Jan. 8, 2009
Complete notes [PDF]
#8/12 TEXAS (12-2, 0-0 Big 12) at Texas Tech (9-4, 0-0 Big 12)
Saturday, Jan. 10, 2009 · 2 p.m. Central
United Spirit Arena (15,050) · Lubbock, Texas
GAME DAY QUICK FACTS
TELEVISION: None.
RADIO: KVET (1300 AM Sportsradio The Zone) will broadcast Saturday's game between Texas and Texas Tech. Fans can also tune into XM Satellite Radio Ch. 231 for all of the action. Jon Madani (pxp) and Carol Ross (analyst) will call the game.
INTERNET AUDIO: Listen to Texas Basketball games on subscription-based Yahoo! Sports College Broadcast.
SERIES: Texas leads 55-24. Last meeting: Texas 75-63 (March 11, 2008; Big 12 Championship - Kansas City, Mo.)
NOTABLES
· TEXAS BEGINS BIG 12 PLAY ... The Longhorns are currently the only team to rank in the top half of the league in every statistical category along with leading the Big 12 in five areas (as of Jan. 7). Texas sits atop the rankings in scoring margin (+26.0), free-throw percentage (.765, 224-of-293), field-goal percentage defense (.325, 273-of-839), blocked shots (91, 6.5 bpg) and defensive rebounds (29.2 drpg).
· RAVEN CLOSING IN ON 1K POINTS ... Junior guard Brittainey Raven is on the verge of joining an elite club of Texas women's basketball players. After scoring 13 points in Texas' loss at Purdue (Jan. 5), Raven needs just eight more points to become the 33rd player in UT history to reach 1,000 career points.
· ROAD WARRIORS ... Three Longhorns are averaging more than 10 points per game in Texas' four road contests this season. Guards Brittainey Raven (11.8 ppg), Erika Arriaran (10.5 ppg) and Kathleen Nash (10.3 ppg) all average double-digit scoring efforts when playing in opponents' arenas.
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SERIES VS. TEXAS TECHSaturday's contest marks the 80th meeting between Texas and Texas Tech. Texas holds a 55-24 advantage in the all-time series, which began on Jan. 15, 1977. Both teams were victorious on their home courts last year with the Red Raiders winning the first meeting, 70-58, on Jan. 20, in Lubbock, and the Longhorns winning, 70-55, on March 5, in Austin. Texas then beat Tech, 75-63, in the first round of the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City, Mo., on March 11. The Longhorns hold a 17-14 advantage against Tech in Lubbock.
LAST TIME OUT: PURDUE (JAN. 5)
Purdue freshman guard Brittany Rayburn scored 19 points to lead the Boilermakers (9-5) to a 66-55 victory over No. 8 Texas on Jan. 5. Erika Arriaran scored 14 points and Brittainey Raven added 13 for Texas (12-2), which has lost two of its last three games.
A CHECK OF THE POLLS
Texas is ranked No. 8 in the latest Associated Press poll (Jan. 5) and No. 12 in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll (Jan. 6). Texas compiled a perfect 3-0 record against Top 25 opponents during the non-conference season after first topping then-No. 25/20 Old Dominion 78-44 (Nov. 17) and later handing then-No. 7/10 Tennessee 73-59 (Dec. 14) and then-No. 21/21 Arizona State 81-71 (Dec. 18) back-to-back losses in Austin.
GOESTENKORS VS. IN-STATE OPPONENTS
Second-year head coach Gail Goestenkors boasts a 12-4 record against in-state opponents. She collected her first win against a fellow Texas opponent with a 94-35 win over Lamar on Nov. 15, 2007. In Big 12 contests, Goestenkors is 4-4 against in-state rivals.
TEXAS-PURDUE NOTES
· Texas fell to 2-3 all-time against Purdue and 0-3 in Mackey Arena.
· The Longhorns shot 80 percent or better from the free-throw line for the fifth straight game (6-of-7).
· Texas shot 40 percent or better from the three-point line for the eighth time this season (9-of-20; .450).
· UT outrebounded its opponent for the 11th time this season and for the third time in its last five games (34-33).
· UT shot a season-low 33.9 percent from the field (20-of-59).
· Purdue shot .457 from the field (21-of-46), marking a high by a Texas opponent this season...Texas has shot better than its opponent in 10 contests.
· Purdue began a 28-6 run at the 16:46 mark in the first half to build a 34-11 lead with 5:39 left in the period for its largest lead of the game.
· Texas held Purdue to zero field goals for 5 minutes, 40 seconds in the first half (7:36-1:56).
· Purdue held Texas to zero field goals for 6 minutes, three seconds in the second half (9:34-3:31).
· Texas' most significant run of the game was a 23-13 rally that spanned from 19:27 to 6:54 in the second half.
· Texas' 23-point deficit at the 5:39 mark in the first half was its largest of the season.
· Texas' trailed for the first time this season at the half, 36-19.
· UT cut Purdue's lead to nine points, 51-42, at the 9:34 mark in the second half with back-to-back three-point baskets by Brittainey Raven.
· The attendance figure of 8,525 was the second-largest the Longhorns have seen this season...Texas' home crowd on Dec. 14 against Tennessee was 8,567.
DOMINANT DEFENSE
Texas has held its opponents to an average of 53.1 points per contest and a combined 32.5 percent FG shooting, including a 58-of-219 (.265) mark from three-point range. UT has held 11 of its 14 opponents to under 40 percent FG shooting and six to under 30 percent FG shooting.
RAVEN EYEING 1,000
Junior guard Brittainey Raven is on the verge of joining an elite club of Texas women's basketball players. After scoring 13 points in Texas' loss at Purdue (Jan. 5), Raven needs just eight more points to become the 33rd player in UT history to reach 1,000 career points. The last player to eclipse the 1K mark was current WNBA standout Tiffany Jackson who accomplished the feat over the course of her sophomore year (2004-05).
PASSING IT AROUND
The Longhorns have nearly doubled their opponents in assists through 14 games this season. Texas has recorded 233 assists to its opponents' 131, with senior guard Carla Cortijo dishing out 77. As of the most recent NCAA rankings on Jan. 5, Texas was averaging 16.5 apg, a mark that ranked 23rd nationally.
BEST START SINCE 1985-86
With their 11-0 start to the season, the Longhorns recorded their best start since the 1985-86 season when they went 34-0 and won Texas' first NCAA Championship. Only two of Texas' 32 teams started the season with an 11-0 start prior to this year's squad - the 1985-86 and 1979-80 teams.
ROAD WARRIORS
Three Longhorns are averaging more than 10 points per game in Texas' four road contests this season. Junior guards Brittainey Raven (11.8 ppg) and Erika Arriaran (10.5 ppg), along with sophomore guard Kathleen Nash (10.3 ppg) all average double-digit scoring efforts when playing in opponents' arenas. Additionally, Arriaran is shooting 56.3 percent (9-of-16) from long distance and Nash is hitting 50 percent (16-of-32) of her shots from the field when on the road.
ON POINT
Senior forward Earnesia Williams has been efficient this season, to say the least. Williams currently leads the team in field goal percentage (41-of-76, .539) and has been perfect from the field in three contests this year (4-of-4 FG -- Dayton, Nov. 15; 5-of-5 FG -- No. 21 Arizona State, Dec. 18; 4-of-4 FG -- Lamar, Jan. 3). Williams has connected on 50 percent or more of her shots in 10 of 14 contests while improving her shooting percentage nearly 14 percent from last season (97-241, .402).
RAVEN LEADING THE LONGHORNS
Junior guard Brittainey Raven is living up to her Preseason All-Big 12 Honorable Mention billing, as she has put together 10 double-digit performances in 14 games. Additionally, Raven has led the Longhorns in scoring in eight games and leads Texas with an average of 14.9 ppg.
LEADING THE LEAGUE
With Big 12 Conference play starting up on Saturday, the Longhorns are currently the only team to rank in the top half of the league in every statistical category along with leading the Big 12 in five areas (as of Jan. 7). Texas sits atop the rankings in scoring margin (+26.0), free-throw percentage (.765, 224-of-293), field-goal percentage defense (.325, 273-of-839), blocked shots (91, 6.5 bpg) and defensive rebounds (29.2 drpg).
UT is the only team in the league to rank in the top three in both scoring offense and scoring defense, and the only squad to rank in the top five in both 3-point FG percentage (No. 2, .398) and 3-point FG percentage defense (No. 4, .265).
REBOUNDING RUNDOWN
Texas has outrebounded its opponents in all but three of its 14 games. The Longhorns sport a +10.9 rebound margin (43.9-33.0) and have recorded at least a +10 advantage in nine contests. UT posted a season-high 52 rebounds in its 73-59 win over Tennessee on Dec. 14, and most recently outrebounded Lamar 46-18 in Austin on Jan. 3.
THREE-POINT SUCCESS
Texas has converted 39.8 percent (82-of-206) from beyond the arc. UT is 7-1 on the season when shooting 40% or better from three-point range. The Horns recorded a season-high 5-of-9 performance (.556) against Arizona State (Dec. 18).
THE ASHLEYS DOMINATE
At 6-4, freshman Ashley Gayle shares the title of Tallest Longhorn with senior Ashley Lindsey. The duo share duties in Texas' frontcourt defense and have the potential to be serious threats to offensive attacks, as Lindsey is closing in on Texas' all-time blocks record and Gayle plays above the rim with a flat-footed, non-step vertical reach of 10-2. Lindsey's vertical jump reaches an even 10 feet. Through 14 games, the Ashleys have combined for 67 of Texas' 91 blocks.
STACKING UP NATIONALLY
Texas is among the Top 25 in the nation in 11 statistical categories (Jan. 5). The Longhorns rank second in the nation in field-goal percentage defense (31.8 percent), and third in both scoring margin (28.8) and field-goal percentage (48.1 percent).
Carla Cortijo, Ashley Gayle, Ashley Lindsey and Kathleen Nash rank in the Top 25 individually.
HORNS DISPLAY DEPTH EARLY ON
Texas has displayed its depth early in the 2008-09 season, as its bench has outscored the opponents' bench 438-230. The Longhorns have held their opponents' subs to single digits in five games this season: vs. Dayton (37-8), vs. #25/20 Old Dominion (33-9), vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (34-9), vs. Furman (33-9) and vs. Lamar (26-9). The Longhorn bench is outscoring its opponents' by an average of 31-16. Freshman guard Yvonne Anderson leads the Longhorn bench with 6.1 ppg.
NO SOPHOMORE SLUMP
Guard Kathleen Nash is far from suffering a sophomore slump so far this season. Nash netted a career-high 27 points in Texas' 81-71 win over then-No. 21 Arizona State (Dec. 18) and also tied the school record with a 12-of-12 performance from the charity stripe in the same game. Nash is averaging 13.4 points per game, which is second on the team to Brittainey Raven's 14.9 ppg. Additionally, Nash registered a season-high 12 rebounds against Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and a career-high five assists in the game.
CORTIJO CRACKS TOP 10
Senior guard Carla Cortijo cracked Texas' all-time Top 10 list for career assists when she collected her 400th career assist against San Diego State on Dec. 30. Cortijo has 410 assists in 85 games and currently ranks eighth in Texas' annals. Additionally, her 172 assists last season ranks second all-time by Texas juniors. Kamie Etheridge holds the all-time junior class assists record with 226 in 1984-85.
LINDSEY CLOSING IN ON BLOCKS RECORDS
Senior post Ashley Lindsey has amassed 214 blocks in 103 games, placing her third all-time in the UT annals. Lindsey surpassed Tiffany Jackson (2003-07, 181 blocks) on Nov. 16, 2008, with four blocks in Texas' 110-76 victory over Saint Mary's. In addition, Lindsey's 94 single-season rejections during her junior year rank No. 2 in the UT season record books.
GAYLE CLIMBING THE CHARTS
Freshman post Ashley Gayle is quickly making an impact for UT defensively, as she ranks second on the team to senior Ashley Lindsey (2.6 bpg) with 2.2 blocks per game. Known as `A.G.' to her teammates, Gayle broke into Texas' all-time Top 10 freshmen blocks record with the 23rd block of her career against UTEP on Dec. 28, and currently had 31 blocks on the season.
