OU - Texas game

[schooner2]

Good grief. Was that the definition of ugly basketball or what? Both teams shooting under 30%. OU was under 20% for most of the half. I've stopped counting the number of 5-footers or less that OU has missed. And credit UT's defense as well.

Yuck. Go in, regroup, and lets play some real basketball ladies!

Oh, its 29-17 at halftime. Yes, just 17 Oklahoma points at half.

[This message has been edited by schooner (edited 01-10-2004).]

[schooner2]

Oklahoma has made two comebacks against Texas and now only trails 59-58 with 1:05 remaining. Much different 2nd half for OU!

[fan26]

It looks like Jackson and Stephens have been on the bench for most of the second half with fouls.

[labcoatguy]

Two horrible no-calls by the refs (when Dionnah Jackson, best ballhandler on the squad, dribbled off her foot off of a rebound because of a push and when Leah Rush got hacked in the face on an easy bucket and missed) were IMHO the difference in this game. The refs were usually whistle-happy too, so I wasn't sure what was going on with that last minute.

[swok34]

wow, I'm surprised at how well OU hung. Texas wins by 5.

I was very impressed with Leah Rush and Mercedes Williams.

Ugly, ugly first half on both sides....but that second half was a great one. I thought the refereeing was horrible on both sides.

[This message has been edited by swok34 (edited 01-10-2004).]

[fan26]

Texas wins 63-58. Any comments by those who got to watch the game. A big stat that stands out to me was the freethrow count (31 UT - 9 OU).

[swok34]

A big stat that stands out to me was the freethrow count (31 UT - 9 OU).

Texas shot a lot of free throws in the first half, OU shot none, but they weren't really driving to the lane, either.

[schooner2]

No real comment on the free throws. Texas drove and created a lot of the fouls. One comment, - T. Jackson got the benefit of at least 3 calls where OU players had clean blocks on her shot. Replays showed so. Jackson does have incredible talent. She will be a force to reckon with for years at UT.

First, great resiliency by OU in this game and that's also Coach Coale's word for it after the game. What an incredible shame that the refs had two horrendous no-calls late in the game. Off the rebound Dionnah Jackson was first pushed in the left shoulder by Mercedes Williams and then Jackson was able to bounce the ball off of Williams leg. Refs missed the foul and missed that the ball went off of Williams.

Then on OU's next possession, Rush was hacked so hard by Schreiber she pushed her several feet to the right, and again no call by the refs. Unbelievable.

Don't usually rail on the refs but with these two no calls at such a crucial time with less than 30 seconds to go in the game, yes, could have very well changed the outcome in this game.

What a shame, cuz OU battled so hard and come back twice in the game.

Kudos to Norman of Texas. She had a monster game.

P.S. - I didn't realize Mercedes Williams has lost so much weight. She looks like a completely different person now than she did 2 years ago.

[This message has been edited by schooner (edited 01-10-2004).]

[35TangoTango]

Arrrgh! Well, the better team won, but put an asterisk by it, because the game was clearly handed to them by the referees. Understand, I'm not griping about the foul differential all around - By and by, Texas was more athletic and drew more fouls.

BUT - OU two points down with 20 seconds to go, Stephens misses two free throws. Dionnah gets the rebound, gets OBVIOUSLY clobbered and the ball goes out of bounds to Texas. Should have had DJ shooting free throws for the tie. Still in the game with 12 seconds, Leah gets clotheslined going up for a layup, and again no call.

But, that's the way it goes. As I said, the better team won.

The Sooners have GOT to find someone who can come out with some offensive confidence at the beginning of the game! Oh, do we miss Chelsi. Dionnah drew a lot of attention, and really wasn't an offensive factor. The most positive factor for the Sooners was Leah Rush; this seemed to be her "coming of age" game. In the second half, she just had so much offensive confidence, wanting the ball. All in all, for a loss, and a loss in which they shot very poorly, I think my Sooners made a pretty good road statement.

On the Texas side, Nina Norman, Nina Norman, and Nina Norman. I thought she was what OU had no answer for today. And balance, and depth, and athleticism, and basketball skill - Nothing about this game makes UT any less the Final Four contender.

Trivia: There's always something I notice in a game - this one was Coach Conradt's timing in bringin Stacy back off the bench. OU pulls within one, then Texas scores a basket or two, then Stacy comes in. So she's not coming in to stop the bleeding, but to continue the offensive surge. Nice move.

[labcoatguy]

The Carl's Jr star of the game may have been Maria Villaroel, but I think the player that made the most difference for OU was the thrilla from Amarilla, Miss Leah Rush. It's games like this that make me glad OU has glut of post players and strong forwards (compared to years past), what with all the fouls called. She certainly stepped up and became a Caton Hill-type player at times. Leah had some crucial buckets in the second half, and she had Stacy Stephens all turned around on a couple of them. She definitely showed heart and hustle, in my opinion.

[This message has been edited by labcoatguy (edited 01-10-2004).]

[JK]

The commentators on the internet broadcast stated that the officiating crew was brutal! They did say that it seemed to be pretty much both ways. I could only hear so I can't say, but I know Coco Reed got hammered in the face (and stayed on the floor long enough for both coaches to use itas a mini timeout), and there was no call. Sounded like an ugly game by both squads for most of the game. Too bad the officiating sucked so badly!

[This message has been edited by JK (edited 01-10-2004).]

[JohnHenry]

Yikes !! That was a little too close for comfort...I kinda thought swok and other OU fans were underestimating their team on the preview thread earlier this week; I figured they would be tough and give us at least as good a game as they did last year and maybe better. Well, they were much better. And considering what a non-factor Dionnah Jackson was, they were all the more impressive as a team. Deep, too.
From where I sat, there were plenty of bad calls and no calls on both sides. But I have to give OU a lot of credit. There were very impressive especially on the defensive end in the 2nd half. What killed them was a) our biggest home crowd of the year (finally), and b) throttling defense by Texas in the first half.
With Kala out, OU had a much better matchup situation, but they weren't able to take advantage until midway through the 2nd when they started hitting shots and getting turnovers. The last minute and a half was a nail biter, but the Horns hung tough and pulled it out. Considering we only had 7 regulars available, I think we did pretty well. The Horns were pretty worn out in the last few minutes and it showed as OU had more fresh legs, going 9 (10?) deep without much drop-off in intensity or productivity in the 2nd.
Leah Rush and Maria V. were most impressive, and Caton has one of the nicest touches around the basket i've seen. She also kept Stacy in check for many minutes, and that's a tall order for any player. Maria's game has improved measurably since last season, and Rush is a real gamer who has Schreiber-like qualities. Andrews and Higgins were also tough and made clutch plays.
I'm also quite amazed how much talent Coale has quarried from Oklahoma and how well she coaches them. She's a credit to OU and to the Big 12. OU will beat some good teams this year and i'm very concerned about our trip to Norman on March 2. The Sooners deserve every bit of their #15 ranking and maybe even higher than that.

[zip]

It was a good game - Texas was hampered by the absence of Bowers, arguably our best defender. We also had Stacy on the bench for about half of the first half, and then both Tiffany and Stacy played with four fouls for a good part of the second half. I was at the game and the reffing was bad both ways. Texas got some horrible calls and so did OU. I could not see the last fouls referred to above so I do not know whether they were accurate or not. OU has a great team - of course, I am glad that we won, but the game in Norman should be a barnburner!

[carolann]

From one Texas fan -

Texas played without Kala Bowers who was out sick. Stacy Stephens played only about 19 minutes due to foul trouble. (Stacy knows she needs to stop with the reach-ins. I wish she would do so!) Tiffany Jackson had some freshman trouble, turning the ball over 6 times (though she also had 3 steals.) Jody Conradt commented on the lack of offensive flow for Texas. She mentioned as factors: (1) Kala's absence; (2) Stacy's presence on the bench with fouls for a lot of the game; (3) Oklahoma's defense; (4) how physical the game was on the inside.

I was not surprised that Oklahoma was tough because they were tough last year with an even younger, less deep team. To me, the good news for Texas is that the team survived the adversity. Only 6 players have been playing significant minutes for Texas with Coco Reed and Mercedes Williams seeing a few minutes here and there. Coco was playing more earlier in the season. Today, Texas had to go to the bench. Mercedes Williams, in particular, came through with good, steady, play.
Even so, Heather played 38 minutes; Nina played 39 minutes; and Jamie played 40 minutes. Heather looked very tired in the last few minutes.

Conradt indicated that Mercedes has earned some playing time if she keeps practicing well and playing as well as she did today. If Mercedes starts playing regularly, she'll become part of the offensive flow more easily. Coco also received credit for practicing well. That gives me hope that Coco may also start getting more playing time as she was earlier this year. That could cut down on the time Nina and Jamie have to play.

[Moooooo]

What upset me the most was when Stacy picked up her third foul early in the 2nd half, Coach Conradt didn't pull her off the floor (like she usually does). A couple of minutes later, Stacy picks up her fourth foul, and has to sit considerable minutes.

For all those nominating Tiffany Jackson and Alesha Robertson for Freshman of the Year, make sure you keep an eye on Leah Rush the rest of the season . . .

[YCN]

I guess the question still remains as to exactly where in the Big 12 pecking order the Sooners really belong. Last year they tied with Missouri for 5th. Are they in the top 4, or will they mirror last year, and lose every game they should (and one more), and only win games they were supposed to win in conference play.

Lots of drama in this year's race. I'm really getting the feeling that the Big 12 could end up with 7 teams in the top 15 again, like 2001-2002. And I'm dead solid certain that top to bottom the conference is as good as it's ever been.

[Jennifer]

Yeah, those two no-calls in the last minutes where crucial. They wouldn't have hurt so bad if OU hadn't fought back so hard and then only to get those blows. Oh well, such is life on the road in the big 12! If OU could have hit the broad side of a barn (credit Texas defense) in the first half, those missed calls just may not have been so crucial. I agree, the officiating all the way around was pretty bad. Both teams played really good defense, obviously, as we know they are both better shooting teams.

Leah Rush was the best freshman on the floor today, but I sure don't look forward to seeing my team play against Tiffany Jackson the next 3 1/2 years (though I hope to see DIonnah block some more of her shots and actually not get called for the foul-I recall at least one today).

Chelsi Welch's presence is sorely missed--noone else has been able to fill her shoes IMO. I sure hope Higgins finds her shot soon.

Congrats Texas, can't wait to the rematch in Norman. http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/biggrin.gif

[Bball Girl]

I listened to the great 2nd half. OU showed grit and terrific quickness and UT just helf them off. What's impressive about the Big 12 are the "non-star" players that step up game after game like Mercedes and Rush, it shows the depth of this conference. Maria played so well in the 2nd half for OU...OU always seems to play well in Austin.

Great game...

[horntooter]

I'll join the chorus on the bad officiating, 'tho (not surprisingly) I noticed the no-calls on OU more than vice versa, especially those that had Coco and Heather sprawling on the floor. But I'm willing to believe it went both ways in this extremely physical battle.

And what a battle! Caton looks like she's not missing a beat, Maria is so quick and graceful, and Dionnah was fun to watch, as usual. But the warrior of the game for OU was Leah Rush. I agree with Moooo, she may stake a claim for FOY.

Congrats to UT for pulling this one out, and doing it without Kala and with Stacy on the bench for half the game. It's good to see Mercedes step up, as we will need both her and Coco as we get deeper into the conference games.

Go Horns! http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/ut.gif

[swok34]

"Positives are everywhere,” Coale said. “Texas is one of the top three teams in the country and we come in here and shoot far below our season average from both the field and the free-throw line and we’re (still) there.

“But we’ve got to guard the free-throw line better.” http://hoopscoop.net/ubb/wink.gif

[40ishHorn]

I was at the game on the 8th row across from the UT bench. Bad officiating BOTH ways, no doubt.

OU 21 fouls, UT 16 fouls. About 3 of OU's were at the end of the game for strategy, so the fouls were actually pretty even.

“But we’ve got to guard the free-throw line better.”

Coach Coale, the number of trips to the line don't necessarily tell the story of how the game progressed. Texas utilized it's inside game and going to the hole to draw fouls. OU shot 18 three-point tries as compared to 5 for UT. It's hard to draw fouls outside the arc. The Sooners may feel they lost the game because of the disparity at the line, but it's their own fault, not the refs in this case.

OU played a great game and should gain confidence even though they lost. UT will need their full compliment of players for the rematch in Norman.

[catladyok]

Well, if there is such a thing as a 'quality loss', this was certainly it. Ugly game, for sure, but I'm proud of the Sooners for gutting it out and staying in the game the way they did. They are finally learning to let the mistakes go and concentrate on the play at hand. And both teams were making a lot of mistakes. But the Longhorns' experience and maturity were the deciding factor, giving them the extra adrenalin and staying power toward the end of the game.

Get well soon, Kayla!