Texas turns to film to learn from Wednesday’s mistakes
After losing to Oklahoma, the Longhorns promised that they’d address what went wrong in upcoming film sessions. “We just have to watch the film. It’s not going to be pretty, but you’ve got to do it and we have to learn from it,” senior guard Shay Holle said. Texas coach Vic Schaefer insisted that “the film won’t lie.”
During a media availability Friday, Schaefer said the film session was productive. Schaefer also said the team’s issues were addressed in practice.
“(Thursday) morning at 5:15 everybody was awake pretty well and we watched the film and watched our turnovers and watched Oklahoma’s makes,” Schaefer said. “I think what the team saw was exactly what you and I witnessed the other night. Sometimes you don’t realize it until you look at it yourself as a player and then it’s eye-opening.
“We do this after every game. We go back and usually watch our turnovers, we watch the other team’s makes and probably our makes. The film didn’t lie yesterday morning, and hopefully our kids embrace that and were ready to address it.”
DeYona Gaston may return to the court this weekend
On Friday, Schaefer said that senior forward DeYona Gaston was able to participate in a portion of Thursday’s practice. She may see limited minutes against the Bearcats, but Schaefer stressed that Texas will be careful with her playing time.
Gaston has missed the past three games after she injured her ankle in the final seconds of a 61-58 loss at Kansas State on Jan. 13. It was the second ankle injury that Gaston has suffered this season.
The 6-foot-2 Gaston was an all-conference honoree last season. In nine games this winter, she is averaging 7.1 points and 4.1 rebounds.
Cincinnati standout has Texas ties
Cincinnati has struggled at times during its Big 12 debut, but the Bearcats are coming off a Wednesday win over Oklahoma State. For those who are unfamiliar with the Bearcats, senior guard Mya Jackson was asked to describe what Cincinnati basketball is during the Big 12’s media day in October.
“I would say Cincinnati women’s basketball, it’s just tough,” Jackson said. “Tough, hard-working, resilient and just really into being together. I think that’s so important, just one, being a unit. We focus a lot on picking up our teammates, being there for our teammates, being there for our university, for our organization, for our coaches. Just that togetherness is something that we really, really, really focused on and we want everyone in the Big 12 to be able to see as well.” Cincinnati is led in both scoring and rebounding by Jillian Hayes. The senior forward is averaging 12.4 points and 8.3 rebounds per game.
This will be the first time that Hayes has ever played the Longhorns, but her family is quite familiar with Texas. She is the younger sister of Jaxson Hayes, who played for the men’s basketball team at Texas for one season before he was selected with the eighth pick in the 2019 NBA draft. Her father, Jonathan, won a national championship while he was an assistant coach on Oklahoma’s football team from 1999-2002 and Hayes was born in Norman.
Texas vs. Cincinnati prediction
Three days after the Oklahoma loss, this should be a get-right game for UT. Don’t expect the Longhorns to be hospitable in their first game this season against a Big 12 newcomer.
— Danny Davis