The first away game of the year meant a little more to Texas head coach Vic Schaefer than most. He was supposed to take on a familiar face, one who is considered to be an icon for the sport of women’s basketball, but to Schaefer, a friend and colleague as well. 

In Texas’ 91-61 win over DePaul, the Blue Demons played without their longtime head coach, Doug Bruno, who is stepping away from the team temporarily due to medical concerns. Bruno has been the face of DePaul basketball for 38 seasons, leading his alma mater with passion and dedication. In 2022, his contributions to the sport were recognized with his induction into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame.

“He’s someone I deeply respect and admire,” Schaefer said. “What he’s done for our game, the way he’s handled himself throughout his career.”

Jill Pizzotti, associate head coach for the Blue Demons, stepped in for Bruno. This is her 11th seasons an associate head coach with the program.

“Coach Jill has been holding it down,” graduate forward Jorie Allen told the DePaulia. “Coach Jill knows Bruno so well. If Bruno were here every day right now, we’d be doing the exact same thing.”

The Blue Demons held their own for the first half, trailing by just six points with 8:30 left in the second quarter. If it wasn’t for foul trouble, DePaul might have been able to make the game more competitive. With just 6:33 left in the third quarter, sophomore guard Shakara McCline, junior forward Meg Newman and freshman forward Emory Klatt all had four fouls, while Allen and sophomore guard Sumer Lee both had three. 

With DePaul having to turn to its bench, the Longhorns capitalized. Senior forward Taylor Jones scored a team-high 22 points to go along with 12 boards and her 19th career double-double. Texas also forced 25 turnovers, scoring 29 points off of them. 

“We’re gonna press 94 feet and make guards uncomfortable,” senior guard Rori Harmon said. “It was great, I think we played great on defense, but I think we can work on a few things.”

Harmon recorded a team-high nine assists for 525 total in her Longhorn career, moving the Houstonian up to fourth on the all time Texas assist leaderboard. Harmon also recorded seven points and two steals on just one turnover. 

No. 4 Texas will host 2–2 Tarleton State back at the Moody Center on Wednesday, Nov. 20, before starting a road trip that will contain three games in Estero, Florida, for the Gulf Coast Showcase before taking on No. 6 Notre Dame in South Bend and James Madison in Harrisonburg.