Since conference season began, winning away from home has been a consistent problem for the Longhorns.
In six away Big 12 games this season, Texas has recorded six straight losses — and now Texas will travel to Lawrence, Kansas, on Saturday to try and find its first away conference victory against the Jayhawks.
The Longhorns shot nearly 47 percent from the field against Oklahoma State Wednesday, and converted seven field goals behind the arc. Despite a season-high 21 points from freshman guard Brooke McCarty and junior center Imani-McGee Stafford’s double-double, the Longhorns lacked a sense of urgency and fell short on the road once again.
“It was probably as good as we shot in a while, but we shot ourselves in the foot with all the turnovers,” head coach Karen Aston said.
After tallying 23 turnovers against Oklahoma State, Texas will try and limit the amount of times it gives up the ball Saturday. Aston said she believes many of these turnovers stem from the team’s inexperience.
“It’s all young players making some mistakes that they’ll learn from,” Aston said. “But, again, that’s not an excuse at all, because other teams have young players too.”
Since the start of conference play, several key players have stepped up for the Longhorns.
Sophomore center Kelsey Lang ranks second in the conference, shooting an average 58 percent per game, while freshman guard Ariel Atkins leads the team with 82 percent shooting from the free throw line. She also averages nearly 10 points per game.
Despite an injury to sophomore forward Nekia Jones and the loss of senior forward Nneka Enemkpali, the Longhorns still possess depth on their bench, which has outscored opponents on an average of 25–14.
Sophomore guard Brianna Taylor and junior guard Celina Rodrigo have been good impacts averaging 15 minutes per game.
But while Texas is now in a three-way tie for last place in the conference, associate head coach Travis Mays said the team shows promise.
“I’m pleased with how much better this team is getting, how much harder they’re playing over a consistent period of time, and the wins will come,” Mays said.
