The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Oklahoma State
No. 16 Women's Basketball preview: Oklahoma State [Jan. 9, 2017]
01.09.2017 | Women's Basketball
Longhorns and Cowgirls meet at 7 p.m. CT Tuesday in the Frank Erwin Center.
No. 16/17 Texas Longhorns (10-4, 4-0 Big 12) vs. Oklahoma State Cowgirls (12-3, 2-2 Big 12)
Time: Tuesday, January 10, 2017 | 7 p.m. CT
Location: Austin, Texas | Frank Erwin Center (16,540)
TV: Longhorn Network (Alex Loeb, Nell Fortner, Tyler Denning)
Radio: 104.9 FM The Horn (Craig Way, Fran Harris)
Game Notes | WatchESPN | Live Stats | Live Audio |
AUSTIN, Texas – The No. 16/17 University of Texas women's basketball team looks to extend its Big 12 Conference winning streak to five games on Tuesday when it plays host to Oklahoma State. Tip-off in the Frank Erwin Center is slated for 7 p.m. CT and the game will be televised nationally by Longhorn Network.
Prior to the game, Texas coach Karen Aston will be presented a commemorative game ball for achieving her 200th career victory in the Longhorns' last outing against TCU. Terry Adams, a BMX Flatland World Champion, will perform a five-minute routine at halftime. Texas players will participate in a postgame autograph session on the court following the game.
The Longhorns (10-4, 4-0 Big 12 Conference) are on an eight-game winning streak overall and are 4-0 to start the Big 12 for just the fourth time in program history. With a win on Tuesday, Texas would match the 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2015-16 teams for the best Big 12 start in school history at 5-0.
Texas has won the rebound battle in 13 of its 14 games so far this season and the Longhorns rank fourth nationally in rebound margin at +14.2. UT also ranks 13th nationally in blocked shots per game at 6.1.
Junior point guard Brooke McCarty leads the way for the Longhorns, averaging a squad-best 13.6 points per game as one of four players averaging double-figure point totals. McCarty has knocked down a squad-best 30 three-pointers and has dished out a team-high 51 assists.
Junior guard Ariel Atkins follows with 13.1 points per game overall. She and McCarty are averaging a squad-best 15.0 points per game in Big 12 contests only, which ranks tied for 11th in the league. Freshman guard/forward Joyner Holmes, the Big 12 Freshman of the Week, adds 10.9 points per game and 6.9 rebounds per game.
Senior center Kelsey Lang is the team's leading rebounder at 9.2 boards per game, while chipping in 10.0 points per game and a team-high 32 blocks. She has recorded six double-doubles on the year and leads the Big 12 (conference games only) in rebounding at 12.0 points per game.
Texas and Oklahoma State meet for the 45th time in the history of the two programs. The Longhorns lead the all-time series 29-15. Texas has won four of the last five meetings between the two teams. Last season, the Longhorns swept the season series with the Cowgirls for the first time since 2006.
Oklahoma State enters Tuesday's game with a 12-3 overall record and a 2-2 tally in Big 12 play. The Cowgirls are coming off an 86-50 loss to No. 2 Baylor on Saturday afternoon. Junior center Kaylee Jensen is the Big 12 leader in both scoring (19.5 ppg) and rebounding (10.3 rpg).
QUICK NOTES
• Texas women's basketball is in the midst of its 43rd season of intercollegiate basketball.
• The Longhorns have won 12 conference regular season titles and 10 conference tournament titles.
• Texas is one of just eight programs in NCAA Division I women's basketball history to reach 1,000 all-time wins. The Longhorns achieved the milestone on January 27, 2016. Texas ranks fifth all-time in NCAA history with 1,022 all-time victories.
• The Longhorns consistently play a rigorous non-conference schedule. The Longhorns' schedule consists of six non-conference opponents that advanced to the NCAA Sweet 16 or further during the 2015-16 campaign.
• Texas head coach Karen Aston is one win away from 100 on the Forty Acres. She is 99-50 (.664).
• Since the start of the 2013-14 season, Texas is 54-6 (.900) when playing in the Frank Erwin Center.
• Texas has won the rebound battle in 13 of its 14 games so far this season and holds a rebound margin of +14.2. The Longhorns rank fourth nationally in rebound margin.
• The Longhorns rank 13th nationally in blocked shots per game with 6.1 blocks per game.
• Senior center Kelsey Lang ranks tied for second in the Big 12 Conference in double-doubles with six on the season. Oklahoma State's Kaylee Jensen also has recorded a league-leading seven double-dips on the year.
• Lang currently ranks eighth in UT school history with 143 career blocks. She needs 14 more blocks to surpass Joy Williams (156) for seventh place all-time.
• Lang has played in 118 games in her UT career. She needs to play in 15 more games to move into the all-time Texas top-10 list in career games played.
• Junior guard Brooke McCarty has 134 career three-pointers made, which ranks eighth all-time in UT school history. She needs 19 more three pointers to surpass Erika Arriaran (152) for seventh place all-time.
• McCarty ranks fourth in school history in three-point field goal percentage with a .394 clip (134-of-340). Current Texas assistant Jamie Carey holds the school record in three-point field goal percentage at .418. Just three players in UT history - Carey, Kat Nash and Vicki Hall - have shot better than .400 beyond the three-point arc for their careers.
