Texas women’s basketball defeats West Virginia

By Steve Lansdale

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — Guard Celina Rodrigo scored 12 points to lead four players scoring in double figures as the second-seeded University of Texas cruised past third-seeded and No. 22/RV West Virginia, 67-51, in the semifinal of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Women’s Basketball Championship at Chesapeake Energy Arena in Oklahoma City.

With the victory, the No. 6/7 Longhorns improved their season record to 25-5 and advanced to Monday’s championship game, in which they will face top-seeded Baylor for the third time this season.

In addition to Rodrigo’s 12 points, UT got [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]11 points each from Brooke McCarty and Ariel Atkins, and 10 points from center Imani Boyette.

Texas jumped out to an early lead, taking a 38-23 lead into the locker room at halftime and stretching the margin to as many as 25 in the third quarter before downshifting and allowing WVU to make the final score closer than the game actually was.

Head coach Karen Aston said her team’s effective play in the early going was critical to the outcome.

“I was extremely pleased with the way we started the game,” Aston said. “Our team seems to feed positively off of having fast starts and good starts, so I thought that it was probably a good thing that we played West Virginia pretty recently. So we were pretty familiar with what our game plan was the last time we played them, and I thought we sort of carried it forward to today’s game the way we played them at home in Austin.”

The Longhorns won Sunday’s game because of the job their defense did against WVU’s offense. UT hit 48.1 percent of its field goals, including 38.5 percent on three-pointers, while the Mountaineers were able to connect on 33.9 of their field goals, and just 13 percent (three of 23) from behind the three-point line.

In addition, Texas held WVU’s leading scorer, Bria Holmes, to eight points — less than half her season average of 16.4 points per game.

“I was extremely happy with it, particularly in the first half,” Aston said of her team’s defense. “I thought they shot more threes than they (normally) would because they got behind — I don’t think that was necessarily the game plan for them to shoot that many threes; but, again, we played well defensively and got a lead and I think they probably shot a few more than they planned on. But I was very pleased with our team. I thought our bench was great.”

Monday’s matchup will be the third meeting between Texas and No. 4 Baylor this season. The Bears swept the two regular-season meetings, picking up an 80-67 win Jan. 17 in Austin and then closing out the regular season with a 74-48 victory over UT in Waco.

Aston said that if the Longhorns are going to have a chance to get their first victory of the season against Baylor, they’re going to need to put forth an exceptional effort, especially on the offensive end.

“You know, they’re really good,” Aston said of Baylor. “I think that to be able to beat Baylor, you have to compete for 40 minutes. That’s part of it. That’s part of it. It starts there. You have to compete for 40 minutes because they’re going to.

“So I think you have to start with that kind of conversation with your team. I think to be able to play with them also you have to be able to put the ball in the hole because they’re obviously capable of doing that and that’s a little easier said than done, because I think their defense is really, really good. But, again, to be able to compete with them and have a chance, you have to score the ball.”

Before trying to exact a measure of revenge against the Bears, Rodrigo said she and her team have to appreciate their position in the tournament, and the fact that they at least get the chance to play Monday in the conference’s tournament finale.

“We’re just excited that we’re in the position that we’re in,” Rodrigo said, “and we’re just going to come tomorrow and play with all the energy we can and hopefully pull out a win.”

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