The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Central Arkansas
No. 14 Women's Basketball preview: Central Arkansas [March 17, 2017]
03.15.2017 | Women's Basketball
Longhorns face Southland Conference Champion on Friday in NCAA First Round.
No. 14/15 Texas Longhorns (23-8, 15-3 Big 12) vs. Central Arkansas Sugar Bears (26-4, 16-2 Southland)
Time: Friday, March 17, 2017 | 1:30 p.m. CT
Location: Austin, Texas | Frank Erwin Center (16,540)
TV: ESPN2 (Roy Philpott, Brooke Weisbrod)
Radio: 105.3 FM (Roger Wallace, Fran Harris)
Game Notes | WatchESPN | Live Stats | Live Audio | Tickets
AUSTIN, Texas - The No. 14/15 University of Texas women's basketball team begins its NCAA Tournament quest on Friday when it plays host to Central Arkansas at the Frank Erwin Center. Tip-off is slated for 1:30 p.m. CT and the game will be nationally televised by ESPN2.
The Longhorns (23-8, 15-3 Big 12 Conference) are making their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and 30th all-time. Texas is just the fourth program in NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament history to make 30 or more appearances. The Longhorns are 38-28 (.576) all-time in NCAA Tournament play, including a 6-3 mark under head coach Karen Aston.
The Longhorns are the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament for the fifth time in program history. Texas is 4-4 all-time when playing as a No. 3 seed in the NCAAs.
"Central Arkansas is a team that I'm somewhat familiar with, more than anything their coach [Sandra Rushing]," said Aston, the 2017 Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year. "They'll be a really well-coached team. You look at their schedule and you see that they have a lot of wins on their schedule. You also see a team that not only won their conference, but also their tournament. They're used to winning and they've had a very, very good year. Everybody's good that's in the tournament and what I think is really important for us is to go back to that one-game-at-a-time mentality."
The Longhorns are in the midst of their fourth consecutive 20-win season. With a victory on Friday, Texas will have posted 24 or more wins in three consecutive years.
Texas has won the rebound battle in 28 of 31 games this season. The Longhorns rank sixth nationally in rebound margin at +10.2. Texas is averaging 43.1 rebounds per game, which ranks among the top-15 nationally.
Five of Texas' last seven games have been decided by four or fewer points. The Longhorns are 3-4 in their last seven games and have a scoring margin of +1.7 in those games. Texas is 4-4 this season in games decided by six or fewer points.
Junior point guard Brooke McCarty this season became the program's first player to be named Big 12 Player of the Year. McCarty averages a squad-best 14.0 points per game, is shooting 42.5 percent from beyond the arc, has dished out a squad-best 110 assists and has a 2.2 assist-to-turnover ratio. She has recorded double-figure scoring in 26 games this season, including in 16 of 18 Big 12 games.
Junior guard Ariel Atkins follows with 13.0 points per game and is the Big 12 Conference leader in steals per game at 2.1. Atkins was a first-team All-Big 12 selection. Freshman guard/forward Joyner Holmes, the 2017 Big 12 Freshman of the Year, adds 11.9 points per game, a team-high 8.2 rebounds per game and 1.1 blocks per game. She is first among league freshmen in scoring, rebounding and double-doubles (8).
Senior center Kelsey Lang, a 2017 Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, is second on the team in rebounding at 7.6 boards per game. She also averages a squad-best 2.2 blocks per game and contributes 9.3 points per game.
Texas and Central Arkansas are meeting for the first time in the history of the two programs. The Longhorns are 48-9 (.842) all-time against teams from the Southland Conference.
The Sugar Bears (26-4, 16-2 Southland) won both the Southland Conference regular season and tournament championships this year. Central Arkansas is the league leader in scoring margin (+16.8), scoring defense (52.2), field-goal percentage (.474) and rebounding margin (+9.0). UCA ranks fourth nationally in scoring defense and 12th in the nation in scoring margin. The Sugar Bears enter Friday's contest on a 17-game winning streak, which is the fourth-longest active win streak in the nation.
Senior guard Maggie Proffitt is the team's leading scorer, ranking seventh in the Southland Conference with 15.6 points per game. She is also the league's leader in free-throw percentage at 88.9 percent. Junior center Kierra Jordan is the squad's leading rebounder at 6.8 boards per game. Senior center Raquel Logan leads the Southland in blocked shots at 1.5 rejections per game.
QUICK NOTES
• Texas women's basketball is in the midst of its 43rd season of intercollegiate basketball.
• The Longhorns are making their 30th NCAA Tournament appearance, which is fourth-most of any program in NCAA D-I Women's Basketball history.
• 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 1,035 all-time victories.
• The Longhorns consistently play a rigorous non-conference schedule. Texas' schedule this season consisted 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 112-54 (.675) in her fifth season at the helm of the Longhorns. She is the program's second-winningest coach in UT history behind Jody Conradt's 783 victories on the Forty Acres.
• The Longhorns tied the school record for most Big 12 wins in a season at 15. The 2002-03 and 2015-16 squads also posted 15 Big 12 victories.
• Texas has won the rebound battle in 28 of its 31 games so far this season and holds a rebound margin of +10.2. The Longhorns rank sixth nationally in rebound margin.
• The Longhorns rank 19th nationally in blocked shots per game with 5.6 blocks per game.
• Over the past two seasons, Texas is 13-11 (.542) against foes ranked in the Associated Press Top-25, including a 6-6 (.500) mark this season.
• Senior center Kelsey Lang has played in 135 games in her UT career, which ranks tied for fifth all-time in career games played for the Longhorns. Her next game will put her in sole possession of fifth place on the program's all-time list for career games played. She would become the first player since 1983 to play in 136 or more games in her career.
• Lang recently became the 41st member of the school's all-time 1,000-point club and has 1,066 career points at UT.
• Lang currently ranks seventh in UT school history with 177 career blocks. She needs five more blocks to surpass Tiffany Jackson (181) for sixth-place on the school's all-time list.
• Junior guard Brooke McCarty has 175 career three-pointers made, which ranks seventh all-time in UT history. She needs five more three-pointers to surpass Kim Lummus (179) for sixth place on the school's all-time list.
• McCarty ranks fourth in school history in three-point field goal percentage with a .400 clip (175-of-437). Current Texas assistant Jamie Carey holds the school record in three-point field goal percentage at .418.
• McCarty eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau on Feb. 6 vs. Baylor and became the 42nd player in school history to do so. She has 1,109 career points.
• Junior guard Ariel Atkins is the Big 12 Conference leader (all games combined) in steals per game with 2.1. Atkins also has 942 career points and is 58 points away from 1,000 for her Texas career.
PRE-TOURNAMENT QUOTES
Texas Head Coach Karen Aston
On the week of practice following the Big 12 Conference Tournament …
"Last week during practice, we had some moments where I tried to make it pretty difficult for them. I wanted to get us back into a competitive mode. I felt like maybe we had let our guard down a little bit or maybe lost a little bit of our competitiveness, so last week we spent some time trying to get back to who we are. Monday's practice was more about today's a new season, let's be happy that we're in the bracket, let's be happy we're hosting, and let's build on that through the rest of the week into Friday."
On how excited the Texas team is about its NCAA Tournament draw …
"I think they're always excited to see their name come up on the bracket. We have a lot of new players this year and that's the first time they've experienced that. I told them, more than anything, just take that in and understand that it is a culmination of a lot of hard work and enjoy the moment of that. Once you get that feeling, it's easy to relay that feeling to the next group next year. That's kind of what this is about. They work really hard in the summer, they work hard in the fall and they work hard all season to get to this point where, not only are you in the tournament, but you're also hosting."
On how fun this year's Texas team has been to coach …
"They're a lot of fun. They probably didn't like me very much in the last few practices, but this is a team that I've really enjoyed just being around. They get along, they don't take a whole lot serious. It sometimes drives me crazy, but they're a fun bunch. They're fun-loving. They get along really well. Not a lot of drama. They do well in class. The biggest thing that has been my challenge as a coach is to continue to put a finger on them and make them reach their potential. It's a new season and a chance for us to re-set."
On facing Central Arkansas in the NCAA First Round on Friday …
"Central Arkansas is a team that I'm somewhat familiar with, more than anything their coach [Sandra Rushing]. They'll be a really well-coached team. You look at their schedule and you see that they have a lot of wins on their schedule. You also see a team that not only won their conference [Southland], but also their tournament. They're used to winning and they've had a very, very good year. For us, there's not any point in looking forward to what might happen next. Everybody's good that's in the tournament and what I think is really important for us is to go back to that one-game-at-a-time mentality."
Junior Guard Ariel Atkins
On what advice she has given the younger players about the NCAA Tournament …
"To definitely stay focused and prepare properly. There are going to be some teams that we're going to play that we haven't seen before, so it's important to really pay attention to the preparation for the teams."
On the importance of taking one game at a time …
"It's really important because if we don't get past the first one, then we're done. That's another thing that we try to reiterate to the younger players. You don't get another chance. This is it, so stay focused and stay in the moment, because this is the only moment that matters."
On how fun her team is to be around …
"They're pretty fun to be around. They're jokesters. They like to play around a lot. It's really fun to be around them. Everybody is from a different background and has a different personality. To see us all come together and have fun and joke is really fun."
On how excited she is to be playing the NCAA First and Second Rounds at the Frank Erwin Center …
"I'm extremely excited. I'm probably more excited for our seniors than I am just for us or just for me because these fans are great and they've always had our backs no matter what. It's really exciting to bring these games back to the Erwin Center because we have a lot of fans who love the game of women's basketball."
Senior Center Kelsey Lang
On the team's NCAA Tournament draw …
"I'm so excited. Coach had been telling us this past week that we had to sit around and wait – just to prepare our minds and that the projections aren't for sure until they are announced on Monday night. We were all really excited to hear where we would be, and I'm so glad it's at home."
On facing Central Arkansas on Friday at 1:30 p.m. in the Frank Erwin Center …
"I don't think any of us would be expecting anything less than a battle. The conference season in the Big 12 prepares you for the NCAA Tournament. I think that we all know how tough it is going to be. Even though we are on our home court, teams are going to come in gunning for us. We're all excited to get in the film room, get in the gym and practice what the coaches want us to execute on Friday."
On getting to play at home in the NCAA First and Second Rounds as a senior …
"It's really exciting. It didn't go the way me and Bre [Taylor] wanted it to go [on Senior night against Iowa State]. Getting the opportunity to play one, maybe two more games in the Erwin Center means the world to me. I love the University of Texas and I'm just really excited that I get the opportunity to play another game in here."
On facing teams the Longhorns are unfamiliar with …
"The Big 12 – you play everyone twice and you could possibly see them a third time in the tournament. So you pretty much know them like the back of your hand, and they know you. They know how to guard you and they know how tough they have to play against you. Now having a clean slate against teams that we didn't play this season, I think it's great. I'm just trying to get the message across to the younger girls that it is a clean slate and nothing else matters. We got our seeding, which is what we had been working for all season, and now everyone's even."
