Longhorns are aiming for a statement victory
Taking down top-ranked Stanford could put season back on course
AUSTIN — It can’t be overstated how critical last week’s road win over 17thranked Tennessee was for coach Karen Aston’s Longhorns.
Texas (6-4) flopped in its season-opening loss to South Florida, then lost to Arizona, 12th-ranked North Carolina State and Hawaii while sprinkling in a few wins over mid-majors. But that 66-60 win over the Volunteers in Knoxville proved this team has some fight in it.
Texas will need even more fire Sunday when No. 1 Stanford (10-0) walks into the Erwin Center. The Cardinal already have bested three top-25 teams, including a 78-51 romp over Tennessee in its last outing.
Stanford is averaging 81.9 points per game and holding opponents to 57.5. It’s sixth in field goal percentage defense and 15th in field goal percentage among Division I teams.
Coach Tara VanDerveer’s team doesn’t feature one overpowering star, but rather a collection of talented players who know their roles. Six are averaging at least 7.2 points per game, led by sophomore guard Lexie Hull, and four grab at least five rebounds per game.
And with Stanford averaging 8.4 steals per game, Texas can’t afford to be as careless as it was in Wednesday’s
73-60 win over Ohio, when it committed 24 turnovers.
“I definitely don’t think we can turn over the ball 20-something times against that caliber of team,” Aston said Wednesday. “Really haven’t looked at Stanford much, but I know all the players because you see them on the circuit, and Celeste (Taylor) has played with several on USA Basketball. They’re young, talented, deep. That’s really what I know just because I know the players.”
Texas could look to utilize its size in the post to counteract Stanford’s balanced attack. Senior 6foot-3 forward Joyner Holmes and sophomore 6-5 center Charli Collier are averaging a combined 30.2 points and 20.6 rebounds per game.
But the game’s X factor might just be freshman guard Celeste Taylor, a 2019 McDonald’s All-American. Taylor sparked Texas in its win over Ohio, pouring in 17 points and grabbing nine rebounds, six of them offensive.
After a miserable first three games, Taylor has rounded into form, averaging 11.7 points, five rebounds and 1.3 3-pointers over UT’s past six contests.
“There’s definitely a learning curve,” Taylor said Wednesday. “For me personally, I think it was more the physicality than anything. But you just have to get through it, push past those obstacles. There’s going to be hard times, but having teammates, having them to help you through it, you can get through anything.”
After the Ohio game, Aston said the “sky’s the limit” for Taylor, and one day she could become this team’s focal point. But for now it’s still senior guard Sug Sutton’s show.
“Sug runs our team,” Aston said.
Sutton dropped a season-high 19 points in the win over Tennessee and has been a solid distributor of late, posting a 31-to-11 assist-to-turnover ratio over her past six games. She’ll need to maintain a similar ratio against Stanford if Texas has any hope of an upset that could become a springboard into conference play, which begins Jan. 3 at home against TCU.
But given the Longhorns’ collection of talent and brand name, Stanford probably won’t roll into Austin expecting an easy romp. VanDerveer will have her squad poised and prepared, as always.
“We try not to get locked in that we’re No. 1 and we can’t lose,” junior guard Kiana Williams told the San Jose Mercury News.
The win over Tennessee felt like a season-saver for Texas. A victory over topranked Stanford could change the entire narrative of a campaign that threatened to veer off the rails not so long ago.