The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
West Virginia
No. 5 Women's Basketball preview: West Virginia [Dec. 30, 2015]
12.29.2015 | Women's Basketball
Longhorns begin Big 12 Conference play on Wednesday at 6 p.m. CT
No. 5/6 Texas Longhorns (11-0) at West Virginia Mountaineers (11-2)
Location: Morgantown, W.Va. | WVU Coliseum (14,000)
Time: Wednesday, December 30, 2015 | 6 p.m. CT
Video: WVUSports.com
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn (Craig Way, Fran Harris)
Game Notes | Live Stats | Live Video | Live Audio
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – No. 5/6 Texas opens Big 12 Conference play on Wednesday when it travels to Morgantown, W.Va., to face West Virginia. Tip-off in the WVU Coliseum is slated for 6 p.m. CT and a live video stream will be available at WVUSports.com. The Longhorns are looking for their first-ever win in Morgantown.
Texas (11-0) is 9-10 all-time in Big 12 Conference openers, having defeated Kansas at home last season in the conference lid-lifter. Prior to last season, the Longhorns had not won a league opener since January 5, 2005.
"This will be an ugly game," Texas head coach Karen Aston said. "Any time the two of us play against each other, it is usually pretty ugly, so it boils down to the little things – hustle plays, extra possessions, offensive rebounds and then I think the foul line will be a big factor. It's a tough environment at West Virginia. They have an extremely physical basketball team that is used to winning in the Big 12. They have gotten off to a great start. I think it's one of our tougher games because the trip is tough and they are one of the more physical teams we will see all year long."
The Longhorns completed the non-conference portion of their schedule with an undefeated record for the second consecutive season, marking the first time Texas has gone unbeaten in pre-conference play in back-to-back years for the first time in school history.
Sophomore guard Brooke McCarty leads the Longhorns in scoring, averaging 12.1 points per game. Senior center Imani Boyette, who was named to the Naismith Trophy Early-Season Watch List, leads the team in rebounding with 8.5 boards per game and is second in scoring with 11.7 points per game. Boyette ranks fifth in the Big 12 in rebounding and third in the league in blocked shots with 2.4 rejections per game.
Senior guard Empress Davenport has dished out a team-high 33 assists, while freshman guard Lashann Higgs has swiped a team-high 33 steals.
Texas and West Virginia meet for the ninth time in the history of the two programs. The Mountaineers lead the all-time series between the two teams, 5-3, including a 3-0 mark when the game is played in Morgantown. Last year, the two teams split the season series with Texas winning in Austin, 61-55, and West Virginia emerging with the win 76-69 in overtime in Morgantown.
West Virginia enters Wednesday's game with an 11-2 overall record. The Mountaineers are coming off a 67-57 win against Elon on Monday night. West Virginia is undefeated at home this season. West Virginia has a 13-game winning streak at the WVU Coliseum. The Mountaineers were predicted to finish sixth in the league according to the Big 12 Coaches Preseason Poll.
West Virginia senior guard Bria Holmes ranks third in the Big 12 Conference in scoring with 17.5 points per game. Junior center Lanay Montgomery leads the Big 12 in blocks per game with 3.0 blocks per game and also leads the Big 12 in field goal percentage at 65.5 percent. Montgomery ranks third in the Big 12 Conference in rebounding with 9.3 rebounds per game.
QUICK NOTES
- Texas ranks tied for fifth in all-time victories by NCAA Division I institutions with 992. Just four teams in the history of the sport have achieved 1,000 wins - Tennessee (1,285), Louisiana Tech (1,064), James Madison (1,024) and Old Dominion (1,001). Stephen F. Austin is tied with Texas for fifth place all-time.
- The Longhorns have won the rebound battle in 10 of 11 games this season. Texas is averaging 44.2 boards per game and is winning the rebound margin by +14.1. The Longhorns rank eighth nationally in rebound margin.
- Up next, Texas returns home for its Big 12 Conference home opener on Saturday when it plays host to Texas Tech. Tip-off in the Frank Erwin Center is slated for 7 p.m. CT and the game will be televised nationally by Longhorn Network.
PRE-GAME QUOTES
Texas Head Coach Karen Aston
"It's a tough environment at West Virginia. They have an extremely physical basketball team that is used to winning in the Big 12. They have gotten off to a great start. I think it's one of our tougher games because the trip is tough and they are one of the more physical teams we will see all year long. I am encouraged by the way we've practiced and I'm anxious to see how we play on Wednesday.
"This will be an ugly game. Any time the two of us play against each other, it is usually pretty ugly, so it boils down to little things – hustle plays, extra possessions, offensive rebounds and then I think the foul line will be a big factor. I hope that we begin to play a little bit prettier than we have the last couple of games. We're in that mode of time now where you have to find a way to win and you don't reflect back on whether it was pretty or ugly at this point. You play and then you move on to the next one."
On how she evaluates her team's progress to this point …
"I think it's been good. The last couple of games, in particular, I think we've sort of gotten a little lackadaisical in the way we've played, and have sort of been playing in peaks and valleys. That can't happen in Big 12 play, so I'm concerned about that a little bit. I think sometimes that happens when you're in the holiday scheme of things. In the Arkansas game, I thought we were very lackadaisical and we played in waves the other night against Sam Houston State. So I hope we flip the switch that needs to be flipped. I'm pleased with how we've played and I'm pleased with our bench. That's really important when you get into the grind of Big 12 play."
On how the coaches are managing expectations with Texas' 11-0 record to start the season …
"I don't think we've had to. I think the leadership in the locker room has been good with that. I think, in particular, the players that were freshmen last year that are sophomores now, I think they get it. We had maybe too young of a team last year to experience what nobody had ever experienced, speaking about our players. Now we have a group of players that are predominately back from last year and they learned from it. That is one thing that has impressed me – they haven't really gotten too full of themselves. I think they understand what's ahead of them."
On the fact that her team has never won in Morgantown …
"We're just looking at this as the first Big 12 game. I'm actually really happy that we get this trip under our belts before we start back to school. It's a difficult trip. It's one that takes time and obviously you change time zones. I'm pleased with the timing of it."
On how she feels the team has performed on the road this season …
"That's an area where I think we're much improved. We won at Tennessee in a tough environment and didn't flinch at all there. We went to UALR, which is a really tough place to play, and came from behind to win on their home court. We played on a neutral site against Arkansas and that was a game that I just didn't think we had it from an energy perspective, but we found a way to win. It's an area that I definitely think our mentality has improved in."
Senior Center Imani Boyette
On beginning Big 12 Conference play on Wednesday …
"Conference play just makes everyone focus a little bit more. You have to show up day in and day out regardless of who the team or what their record is. And you just never know what you're going to get on any given night."
On the challenge of facing West Virginia …
"West Virginia is a great team and they always play tough. They always play physical and they do what they do well, which is get after you on the defensive end and run transition. They're always going to give us a scare. We haven't won there in my entire career here and we've been up going into the last five minutes and we just haven't been able to close it out because they have a great fan base and they play hard."
On the importance of winning Wednesday's game to the Texas senior class …
"We just want to go and make sure we're starting off our senior year of conference play right by getting a win somewhere we haven't won yet."
