Texas stands poised to make history.
Monday’s road upset over No. 2 Baylor offers the Longhorns a rare opportunity to finish Big 12 play with an undefeated record — a feat never accomplished in the program’s long history.
With the exception of a non-conference matchup against No. 5 Florida State, the No. 11 Longhorns will play out their remaining schedule against teams they’ve already met and defeated once this season, including a much-anticipated home rematch against the Bears.
The burnt orange will head back home to host Kansas on Saturday. The Jayhawks sit on the opposite end of the conference standings with a 2–11 record. They are coming off a 67-49 win against Oklahoma State on Wednesday.
Texas, meanwhile, set a new program record in Waco with 13 consecutive conference wins as part of a 17-game overall win streak — the second-longest active streak in the nation.
“For us to walk into their home court and be able to compete and eek out a win is huge for the confidence of our team,” head coach Karen Aston said.
Texas shot 51.6 percent in Monday’s contest against a No. 2 Baylor team, which, prior to the loss, held opponents to under 50 percent from the floor in 346 of their last 98 games.
It remains to be seen if this young Texas squad can truly contend for the championship come March. A victory over the Bears for the first time since 2010 is significant. But the players, echoing their season-long mantra, remain focused on the game ahead.
“We’re definitely living in the moment,” junior guard Ariel Atkins said. “We’re gonna enjoy tonight. But we have Kansas next.”
The one-game-at-a-time mentality has served the team well all season long. And with six games remaining in the season, there is still a lot of basketball left to play.
Nevertheless, it is impossible to overlook the special season unfolding before them. And Aston, though reserved, acknowledged the team’s incredible performance sustained throughout conference play.
“If you look at our assist-turnover ratio as compared to years past, this is by far the best that we’ve been,” Aston said. “And that’s the indicator. Are you turning it over a lot? Are you getting quality shots? And I think we’re much better at that than we’ve been in the past.”
In the first meeting between the two teams this season, Texas picked up a 66-54 win over Kansas on the road.
And as first and worst of the conference meet once again, Saturday’s should have a similar result.
The two teams tip off at 1:30 at the Frank Erwin Center.
