Barnes said. "Maybe there is something to the dead legs theory."
The Longhorns tied the school record with 13 blocked shots led by Jason Klotz's seven. Texas outrebounded UTSA 34-29.
Justin Harbert led Texas-San Antonio (4-5) with 25 points. He was 10-of-12 from the field, including 5-of-7 on 3-pointers, and almost single-handedly kept UTSA within reach.
Texas led 15-2 on nine points from freshman Daniel Gibson. He finished with 19 points, going 4-of-9 on 3-pointers, and had five assists.
But Harbert kept the game close. He scored eight points in a 12-4 run to help UTSA pull within 29-25. Then he scored nine points in a 13-3 run to cut Texas' lead to 49-47 at halftime.
The Roadrunners also got 16 points from Andre Owens and 14 from John Millsap.
But Texas was too deep, getting 13 points from Kenny Taylor, 12 from Brad Buckman and 10 from LaMarcus Aldridge.
"We knew it'd be a tough place to come in here and play, but we thought we learned something even in the loss," UTSA coach Tim Carter said.
It was the 36th home win for Texas in the past 37 games. The Longhorns are 6-0 at home this season.
