#25 Texas (7-4) closes out the nonconference schedule Sunday at 1:00, hosting the Northwestern State Lady Demons (3-7) at the FEC. This will be the 7th consecutive season NSU has appeared on the Texas schedule - 7 Longhorn wins with an average 39-point margin of victory (85-46).
Coming off the program's biggest win since 2017, Texas needs to maintain the momentum from the upset of Stanford and stay healthy. The Lady Demons have struggled offensively this season with 1 scorer averaging double digits (G Kira Bonner - 12.2) and only 1 other over 6 ppg (F Jasmyn Johnson - 9.4). NSU only has 1 player taller than 6' eligible to play: 6' 1" freshman F Julia Son but she has appeared in just 5 games this season (8 minutes/game). 6' 4" Halei Gillis is sitting this season after transferring from Fordham so the Longhorns' size advantage will be significant.
Considering the disparity in size and talent, expect the bench players to get quite a few more minutes this game than last. Against Stanford, Karen Aston shortened her rotation to 8 players, with Charli (37 minutes), Joyner and Sug (34 each) playing almost the entire game.
Notes:
Bonus: Celeste was a highly ranked recruit and there should be no doubt how she earned that status - she's a tireless grinder in the gym a la Ariel Atkins. The Stanford game ended around 1:45 CT Sunday. The players were then given a break to return home and spend time with their families for the holiday. Celeste was in a NY gym working at 12:00 Monday:
@mln59 @thar0902 @Moooooo @icdb17 @wb3032
Coming off the program's biggest win since 2017, Texas needs to maintain the momentum from the upset of Stanford and stay healthy. The Lady Demons have struggled offensively this season with 1 scorer averaging double digits (G Kira Bonner - 12.2) and only 1 other over 6 ppg (F Jasmyn Johnson - 9.4). NSU only has 1 player taller than 6' eligible to play: 6' 1" freshman F Julia Son but she has appeared in just 5 games this season (8 minutes/game). 6' 4" Halei Gillis is sitting this season after transferring from Fordham so the Longhorns' size advantage will be significant.
Considering the disparity in size and talent, expect the bench players to get quite a few more minutes this game than last. Against Stanford, Karen Aston shortened her rotation to 8 players, with Charli (37 minutes), Joyner and Sug (34 each) playing almost the entire game.
Notes:
- Charli Collier: Was named Player of the Week in the Big12 as well as nationally (ESPN, USBWA) for her 20 point/19 rebound performance against the Cardinal and 10 points/16 rebounds against Ohio. I was almost shocked when looking at the box score after the game that Charli was called for 0 fouls in 37 minutes of very physical play against Stanford. Charli recorded her 8th double double in 11 games, tying Joyner Holmes for the team lead and 3rd nationally. Charli's 14.9 ppg and 11.4 rpg are 2nd and 1st on the team respectively.
- Joyner Holmes: The entire FEC went eerily quiet when she fell to the floor, grabbed her leg and screamed in pain in the 4th quarter of the Stanford contest. She was assisted to the locker room by athletic trainers but returned to boisterous applause when she jogged to the bench 4-5 minutes later. The Longhorns leading scorer (15.5) and 2nd best rebounder (9.8) is averaging a turnover every 9.6 minutes (3.3/game) and needs to clean that up. She hasn't had the traveling violations over the past few games that have always plagued her so that is somewhat encouraging.
- Celeste Taylor: The freshman still makes rookie mistakes (same number of turnovers as Joyner but in fewer minutes - 1 TO every 8.2 minutes) but her shots have begun to fall after a cold start to the season, hitting double digits in 6 of the past 7 games. Even when she isn't scoring, the Long Island native makes hustle plays, is 3rd on the team in assists and is defending at a high level though, unsurprisingly for a freshman, is getting whistled for quite a few fouls (her 31 personal fouls is the most on the team). She was named the Big12 Freshman of the Week after setting a career high of 17 points against Ohio and jump-starting the Texas upset of Stanford before having to sit due to foul issues in the first half.
- Jada Underwood: The senior is making an impact in her final season. Although she only averages 4.8 points and 3.5 rebounds, she has been providing lift in needed, key areas (scoring vs Tennessee, rebounds & steals vs Stanford).
Bonus: Celeste was a highly ranked recruit and there should be no doubt how she earned that status - she's a tireless grinder in the gym a la Ariel Atkins. The Stanford game ended around 1:45 CT Sunday. The players were then given a break to return home and spend time with their families for the holiday. Celeste was in a NY gym working at 12:00 Monday:
@mln59 @thar0902 @Moooooo @icdb17 @wb3032
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