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The Texas women's basketball team has the chance to capture the program's first national title since 1986.
In its first year in a new conference, the Longhorns (31-3, 15-1) did not miss a step. They reached No. 1 in the nation for a few weeks, handed LSU and South Carolina upsets at Moody Center and made it to the SEC Tournament title game.
Now, the No. 1-seeded Longhorns have to battle their way through an impressive field to make it to the Final Four. They have the team to do it and here are some things that can get them there.
In their final season in the Big 12, the Longhorns lost 76-66 to North Carolina State in the Elite Eight. Texas head coach Vic Schaefer is 26-9 in the NCAA Tournament and, while he was with Mississippi State, reached the Final Four twice.
Here's what you should know about Texas' chances in this year's NCAA women's basketball tournament:
You can't make it in March without having stars on your team lead the way.
Forward All-American Madison Booker is only a sophomore but plays like an accomplished senior leading the Longhorns in points at 16.2 per game. Booker also shoots nearly 46% from the field and nearly 44% from 3-point range.
Senior Rori Harmon returned to leading the offense after missing most of last season with an ACL tear and is averaging 9.4 points and 5.9 assists per game. Harmon, an AP All-American honorable mention, is the first Longhorn to reach 1,200 points and 600 assists. She is second on the all-time Longhorns assist leaders with 703.
More: Madison Booker named first-team AP All-American; 2 other Texas Longhorns honored
Senior Taylor Jones and junior Kyla Oldacre can dominate down low with the best of them. Jones scored a season-high 24 points against Ole Miss, and her clutch free-throw shooting got the Longhorns the win. The first time Texas played South Carolina, Oldacre had a season-high 16 rebounds but has not had a double-digit rebounding game since January.
Both players can play physically on the block to get to the free-throw line (Texas is fifth in the country with 16.7 free throws made per game) and provide second-chance points (the team is averaging 16.4 such points this season). Texas cannot rely solely on guard play with Booker to score or Harmon to drive to the basket; if there was a time to force Jones and Oldacre to step up to dominate on the block, it's the tournament.
More: Texas basketball: For Longhorns, the road to Tampa goes through Austin (and Birmingham)
With the strong play of Harmon and Booker, the Longhorns run an offense that is one of the cleanest in the country. The Longhorns averaged 13.4 turnovers per game this season and Texas had a season high of 23 turnovers when it played Notre Dame. But they gave up 10 turnovers or less three times in SEC play.
Texas is not fazed when it is thrown a zone, nor does it haphazardly force passes. Patience on offense will run the clock and work in the Longhorns' factor because they are waiting for the right shot instead of forcing something.
But not every team is perfect, and some things could spell trouble for the Longhorns.
More: Texas basketball: How do the Longhorns prepare for a tournament foe they don't yet know?
Texas is 243rd in the nation in 3-point percentage, making .296 of its attempts. Of the 34 games this season, they shot above 40% seven times with Shay Holle doing the heavy lifting of attempts. A bright spot is the Longhorns' field-goal percentage, which is .461, for 29th in the country.
When the Longhorns get hot they will be hard to stop because they are a more dynamic offense. But they were inconsistent in the SEC Tournament and a 12.5% 3-point performance, like the one in the title game against South Carolina, won't suffice against better shooting teams like Creighton, TCU or Notre Dame.
More: March Madness predictions: Complete bracket, women's basketball Final Four picks
With strong wins against Ole Miss and LSU in the SEC Tournament, a third rematch against South Carolina looked promising. But Texas came out timid and backslid hard settling into bad habits as the Gamecock offense started fast.
In both losses against SC, Texas fell behind by double digits in the first half. In the Horns' win against the Gamecocks, they controlled the opening half.
While Texas has proven it can come from behind (see Ole Miss and LSU), the Longhorns should not have to flip a switch to play their best on offense.
Harmon and Booker cannot carry the load by themselves; to prevent any chance of getting in a hole, they have to rely on others such as Jones, Oldacre and Holle. If Texas flips the switch to play its best too late, their season goals could be out of reach.
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This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: How can, cannot Texas women's basketball make the Final Four
Continue reading...
In its first year in a new conference, the Longhorns (31-3, 15-1) did not miss a step. They reached No. 1 in the nation for a few weeks, handed LSU and South Carolina upsets at Moody Center and made it to the SEC Tournament title game.
Now, the No. 1-seeded Longhorns have to battle their way through an impressive field to make it to the Final Four. They have the team to do it and here are some things that can get them there.
In their final season in the Big 12, the Longhorns lost 76-66 to North Carolina State in the Elite Eight. Texas head coach Vic Schaefer is 26-9 in the NCAA Tournament and, while he was with Mississippi State, reached the Final Four twice.
Here's what you should know about Texas' chances in this year's NCAA women's basketball tournament:
Why Texas women's basketball can make Final Four run
All-star factor
You can't make it in March without having stars on your team lead the way.
Forward All-American Madison Booker is only a sophomore but plays like an accomplished senior leading the Longhorns in points at 16.2 per game. Booker also shoots nearly 46% from the field and nearly 44% from 3-point range.
Senior Rori Harmon returned to leading the offense after missing most of last season with an ACL tear and is averaging 9.4 points and 5.9 assists per game. Harmon, an AP All-American honorable mention, is the first Longhorn to reach 1,200 points and 600 assists. She is second on the all-time Longhorns assist leaders with 703.
More: Madison Booker named first-team AP All-American; 2 other Texas Longhorns honored
Battle down low
Senior Taylor Jones and junior Kyla Oldacre can dominate down low with the best of them. Jones scored a season-high 24 points against Ole Miss, and her clutch free-throw shooting got the Longhorns the win. The first time Texas played South Carolina, Oldacre had a season-high 16 rebounds but has not had a double-digit rebounding game since January.
Both players can play physically on the block to get to the free-throw line (Texas is fifth in the country with 16.7 free throws made per game) and provide second-chance points (the team is averaging 16.4 such points this season). Texas cannot rely solely on guard play with Booker to score or Harmon to drive to the basket; if there was a time to force Jones and Oldacre to step up to dominate on the block, it's the tournament.
More: Texas basketball: For Longhorns, the road to Tampa goes through Austin (and Birmingham)
A clean offense
With the strong play of Harmon and Booker, the Longhorns run an offense that is one of the cleanest in the country. The Longhorns averaged 13.4 turnovers per game this season and Texas had a season high of 23 turnovers when it played Notre Dame. But they gave up 10 turnovers or less three times in SEC play.
Texas is not fazed when it is thrown a zone, nor does it haphazardly force passes. Patience on offense will run the clock and work in the Longhorns' factor because they are waiting for the right shot instead of forcing something.
But not every team is perfect, and some things could spell trouble for the Longhorns.
More: Texas basketball: How do the Longhorns prepare for a tournament foe they don't yet know?
Why Texas women might not make a Final Four run
Shaky 3-point shooting
Texas is 243rd in the nation in 3-point percentage, making .296 of its attempts. Of the 34 games this season, they shot above 40% seven times with Shay Holle doing the heavy lifting of attempts. A bright spot is the Longhorns' field-goal percentage, which is .461, for 29th in the country.
When the Longhorns get hot they will be hard to stop because they are a more dynamic offense. But they were inconsistent in the SEC Tournament and a 12.5% 3-point performance, like the one in the title game against South Carolina, won't suffice against better shooting teams like Creighton, TCU or Notre Dame.
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Slow starts could doom Texas
More: March Madness predictions: Complete bracket, women's basketball Final Four picks
With strong wins against Ole Miss and LSU in the SEC Tournament, a third rematch against South Carolina looked promising. But Texas came out timid and backslid hard settling into bad habits as the Gamecock offense started fast.
In both losses against SC, Texas fell behind by double digits in the first half. In the Horns' win against the Gamecocks, they controlled the opening half.
While Texas has proven it can come from behind (see Ole Miss and LSU), the Longhorns should not have to flip a switch to play their best on offense.
Harmon and Booker cannot carry the load by themselves; to prevent any chance of getting in a hole, they have to rely on others such as Jones, Oldacre and Holle. If Texas flips the switch to play its best too late, their season goals could be out of reach.
Follow the American-Statesman on Facebook and X for more. Your subscription makes work like this possible. Get access to all of our best content with this tremendous offer.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: How can, cannot Texas women's basketball make the Final Four
Continue reading...
