Win over Tennessee positions Texas women’s basketball for final non-conference games

By Riley Zayas

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas women’s basketball team beat the first nationally ranked opponent on the 2019-20 schedule Sunday when the Longhorns went to Knoxville, Tennessee, and knocked off No. 17 Tennessee, 66-60. Here are three takeaways from [s2If current_user_can(access_s2member_level2)]this huge victory as Texas heads into an off week before returning to the court Dec. 18 at home against Ohio.

There is light at the end of the tunnel
The early-season losses to USF, Arizona and Hawaii underscored the Longhorns’ impressive performance against Tennessee. It says something about the team that in nearly every game this season, regardless of the outcome, the Longhorns have improved in some facet of their game. This win in a hostile environment was no exception as the Longhorns specifically limited their turnovers which paid big dividends in the final score going their way. Although they came into the showdown averaging 15.9 turnovers per game, they only turned the ball over just eight times against the Lady Vols and forced 14 turnovers, which led to 14 points off turnovers. The abilities to capitalize on the opponents’ mistakes and limit their own will be key down the stretch of non-conference action, most notably in the Dec. 22 home matchup against No. 1 Stanford at the Frank Erwin Center.

Sug Sutton and LaShann Higgs will carry this team through the rest of the season
The play of the two senior guards was nothing short of amazing Sunday. The two combined for 38 points (each had 19) nine rebounds, and were two of five from behind the arc. While post players like Joyner Holmes and Charli Collier have gotten much of the attention in recent years, it’s the outside shooters who have carried the team in the past few wins. Once conference play begins, head coach Karen Aston can look to Higgs and Sutton to be the glue that holds this team together, especially as the Longhorns try to salvage their season from a rough start.

Stanford, Baylor and the Big 12 had better watch out
Stanford and Baylor may be two of the highest-ranked teams the Horns will face all season, but also two of the most vulnerable when facing UT. Prior to this game, the matchup against Texas may have been on the back burner for the Cardinal and Bears, but after Sunday they should be getting out their pens and circling that dates when they face UT. If the win against Tennessee taught future opponents anything about the Longhorns, it’s that they can turn it on rather quickly.

Aston has been coaching at a high level for such a long time for a reason: she can transform a program from average to great in just a few months and keep it on the ascent, a trend that could continue with this year’s team, which hosts Ohio Wednesday and then Stanford Sunday.
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