The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
Ohio State
No. 6/7 Women’s Basketball preview: vs No.14/15 Ohio State (NCAA Sweet 16)
03.24.2022 | Women's Basketball
The Longhorns take on the Buckeyes in Friday's Sweet 16 in Spokane (6 p.m. CT, ESPN 2)
Game 35: No. 2 seed Texas (28-6, 13-5 Big 12) vs No. 6 seed Ohio State (25-6, 14-4 Big 10)
NCAA Tournament Sweet 16
Friday, March 25, 2022 – 4:00 p.m. Central
Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena (12,638) – Spokane, Wash.
GameDay Quick Facts:
• TELEVISION: The game will be televised nationally on ESPN 2. Beth Mowins (pxp), Debbie Antonelli (analyst) and Angel Gray (sideline) will call the action.
• RADIO: 105.3 The Bat broadcasts every UT game on the statewide network. Craig Way (pxp) and Kathy Harston (analyst) will call the action. Check TexasSports.com for a listing of affiliates carrying the game.
• SERIES: 8-2, Texas lead. Last meeting: Ohio State 70-66 (Jan. 5, 2003; Columbus, Ohio)
Notables:
STILL DANCIN: Fresh off a pair of victories over Fairfield and Utah on their home court in the 2022 NCAA Tournament First & Second Rounds this past weekend in Austin, the No. 2-seeded Texas women's basketball team will continue its tournament run on Friday as they head to Spokane, Wash., to square off with No.6-seed Ohio State in the Sweet Sixteen. No. 1-seed Stanford and No. 4 seed Maryland represent the other Sweet Sixteen matchup in the Spokane Regional and will face off at approximately 8:30 p.m. CT/ 6:30 p.m. PT on Friday. Both games are slated to take place inside the Spokane Arena. Winners of each matchup will advance to the Elite Eight which will take place on Sunday, March 27.
NCAA TOURNAMENT HISTORY: With their wins over Fairfield and Utah this past weekend, Texas is now 47-32 (.594 win pct) all-time in the NCAA Tournament. Thirty of those victories have come by at least 15 points, including an 18-point win over the Stags and a 22-point win over the Utes this past weekend. This year marks the Texas' second-straight appearance in the Sweet Sixteen and their 17th appearance all time.
A SWEET TRACK RECORD: In just his second season at the helm of the program, Vic Schaefer has guided the Longhorns to back-to-back Sweet Sixteen Appearances and has been to six-straight Sweet Sixteens dating back to his tenue as the head coach at Mississippi State. Schaefer owns a 21-6 mark in the tournament as a head coach entering this weekend's action.
THE STREAK: The Longhorns enter Friday evening's tilt riding a 13-game win streak and have not lost a game since Feb. 6. The streak is the second-longest active streak in the tournament trailing only Stanford who have won 22-straight games enter this weekends' action.
MAGNIFICENT MOORE: Freshman forward Aaliyah Moore has burst on to the scene in the postseason for the Longhorns and provided spark to the rotations on both ends of the floor.
Over the last three contests, the Moore, Okla., native is leading the team in scoring (17 PPG), rebounding (6.7 RPG), field goal percentage (68%) and is shooting at a sparking 94.4 percent (17-of-18) clip from the free throw line.
In UT's 70-52 win over Fairfield in the tournament opener last Friday, Moore posted her first-career double-double and led the team with 18 points and 10 rebounds. In Sunday's Round of 32 victory over the Utes, she followed it up with a career-best 21 points on a 9-of-10 performance from the field.
SCOUTING THE BUCKEYES: Ohio State enters play with one of the more potent offense in the country as they rank No. 8 in the NCAA averaging 78.6 points per game and rank No. 6 in the county in three-point shooting efficiency knocking down triples at a 37.6 percent clip.
The Buckeyes are led offensively by a pair of All-Big Ten First team guards in junior Jacy Sheldon and Taylor Mikesell. Sheldon leads the team averaging 19.8 points per game while Mikesell is averaging 18.6 per game and ranks No. 2 in in the NCAA in three-pointer made (111), 3-pointer per game (3.58) and 3-point field goal percentage (.470). Rebeka Mikulasikova leads the team on the glass averaging five rebounds per game.
NEXT: Should the Longhorns come out come out on top of Friday's matchup with the Buckeyes, they would advance the Elite Eight game on Sunday where they would face the winner of No. 1 Stanford and No.3 Maryland. Tip time and broadcast info will be announced after the conclusion of the Sweet Sixteen matchups.
