Texas guard Ward could be out for season

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Varez Ward, a starting guard for the third-ranked Texas basketball team, was taken off the Sprint Center court on a stretcher Tuesday after injuring his right knee during the pregame layup line.

Although there was no official word on Ward’s status after the Longhorns’ 78-62 victory over Pittsburgh, coach Rick Barnes indicated Barnes was likely done for the season.

Freshman J’Covan Brown started in place of Ward and scored 12 points. But the biggest story of the night was the performance of Dogus Balbay, who had 10 points, eight rebounds and seven assists off the bench.

With Ward out, Brown will compete with Balbay and Florida transfer Jai Lucas for the starting point guard job, although all three players will likely see significant minutes along with combo guards Avery Bradley, a starter, and senior Justin Mason.

A sophomore, Ward was averaging 6.7 points.