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Kids just want to have fun

Posted by Mike V. at 6:04 PM on Mar 15    Comments (0)
Filed under: Spokane, Multimedia
Tags: Audio

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With six freshmen playing prominent roles on the Texas Longhorns, coach Rick Barnes during Thursday's press conference was asked if this year's team had exceeded his expectations.

"I'm not sure if I knew what to expect," he said. "We just knew we wanted to get back to this tournament some way, some how."

Texas did it by keeping things simple and allowing the youngsters to play with a little "reckless abandon," he said.

"They're not afraid to shoot the ball," Barnes said. "I've said all along that I think about the innocence (by which) this team has approached this season. They've been a loose group of guys. I don't know if I've ever been around a team that's as loose."

It showed during Thursday's shoot around when willowy 6-foot-9 frosh wunderkind Kevin Durant repeatedly launched shots with a 20-foot arc to see if they'd come straight down through the basket (one did).

And it didn't always mean, as youngsters are wont, that they played smart, said their coach. But Barnes' approach that allowed their natural talent to be put on display paid off in 24 wins and tomorrow's game against New Mexico State a year after graduating most of 2006's Elite Eight team.

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