The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
10-0
Arkansas
3-8
No. 5 Women's Basketball remains undefeated; beats Arkansas 61-50
12.20.2015 | Women's Basketball
Brianna Taylor scores team-high 15 points to lead Longhorns.
Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Notes | Postgame Quotes
OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. – Junior Texas guard Brianna Taylor scored a team-high 15 points and brought down a game-high nine rebounds, senior center Imani Boyette blocked six shots and the No. 5/6 Longhorns held off Arkansas, 61-50, on Sunday in the Big 12-SEC Challenge at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The Longhorns (10-0), who led 20-3 following the opening quarter, were outscored 16-5 in the second quarter and saw their lead narrowed down to three points (53-50) with 1:17 remaining in the game. Texas made 6-of-7 free-throw attempts in the game's final minute to seal the victory.
"Lots of credit to Arkansas for the way they responded to our first quarter," Texas head coach Karen Aston said. "I thought we really got out of the gates quickly and played really, really well. They punched back and we didn't take it very well. We changed defenses, and we got a little shot-happy in the second quarter. We got impatient and it really allowed them to get back in the game. From that point, it was a battle and I'm pleased we won."
Taylor's 15 points came on 6-for-10 shooting and complemented a game-high nine rebounds and three steals for the Longhorns. She was one of four Texas players who scored eight or more points. Sophomore guard Brooke McCarty added nine points and three rebounds, while senior guard Celina Rodrigo had nine points and eight rebounds – one board shy of her career high. Freshman guard Lashann Higgs tallied eight points and came up with three steals.
Boyette's six blocks improved her career total to 223, which moved her past Angela Jackson for fourth place on the school's all-time career blocks list. She also finished with six points and seven rebounds, increasing her career points total to 1,080, which moves her into 34th place on the school's all-time list.
Texas, which out-rebounded Arkansas 50-39, has now won the battle of the boards in nine of 10 games this season. The Longhorns also have now won 24 consecutive games against regular-season non-conference opponents.
The Longhorns shot 37.5 percent (24-of-64) from the field in the game and held the Razorbacks to just 27.4 percent (17-of-62) shooting from the field. Texas took only 12 free-throw attempts, but made nine of them for a 75 percent efficiency from the charity stripe.
Texas jumped out to a 20-2 advantage at the 1:39 mark of the first quarter. Five different Longhorns scored during that span. Texas ended the first quarter with a 20-3 lead, shooting 47.1 percent (8-of-17) in the opening period, while Arkansas made just one of 18 field-goal attempts in the first stanza.
Arkansas scored the first eight points of the second quarter to cut within nine, 20-11, at the 4:07 mark of the second frame. A three-pointer by Ariel Atkins, playing her first minutes of the 2015-16 campaign, stopped the Texas scoring drought, but the Razorbacks closed out the quarter on another 8-0 run to take a 25-19 advantage into intermission.
Arkansas cut within five early in the third quarter as Jessica Jackson connected on a three-point play at the 8:43 mark of the period. A three-pointer by Rodrigo and a free throw from Taylor widened the Longhorns advantage back to nine, 31-22, with 7:22 to go in the third.
From there, the Razorbacks used a 6-0 run that brought them within three, 31-28, with 4:18 remaining in the third, and forced a Texas timeout. A jumper by Rodrigo ended the Arkansas scoring spree and Taylor followed with a lay-up, but the Razorbacks continued to whittle away at the Longhorn advantage. Arkansas cut within three, 37-34, with 1:24 left in the third. Texas players Boyette, Rodrigo and Higgs scored consecutive lay-ups to put Texas back ahead by nine, 43-34. The Longhorns led 43-36 after three quarters.
Quickly into the fourth quarter, Arkansas cut its deficit to five, 43-38, with 8:56 left in the game after a jumper by Melissa Wolff. Texas was able to stretch its lead back out to nine, 49-40, after back-to-back layups by Boyette and junior center Kelsey Lang. The two teams traded points until Arkansas, trailing 53-44, scored six in a row to come within three, 53-50, with 1:17 remaining.
Texas breaks for the holidays before returning to action Sunday, December 27, when it plays host to Sam Houston State in its final non-conference game of the season. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. CT and the game will be televised nationally by Longhorn Network.
