The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Oklahoma State
Texas forces 30 turnovers in 63-42 win over Oklahoma State
01.15.2005 | Women's Basketball
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Texas has been struggling to score and win, so the Longhorns turned to their defense to snap a two-game skid in the Big 12.
Tiffany Jackson scored 20 points and No. 12 Texas forced Oklahoma State into 30 turnovers Saturday for a 63-42 victory.
"We needed that for our psyche. We haven't been feeling very good about ourselves," said Texas coach Jody Conradt, whose two-time defending conference champs came in with their first Big 12 losing streak since the 2000-2001 season.
Texas lost to Texas Tech 79-62 on Wednesday and then-No. 3 Baylor 63-60 on Jan. 8.
The Cowgirls knew they might run into desperate team, but couldn't muster a challenge to Texas' defensive pressure. The Longhorns (9-5, 2-2) smothered Oklahoma State with full-court and half-court pressure the entire game.
"I knew coach Conradt would have this team ready to play with their mad on and ready to take it out on us," said Oklahoma State coach Julie Goodenough.
"They're fast enough to cover baseline to baseline. They're a scary defensive team when they do that," she said.
Texas' pressure limited Cowgirls' leading scorer Nina Stone to four points on 2-of-7 shooting and forced her into committing five turnovers.
Christian Hood led Oklahoma State (5-9, 0-4) with eight points, but fouled out with more than 7 minutes left.
Oklahoma State outrebounded Texas 33-26, but couldn't overcome mistakes with the ball.
Jackson had four steals in the first half and scored eight of Texas' final 14 points of the period to break open a close game.
"I think my steals were the result of great ball pressure," Jackson said. "When the guards are putting pressure on the ball, that forces the other team to lob passes."
Jackson converted a steal and layup into a 3-point play before Jamie Carey hit the Longhorns' only 3-pointer of the game. A steal by Kala Bowers led to a fast break layup by Jackson with 9 seconds left and a 34-18 Texas advantage at the break.
"You can go through shooting slumps but you should be able to play defense every game," Carey said. "It created a lot of energy and got us rolling."
Oklahoma State simply didn't have the depth to keep up in the second. Eliz Gomes, Destanie Sykes and Hood, three players counted on to matchup with Jackson inside, each picked up three fouls in the first half.
It was a badly needed win for the Longhorns, who are struggling through a rugged schedule and some disappointing results. Loaded with senior talent, Texas began the season ranked No. 2 but has already matched last season's loss total.
And the schedule quickly ramps back up. The Longhorns play Monday at No. 16 Connecticut before hosting No. 2 Baylor next weekend.
"When you win, that's the bottom line," Conradt said. "We've had some crummy days over the last week or so. Right now there's nothing but optimism."
POSTGAME NOTES
Texas moves to 2-2 in Big 12 play with the win, and improves to 7-1 at home this year
Texas has now won 21 consecutive Big 12 home games, dating back to the 2001-02 campaign ... The last Big 12 home loss for the Horns was on Jan. 30, 2002 (a 80-76 double OT loss to No. 9 Kansas State)
Texas has now won 10 straight games over the Cowgirls, and holds a 17-3 edge in series play
Texas will now go back on the road - where its record is 2-4 - for three of the next four games ... The road swing begins at No. 16 Connecticut on Monday, Jan. 17 in a MLK Day game against the Huskies at the Hartford Civic Center (4 p.m. Central) on ESPN2
Sophomore F Tiffany Jackson scored in double digits for the 12th time (a team high) in 14 games to date
Texas dominated in points off turnovers, out-scoring the Cowgirls 31-13 in this category
Texas also enjoyed its biggest margin of the season in points off fast break against an opponent, as the Longhorns scored 17 points in transition to the Cowgirls' two points
The Longhorns held OSU's top scorer in check, as senior guard Nina Stone entered with a 15.7 scoring average and finished with four points
COACH AND PLAYER POSTGAME QUOTES
Texas Head Coach Jody Conradt
On the game in general ...
"A win is a win, and most importantly, it's a conference win and all the wins count the same. We needed this for our psyche. I don't think it's a surprise that having a damaged psyche is an issue for us right now. We showed some fight and energy when we started to play defense and get connected on "D". That probably was the high point of the game, in my estimation.
We've got to work a lot harder at making play after play. We did pick up the tempo with the press. Our team has a hard stretch of games here -and I'm not surprised we sputtered a bit. Offensively, we would do a good thing, but then get the ball tipped or we wouldn't move like we needed to. We needed better ball reversal. We are working on that daily. But, I am glad to get a win and glad to get playing time for lots of our players."
The play of Tiffany Jackson (game-high 20 points, game-high six steals)...
"They were concentrating on our post players, and Tiffany certainly stepped up. We were close to making good plays off the double-teams. Tiffany will be really be good at that as time goes on. She has a high basketball IQ and great energy. We are starting to recognize more when we need to be aggressive and when we need to be patient when the ball goes inside. Today, Tiffany had good recognition."
On getting the win to break the two-game losing streak...
"We hope to use this as a springboard to go forward. If you lose, you feel really crummy. We've had some crummy days over the last week or so. Right now, there is nothing but optimism. That's what our team should be feeling after today and what we need to build on. I thought when we put on defensive pressure, we were hungry. I thought we wanted to score and get after them. That's what we are looking for.
We would like to be in a transition game all the time. We need to work on our consistency on the offensive end. With the press today, it was about changing tempo and creating offensive opportunities; it's about forcing the action."
On playing 12 Longhorn players today...
"It was good to have a chance to play a lot of people. We'll continue to improve with playing time as a reward. Good to have this opportunity to get people into the ballgame. What the bench players lack out there is consistency - they have a tendency to relax too much."
On Texas' next game - at No. 16 Connecticut, playing in the Hartford Civic Center, on ESPN2 on Monday (Jan. 17)...
"Of course, you needed to bring that right up! We need to play really really well on Monday. I think at this point we take each game, each game segment, as it comes. We cannot look at the big picture. We will need to resolve our consistency issues - let's make plays.
Scheduling is an interesting thing. We scheduled our non-conference games early last year - the UConn game, the Georgia, UCLA games. Then in the fall, you get your conference schedule sent to you. This year, the league schedule obviously did not work to our favor. And now, after a tough beginning in the Big 12, we go up to New England to play Connecticut!
But, it's all about exposure. Our team went into the season with high expectations and we should be a team to showcase our sport. When you have an opportunity to be on national TV against an opponent like Connecticut, you take those opportunities.
I welcome that Texas is part of ESPN's MLK Day basketball game. It has become a tradition. This game has always involved Connecticut and usually Tennessee. It is a marquee game in women's basketball. This is an opportunity to play in a hostile environment. I think this game will be competitive. I don't think many would envision that Texas and UConn right now would be trying to find the right combinations and be struggling a bit. However, Connecticut played pretty well the other night against a very good Notre Dame team. We had better be ready."
A win over UConn would be one more win for us against a very worthy opponent. You want to move forward and when it comes to championship and tournament time and be in the mix. This game will show us where we are. Even though we lost two conference games so far, does anyone remember what they were? They were at Baylor and at (Texas) Tech last year on the road. Right now, we have two losses in the league - at Baylor and at Tech. So, if you look at what we did last year, that hope (to win the championship) is still out there. We need to play a lot better and pick it up to do so. We are not out of it. We need to keep thinking about moving forward. And those teams have to come here, eventually. But, before we get back to Big 12 play, we've got a chance to prove more to ourselves Monday against Connecticut."
Texas Senior G Jamie Carey
Her general thoughts...
"Our defense was huge today. You always can have defense; you will go through shooting slumps and when you do, your defense will create your offense at times. We started to get some steals and that helped when we made our run - I remember Tiffany's three point play off a steal and that helped get us going. We went on a great run at the end of first half. We got more excited as a team with our defense, and as a result, the fans got back into it. It felt like Texas Basketball out there."
On playing Connecticut for the second time - after losing by two (71-69) to the Huskies in the 2003 Final Four semifinals...
"I think about that game every day. That game was a great experience at the end of a year which was overwhelming for me - as I got back on the court after two years of not playing, I transferred here, we won the Big 12. It was amazing to go to the Final Four. You can look at it in that light, and then, in another light, it really hurts when you see we lost by one bucket. I still hurt about games I lost in sixth grade. Right now, we are both two completely different teams than two years ago. I think it will be lots of fun."
