The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
12.07.2013 | Women's Basketball
The Longhorns travel to Knoxville, Tenn., to play the third-ranked Lady Volunteers on Sunday.
| GAME INFORMATION |
| Texas Longhorns at Tennessee Lady Vols Sunday, Dec. 8 • 12 p.m. CT Knoxville, Tenn. • Thompson-Boling Arena / The Summitt GAME NOTES TV: FOX Sports South Radio: Longhorn IMG Radio Network / TexasSports.com Live Stats: UTSports.com Social Media: Twitter / Instagram |
by Dalton Pool, Texas Media Relations
AUSTIN, Texas — Coming off three consecutive victories, Texas Women's Basketball travels to Knoxville to face long-time rival No. 3/3 Tennessee on Sunday. It marks the 35th game in the series, which began on Dec. 8, 1978.
“When you look back at women's basketball, and when it really became popular, you don't have to look very far to see that Texas and Tennessee were at the center of it,” former Texas Hall of Fame coach Jody Conradt said. “It's one of the longest standing rivalries in the sport, and there have been some really great games throughout. There were times when Texas dominated, and there were times when Tennessee dominated, but you could always count on it being a very competitive game.”
In the Longhorns' first-ever visit to Thompson-Boling Arena in 1987, Tennessee and Wendy's Restaurant teamed up to break the world record for most spectators at a women's basketball game. They succeeded as 24,563 fans showed up to watch the powerhouse matchup. Texas spoiled the pro-Tennessee crowd with a 97-78 win behind junior forward Clarissa Davis' 45 points. The attendance record would stand for over 10 years.
Through the years, Texas and Tennessee have both been ranked in the Associated Press Top 25 in 30 of the 34 games in the series.
The friendship of the program's two hall-of-fame coaches, Conradt and Pat Summitt, serves as the foundation of the series. The trailblazers of the sport have over 900 career wins each and a combine for a 1,998-514 record.
As their respective institutions enshrined the two coach's legacies in the form of on-campus statues, both were on hand to support their friend -- Summitt in Austin last fall and Conradt in Knoxville on Nov. 22.
“Nobody can think about Tennessee without thinking about Pat Summitt and what she has meant to Tennessee, and more importantly to women's basketball,” Conradt praised. “She has always been a great pioneer for the game, and it was always a pleasure to coach against her.”
Even after the two legendary coaches have retired from their head coaching positions, the series continues with excitement and anticipation. The programs will meet for the 32nd consecutive season on Sunday in Knoxville and Karen Aston's players know the significance of the historic series.
“Our players know the tradition of this game and they look forward to it,” Aston said. “It is circled on the calendar every year because it is fun and competitive. Any time you go up there it is a terrific environment for women's basketball.”
