The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
6-0
Fordham
4-3
No. 10/9 Women’s Basketball takes down Fordham to win Gulf Coast Showcase
11.25.2018 | Women's Basketball
Sug Sutton named Gulf Coast Showcase Most Valuable Player.
Box Score | Game Notes | Highlights
ESTERO, Fla. — The No. 10/9 Texas women's basketball team defeated Fordham 72-54 on Sunday at Hertz Arena to win the Gulf Coast Showcase. Junior point guard Sug Sutton was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, scoring a career-high 17 points, with 12 in the first half alone. Fellow All-Tournament Team member Jatarie White scored 16 points and tallied five rebounds. Freshman Charli Collier registered out 11 points and sophomore Destiny Littleton contributed 10 points and seven rebounds.
Back and forth scoring between the two teams defined the majority of the first quarter. Texas was up 22-20 before Fordham's Bre Cavanaugh fired a buzzer-beater three to send the Rams ahead of the Longhorns before the break. In the second period, Texas took off on a 12-0 run over 4:35, leaving the Rams in a 5:22 scoring drought and forcing six turnovers. The Longhorns defense stepped up in the second period, allowing Fordham just five points. The Longhorns secured a 56.7 scoring percentage at the half. Fordham put up 16 points in the third quarter to Texas' 14, but the Longhorns came back in the fourth quarter with 19 points to secure the win. Texas' largest lead of the game came in the final quarter at 15 points.
Texas improves to 6-0 overall. The contest was the third-ever meeting between Texas and Fordham in women's basketball, with Texas now leading the series 3-0.
KEY STATISTICS
- Texas used the starting lineup of Sug Sutton, Jada Underwood, Audrey Warren, Jatarie White and Danni Williams for the second time this season and improves to 2-0 with that starting five.
- The Longhorns won the battle of the boards at 39 to the Rams' 19. Texas has won or tied for the rebound battle in all six games this season and 95 of the last 111 games overall.
- At least three players have scored in double figures in all six games the Longhorns have played this season.
- Sutton finished with 17 points, seven rebounds and three assists in 31 minutes.
- White, who has scored in double figures all six games this season, totaled 16 points [on 7-of-13 shooting] to go along with five rebounds in 26 minutes.
TEXAS HEAD COACH KAREN ASTON
"It's extremely satisfying [to win the tournament]. Winning the championship of any sort is a good thing for your confidence and for this young team, I think it's great. I learned a lot, actually. I learned that they're tricking me in practice sometimes. But I do think that we showed some fortitude and that's one of the things that we've been searching for — where's our grit, our defensive intensity, and then, really, where is our leadership? I think it was really, really obvious that Sug [Sutton] stepped forward this weekend as the leader of our team, but I also think that our team emerged this weekend."
UP NEXT
Texas will face UTSA on Wednesday at home in the Frank Erwin Center for the eighth-annual 40 Acres Field Trip. Tip-off is slated for 11 a.m. CT and the game will be televised on the Longhorn Network and on radio at 105.3 FM in Austin or TexasSports.com/audio.
