March 10, 2009
Complete notes [PDF]
#6 seed TEXAS (20-10, 8-8 Big 12) vs. #11 seed Missouri (13-16, 4-12 Big 12)
Phillips 66 Big 12 Women's Basketball Championship First Round
Thursday, March 12, 2009 • 5 p.m. Central
Cox Convention Center (13,297) • Oklahoma City, Okla.
GAME DAY QUICK FACTS
TELEVISION: The game will be televised by Cox Cable (DirecTV Ch. 672 and Dish Network Ch. 448). Mark Ewing (pxp) and Toby Rowland (analyst) will call the action. Clearances for Time Warner Cable in Austin are TBA. Check TexasSports.com for updates.
RADIO: KVET (1300 AM Sportsradio The Zone) will broadcast Thursday's game between UT and MU. Craig Way (pxp) and Carol Ross (analyst) will call the game.
INTERNET AUDIO: Listen to the Texas vs. Missouri game FREE on the Internet.
INTERNET VIDEO: Big12Sports.com will feature live video streaming of all first round games.
SERIES: Texas leads, 16-1. Last meeting: Texas 66-56 (Feb. 24, 2009; Columbia, Mo.)
TEXAS IN THE BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP: Texas is 15-11 all-time in league tournament games.
NOTABLES
• SIXTH-SEED HISTORY ... UT enters the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women's Basketball Championship as the No. 6 seed for the second time in school history. The Longhorns sport a 3-1 record when playing as the sixth seed, and advanced to one of Texas' three championship game appearances as No. 6 in 2000.
• BETTER BY THE YEAR ... Texas finished Big 12 play with eight league wins, marking its most since recording 13 in 2004-05. The Longhorns have steadily improved their performance in league play over the past three season, as they recorded six league victories in 2007 and seven in 2008.
• LINDSEY LEADING THE LONGHORNS ... Over the last four games, senior forward Ashley Lindsey has led the Longhorns with an average of 7.5 rpg and 53.8 percent shooting from the field (21-of-39) in 27.5 mpg. She is also second on the team in scoring over that stretch, averaging 12.8 ppg.
SERIES VS. MISSOURI
Thursday's contest marks the 18th meeting between Texas and Missouri. Texas holds a 16-1 advantage in the all-time series that began on Feb. 18, 1980, with a 77-74 UT win in Austin. The Longhorns have won the last nine meetings, including a 66-56 decision earlier this season in Columbia (Feb. 24). UT is 1-0 all-time against Missouri in the Big 12 Championship.
Series Quick Facts
Overall Series Record - Texas, 16-1
Goestenkors all-time vs. Mizzou - 2-0
Most UT points - 108 (Mar. 14, 1986)
Most Mizzou points - 77 (twice)
Fewest UT points - 52 (Jan. 6, 2001)
Fewest Mizzou points - 37 (Jan. 26, 2008)
Largest UT margin - 41 (108-67; Mar. 14, 1986)
Largest Mizzou margin - 16 (68-52; Jan. 6, 2001)
In overtime - Texas leads, 1-0
A CHECK OF THE POLLS
Texas is ranked No. 23 in the latest Associated Press poll (March 9) and No. 21 in the latest ESPN/USA Today Coaches poll (March 10). Texas is 5-5 this season against AP Top 25 opponents and 2-5 in Big 12 contests.
FLASHBACK: AT MISSOURI (FEB. 24)
(AP) - Brittainey Raven scored a career-high 31 points and 16th-ranked Texas overcame an early 10-point deficit to beat Missouri 66-56 on Feb. 24. The Longhorns (20-7, 8-5 Big 12) also got 10 points each from Ashley Lindsey and Kathleen Nash as they shook off back-to-back losses to Oklahoma State and Texas A&M. Texas got off to a slow start, hitting 3-of-12 field goals and falling behind 19-9. But a 3-pointer by Nash with 9:32 left in the first half put the Longhorns back in the game. Texas took the lead for good at 24-22 on a putback by Nash and led 30-24 at halftime. The Tigers closed within 34-31 early in the second half but got no closer the rest of the way, as Texas held them to 8-for-33 shooting in the period.
LAST TIME OUT: OKLAHOMA (MARCH 8)
(AP) - Danielle Robinson scored 17 points for No. 3 Oklahoma, and the Big 12 champions ended the regular season with a 74-62 win over No. 15 Texas on March 8. Courtney Paris added 16 points for the Sooners, but had just six rebounds to miss her 124th career double-double in 130 games. Oklahoma (27-3, 15-1) built the lead as high as 27 in the second half, then watched Texas (20-10, 8-8) rally to within 11 in the final minute. Ashley Lindsey scored 16 to lead the Longhorns.
TEXAS-OKLAHOMA NOTES
· Texas finished the regular season with eight Big 12 regular-season wins, marking its most since recording 13 in 2004-05.
· Texas used the starting lineup of Carla Cortijo, Ashleigh Fontenette, Kathleen Nash, Earnesia Williams and Ashley Lindsey for the first time this season.
· Oklahoma shot .566 (30-of-53) from the field, marking the second-highest field-goal percentage by a Texas opponent this season.
· Texas used a 24-10 run in the second half that spanned from 12:29-4:02 (eight minutes, 27 seconds) to cut the deficit to 13, 67-54.
· Texas also recorded four steals in the same span ... Texas finished the game with eight steals after recording just two in the first half.
BETTER IN THE BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
To keep the Horns' hopes of winning a Big 12 Championship alive, seniors Carla Cortijo and Earnesia Williams have proven to step up their game in the league's postseason tournament. Cortijo has posted a total of 69 points in five Big 12 Championship games, which averages out to 13.8 per contest, four points more than her career average of 8.08 in Big 12 games. The guard's lone career 20-point game also came in the postseason tournament, when she went off for 24 points to upset No. 2 seed Baylor in 2008. Williams has provided the team's defensive leadership in championship play as she has averaged 6.2 rebounds in five games (up from 4.2 during conference play), including a 13-board effort against Baylor last season.
QUARTET EARNS ALL-BIG 12 HONORS
Four Texas players earned spots on the 2008-09 Phillips 66 All-Big 12 Women's Basketball teams. Junior guard Brittainey Raven was named to the All-Big 12 Second Team for the second-consecutive year, and freshman guard Ashleigh Fontenette earned a spot on the Big 12 All-Freshman Team. Senior guard Carla Cortijo picked up her second All-Big 12 Honorable Mention accolade in as many seasons, while sophomore guard Kathleen Nash earned her first.
GOESTENKORS IN THE BIG 12 CHAMPIONSHIP
In 2008, then-first year Texas head coach Gail Goestenkors led UT to a semifinal appearance in the Big 12 Women's Basketball Championship as a seven seed. The Longhorns upset the second-seeded Baylor Lady Bears in last year's quarterfinals after overcoming a 16-point halftime deficit - the largest deficit ever overcome in the history of Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship action. Goestenkors holds a 2-1 record in the conference tournament.
WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?
The big statistical difference in Texas' 20 wins and 10 losses this season can be traced to the defensive end of the court. In its 20 wins, Texas has held opponents to an average of 53.0 points per contest and a combined .328 percent FG shooting, including an 82-of-325 (.252) mark from three-point range.
20 WINS...AGAIN
With a 66-56 victory at Missouri on Feb. 24, the Longhorns reached their second-consecutive 20-win season under second-year head coach Gail Goestenkors. The 2008-09 squad is the 28th team in Texas' 35 years of women's basketball to eclipse the 20-win mark, and Goestenkors' 12th-consecutive team to record 20 or more wins.
HOT FROM THE FIELD
Eight Texas players are shooting 40 percent or better from the field. Junior Kristen Nash (.512) leads the Longhorns, while seniors Ashley Lindsey (.495) and Earnesia Williams (.485) rank second and third, respectively. Three Longhorns have also made 33 or more three-pointers this season (Kathleen Nash - 44; Erika Arriaran - 38; Brittainey Raven - 33).
THREE-POINT SUCCESS
Texas has converted 36.8 percent (159-of-432) from beyond the arc. UT is 11-2 on the season when shooting 40 percent or better from three-point range. The Horns recorded a season-high 13-of-23 performance (.565) at Oklahoma State (Feb. 5), and their 13 three pointers in that game stand as the second-best single-game record in Texas history.
AMONG THE LEAGUE'S BEST
Through the Big 12 regular season, the Longhorns found themselves among the top three in seven statistical categories. Additionally, UT is one of just two schools in the league to rank in the top four in both 3-point FG percentage and 3-point FG percentage defense (fourth - .283).
