Early in the second quarter, it took a 20-second sequence for graduate guard Rori Harmon to illuminate her value in front of the Gainesville crowd on the night of her birthday.
First, she found sophomore guard Jordan Lee on a backdoor cut for an easy layup. Then came a one-handed takeaway off the Florida inbounds pass that made it seem as if she had eyes in the back of her head. And last came a simple pass to senior guard Ashton Judd for an easy jumper, which directly led to a Gators timeout.
Harmon’s performance may not overwhelm the statsheet — she closed with eight points, five assists, four rebounds and two steals — but with team rust inevitable after an 11-day hiatus from game action, as seen after the first quarter with the Longhorns trailing 16-19, she provided a steady hand in the midst of early chaos.
“(Harmon’s) in this gym every day. She’s in here early, she’s always putting in the work and she’s never going to have any rust,” head coach Vic Schaefer said to reporters on Tuesday. “I worry about this time next year when I walk in the gym and Rori Harmon ain’t there because for five years, that kid’s given me everything she’s got, and I know she’s done everything she can to be prepared.”
Behind Harmon’s efforts and a 24-point performance from star junior forward Madison Booker, the Longhorns used an impressive, bounce-back second quarter to mount a 20-point win over the Gators, 88-68.
Earning a plentiful amount of shots compared to its opposition continues to be Texas’ trademark this season, with the Longhorns outshooting the Gators by 17 as a result of eight more forced turnovers and five more offensive rebounds. But Schaefer’s team also compiled its most efficient scoring showing of Southeastern Conference play, going 56.1% from the field.
While led by Booker’s standout scoring skillset, senior center Kyla Oldacre and freshman guard Aaliyah Crump each shot five-of-seven and added a combined 26 points to assist in the scoring department.
Crump, in her second game back from a foot injury, provided the Longhorns with three long-range makes, again proving the quality she brings back to the rotation. Still, the Longhorns only took 10 attempts from beyond the arc, with Crump contributing the sole conversions. Schaefer reiterated on Tuesday that three-point shooting does not have to be a vital facet to Texas’ repertoire for his offense to be successful, which showed on Thursday night.
“We can stand out there and shoot them and maybe make 33%, or we can go get a higher percentage shot that nobody can keep us from getting,” Schaefer said. “That’s what we want. We want the higher percentage shot. So that’s where my kids are really smart. That’s where I think our team understands basketball.”
The Longhorns took advantage of their high-percentage shots, accumulating 60 paint points, compared to 30 from the Gators. Florida did outpace Texas in free throws and personal fouls, however, themes that were detrimental in the road losses earlier this month.
Schaefer’s squad now turns the page to a five-game gauntlet of ranked opponents, starting with the Red River Rivalry against the Oklahoma Sooners on Sunday. Oklahoma will arrive at the Moody Center on a three-game win streak, including an overtime victory against No. 3 South Carolina.
