The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
12-0, 1-0
West Virginia
11-3, 0-1
No. 5 Women's Basketball earns first-ever win at West Virginia, 65-54
12.30.2015 | Women's Basketball
Ariel Atkins scores a game-high 18 points to lead Longhorns.
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – Sophomore Texas guard Ariel Atkins scored a game-high 18 points, senior center Imani Boyette turned in her fifth double-double of the season with 15 points and a game-high 14 rebounds and the No. 5/6 Longhorns earned the program's first-ever win in Morgantown, defeating West Virginia 65-54 on Wednesday in front of 4,153 fans at the WVU Coliseum.
The Longhorns (12-0, 1-0 Big 12 Conference) won their Big 12 Conference opener for the second consecutive season and improve to 10-10 all time in league lid-lifters. Texas earned its first win at West Virginia in four tries and the Longhorns are off to the fourth-best start in program history.
The Longhorns snapped a nine-game winning streak by West Virginia and a 13-game home winning streak by the Mountaineers at WVU Coliseum.
"I am really proud of our team – we've never won here," Texas head coach Karen Aston said. "This is a really big win. Any road game in the Big 12 is a good win, but this one in particular is a big one for our team. I thought our defense was really solid. Imani made a lot of plays that don't show up statistically and this was probably her best game of the year."
Atkins, in just her third game back from injury, scored her 18 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the field and 4-of-5 shooting from the free-throw line. She also came up with three steals and brought down three rebounds in 20 minutes of action.
Boyette registered her fifth double-double in 12 games this season with 15 points and a season-high tying 14 rebounds. She also blocked six shots, which ties her season high. Boyette increased her career scoring total to 1,100 points, which moves her into 33rd place all-time at Texas, surpassing Johnna Pointer, who scored 1,099 points in her UT career. She also now has 231 career blocks.
Sophomore guard Brooke McCarty was the third Longhorn in double-figure scoring with 11 points and three assists in a game-high 35 minutes of play. Senior guard Celina Rodrigo brought down seven rebounds and dished out a game-high five assists. Empress Davenport, Kelsey Lang, and Brianna Taylor each added six points for Texas.
The Longhorns, who earned their 993rd all-time victory, shot 42.6 percent (26-of-61) from the field, while holding West Virginia to 30 percent (18-of-60) shooting from the field. Texas out-rebounded West Virginia 46-38, and has won the battle of the boards in 11 of 12 games this season.
West Virginia (11-3, 0-1 Big 12) was led by Tynice Martin's 15 points and Arielle Roberson's 11 rebounds.
Texas opened up to an early 10-0 advantage at the 5:38 mark of the first quarter. Three different Longhorns scored during that stretch, including six points from Boyette. West Virginia missed its first five shots from the field. The Mountaineers responded with eight points in a row, including a pair of three pointers, to cut within two, 10-8, with 4:07 left in the first quarter. The Longhorns then went on an 8-0 run of their own, including four points from Lang, to move in front 18-9 with 1:35 left in the quarter. Texas led 18-11 after the opening period.
The two teams traded baskets to begin the second quarter until West Virginia, trailing 27-18 at the 4:51 mark of the second quarter, ran off six consecutive points to cut within three, 27-24. The Longhorns closed out the half on a 5-0 run that included a lay-up by Taylor and a three-pointer from McCarty to send Texas into intermission leading 32-24.
After a scoreless first few minutes of the third quarter, Davenport knocked down a pair of free throws and Boyette made a lay-up to give Texas a 12-point, 36-24, advantage at the 6:23 mark of the third period. After West Virginia's Martin drained a three pointer to bring the Mountaineers within nine, 36-27, Texas got back-to-back baskets from McCarty and Taylor to build its largest lead of the night at 40-27 with 5:22 left in the third. West Virginia then chipped away at its deficit, using a 7-1 run to cut within seven, 41-34, with 3:15 remaining in the period. Texas led 48-39 after three quarters of play.
Boyette and Lang notched consecutive baskets early in the fourth quarter to push Texas' advantage back to 13, 52-39, with 9:04 left. A three-pointer by West Virginia's Jessica Morton and a lay-up by Roberson brought the Mountaineers within eight, 52-44, with 6:22 remaining in the game. A basket by Boyette and a deep three-pointer from Atkins at the top of the key put the Longhorns ahead by 13, 57-44, with 4:46 left. With Texas in front by 14, 62-48, after a free-throw by Boyette, West Virginia whittled its deficit down to eight, 62-54, with 57 seconds remaining, but that would be as close as the Mountaineers would get, as the Longhorns scored the final three points of the game.
Texas returns to action 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.
