The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Little Rock
No. 6 Women's Basketball preview: Little Rock [Dec. 6, 2015]
12.05.2015 | Women's Basketball
Texas coach Karen Aston returns to alma mater for 2 p.m. Sunday game.
No. 6/6 Texas Longhorns (6-0) at Little Rock Trojans (2-3)
Location: Little Rock, Ark. | Jack Stephens Center (5,600)
Time: Sunday, December 6, 2015 | 2 p.m. CT
TV: None
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn (Craig Way, Fran Harris)
Game Notes | Live Stats | Live Audio
LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – Texas head coach Karen Aston returns to her alma mater on Sunday as the No. 6/6 Longhorns travel to Little Rock, Ark., to face Little Rock. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. CT in the Jack Stephens Center and the game will be carried live on 104.9 FM in Austin.
The Longhorns (6-0) are coming off back-to-back wins against top-10 opponents, defeating then-No. 4/5 Tennessee last Sunday in Knoxville and No. 9/9 Mississippi State on Wednesday at the Frank Erwin Center. Texas has won 20 consecutive regular-season games against non-conference opponents.
Texas is led by three players averaging double-digit point totals. Senior center Imani Boyette, who had 21 points and 10 rebounds against Mississippi State on Wednesday night, is averaging a team-leading 14.2 points per game and a team-leading 9.2 rebounds per game. She currently ranks 11th in the Big 12 Conference in scoring and third in rebounding.
Sophomore guard Brooke McCarty follows with 11.3 points per game, while junior guard Brianna Taylor adds 10.2 points per game. Junior center Kelsey Lang is the team's second-leading rebounder at 5.3 boards per game. Freshman guard Lashann Higgs, the reigning Big 12 Freshman of the Week, has swiped a team-best 12 steals.
Texas currently leads the Big 12 in scoring defense (47.5) and field goal percentage defense (.307). The Longhorns rank second in turnover margin (+4.3).
Aston played two seasons for Little Rock, where she graduated in 1987 with a bachelor's degree in physical education. Aston is a native of Benton, Ark., and was a two-time first-team all-state selection at Bryant High School. She led Bryant to the 1982 Arkansas Class 4A State Championship.
Before entering the collegiate coaching ranks, Aston was recognized as one of the top high school girls coaches in Arkansas. She coached five years at Vilonia High School (1988-93) in Vilonia, Ark., and one year at Fort Smith Northside (1993-94) in Fort Smith, Ark. She guided Fort Smith Northside to a 24-10 record and a fifth-place finish in Class 4A. For her efforts, she was named the Arkansas Northwest Region Coach of the Year.
Little Rock is 2-3 on the 2015-16 season. It is coming off a 65-52 loss at Oklahoma on Wednesday night. The Trojans went 29-5 a year ago, won the Sun Belt Conference and advanced to the NCAA second round. Senior forward Shanity James is averaging 18.8 points per game and 7.6 rebounds per game. She has scored in double figures all five games this season and has reached 20 points three times this season. Little Rock was predicted to finish third in the Sun Belt this season.
QUICK NOTES
- Texas and Little Rock meet for the second time in the history of the two programs. In the previous meeting, the Longhorns defeated the Trojans 60-26 on December 4, 2013.
- Texas senior Imani Boyette joins UConn's Breanna Stewart as the only two active players in NCAA Division I basketball to have scored more than 1,000 career points and have swatted more than 200 career blocks.
- Texas ranks sixth in all-time victories by NCAA Division I institutions with 987. Just three teams in the history of the sport have achieved 1,000 wins - Tennessee (1,283), Louisiana Tech (1,062), and James Madison (1,022). The Longhorns are one of only 13 programs nationally to have eclipsed the all-time 900-win plateau.
- Up next, Texas breaks for final examinations before playing host to No. 16/15 Stanford on Sunday, December 13. Tip-off is set for 12 p.m. CT and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN.
