The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
10-1 (1-0)
Oklahoma
5-7 (0-1)
No. 8 Women's Basketball earns first win in Norman since 2010
12.28.2017 | Women's Basketball
Texas defeats Oklahoma 88-78 to open Big 12 Conference play.
Box Score (PDF) | Postgame Notes (PDF) | Postgame Press Conference Video
NORMAN, Okla. – Junior Texas guard Lashann Higgs scored a career-high 25 points on Thursday to lead No. 8 Texas to an 88-78 win against Oklahoma on Thursday in the Big 12 Conference opener at the Lloyd Noble Center.
It was the Longhorns' first win in Norman since February 3, 2010, snapping a seven-game home winning streak by the Sooners in the series. Texas (10-1, 1-0 Big 12 Conference) won its fourth consecutive Big 12 Conference opener and improves to 12-10 all-time in Big 12 league lid-lifters.
"It's not a secret that we haven't won here in a long time," said Texas head coach Karen Aston, who earned her 225th career win Thursday. "Maybe late in the game, we got a little antsy and tried maybe not to lose instead of continuing to try to win. I'm pleased that we got a win in Norman and I'm proud of our team."
Higgs' 25 points came on 8-for-13 shooting with a pair of three-pointers and 7-of-8 efficiency from the free-throw line. She bested her previous career high of 19 points scored in the 2016 NCAA Regional Final game against UConn. It marked the eighth time this season that she has scored in double figures and her seven made free throws were a career high. Higgs added five rebounds, three steals and two assists in 28 minutes.
"Oklahoma is a very good team and we just had to match their intensity and understand that they weren't going to stop playing," Higgs said. "We had to continue to follow the game plan and the details."
Senior guard Ariel Atkins added 15 points and brought down a game-high nine rebounds, while senior guard Brooke McCarty totaled 12 points, including 6-of-7 free throws, five rebounds and four assists. Atkins and McCarty combined for 14 of their team's 26 points in the fourth quarter.
Junior center Jatarie White totaled 11 points and five rebounds, while senior forward Audrey-Ann Caron-Goudreau blocked a season-high three shots.
Texas shot 51.5 percent (34-of-66) from the field, including an impressive 64.7 percent (11-of-17) in the opening quarter. The Longhorns out-rebounded the Sooners 41-30 in the game, marking the 10th time in 11 games this season that Texas has won the battle of the boards.
Texas opened up to a quick 8-0 lead at the 7:34 mark of the first quarter as four different players recorded baskets. After Oklahoma stopped the scoring spree with a basket of its own, Higgs drained a three-pointer to extend the Longhorns' advantage to 11-2 with 6:48 left in the opening period. The teams traded hoops until Higgs drilled a three-pointer and followed with a basket in a span of 36 seconds to give Texas a 16-6 lead at the 4:59 mark of the first quarter. The Longhorns widened their margin to 13 points (26-13) to conclude the opening period as Atkins hit a three and then followed with a lay-up to end the quarter.
Oklahoma's Vionise Pierre-Louis scored the first basket of the second quarter but, from there, Texas ran off five in a row to extend its advantage to 31-15 with 7:52 left until halftime. The Longhorns traded baskets with the Sooners before Texas went on a scoring drought late in the quarter where it made only one of 10 field-goal attempts. Baskets by White and sophomore guard Alecia Sutton restarted the Longhorns' offense and put Texas ahead 41-21 with 44 seconds left in the half. A three-pointer by Oklahoma's Maddie Manning closed the half, sending the Longhorns into the locker room with a 41-24 advantage.
The Sooners used a 7-0 run early in the third quarter to cut their deficit to 12 points, 43-31, at the 7:28 mark. McCarty recorded a jumper to stop the Oklahoma scoring spree. After a pair of free throws from Manning, junior forward Jordan Hosey connected on back-to-back lay-ups to push the Texas advantage back to 16, 49-33, with 5:32 left in the third period. The teams traded baskets for much of the rest of the quarter with the Longhorns holding a 62-47 advantage entering the game's final period.
A three-point play by Atkins that she followed with a three-pointer pushed the Texas advantage out to 19 (68-49) with 8:34 remaining in the game. From there, Oklahoma began chipping away at its deficit, cutting it down to 11 points (78-67) with 2:30 left. McCarty completed a three-point play and then followed up with a free throw on the next possession to extend the Longhorns' lead back out to 15, 82-67. That's when the Sooners used a 9-2 run to cut the Texas advantage down to single digits, 84-76, with 38 seconds remaining on the clock. Sophomore guard/forward Jada Underwood converted on two lay-ups in the final 26 seconds of the game to seal the win for the Longhorns.
Oklahoma (5-7, 0-1 Big 12) was led by a team-high 16 points from Shaina Pellington, including 12 of those points in the fourth quarter. Ana Llanusa and Manning added 14 points apiece.
No. 8/8 Texas returns to action on Sunday when it plays host to No. 9/9 West Virginia. Tip-off in the Frank Erwin Center is slated for 3:30 p.m. CT and will be televised by Fox Sports Net. The Longhorns are 3-0 all-time when playing on New Year's Eve.
