Inside Texas Today: Women's basketball surges into March, men's track takes indoor national title
Welcome to Inside Texas Today! Each weekday morning, Inside Texas Today will provide the latest news and notes from around the Forty Acres, including notable events, player honors, and where to watch Longhorn sports that day.
Here’s the Monday, March 14, 2022 edition.
[Subscribe to Inside Texas today and get a FREE 7-day Plus trial!]
Texas women’s basketball wins Big 12 Tournament
For the first time since 2003, the Texas women’s basketball team took home the Big 12 Tournament title and the conference’s automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
The Longhorns, coached by Vic Schaefer, topped Kansas State and Iowa State on the way to the championship game versus Baylor. Led by 40-minute performances from Rori Harmon and Joanne Allen-Taylor, Texas topped the Bears and star forward NaLyssa Smith 67-58 in Kansas City, Mo.
Harmon, named the tournament’s most outstanding player, scored 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting, also adding five rebounds and five assists. She controlled the game in crunch time, helping make sure the Bears could never close Texas’ multi-possession lead.
Allen-Taylor scored 14 points on 5-of-12 shooting, and Aaliyah Moore added 12 points in 20 minutes to help the Texas cause.
Texas’ win ended Baylor’s string of three consecutive Big 12 Tournament titles.
As a result of their victory, Texas earned the two seed in the Spokane region of the 2022 NCAA Women’s Tournament. The Longhorns will face 15 seed Fairfield on Friday in the Frank Erwin Center at a time to be announced.
Texas men’s track brings home indoor national championship
For the first time in program history, the Texas Longhorns men’s track and field program brought home the indoor track national championship in Birmingham, Ala. over the weekend. The women’s team finished second.
Texas edged out North Carolina A&T and Tennessee for the title.
The Longhorns’ second place finish in the 4×400 relay ran by Willington Wright, Jonathan Jones, Jon Maas, and Brion Herron solidified Texas’ title. Longhorns to earn All-American honors included Jones, Yusuf Bizimana, Tripp Piperi, and Crayton Carrozza.
The women’s team finished second to national champion Florida. Rhasidat Adeleke earned three different All-American honors, while Julian Alfred, Kennedy Simon, and Stacey Ann Williams also took home All-American honors.
Baseball struggles in South Carolina
Texas limped to a 2-3 week after the Longhorns dropped one game of the midweek series with Texas State to the Bobcats and both games of a Sunday double header with the South Carolina Gamecocks. Texas won Saturday 9-5 before dropping the Sunday contests 4-2 and 9-4.
The Longhorns could not get their bats going on Sunday when it mattered most, while South Carolina surged through a Texas pitching staff that could not find its footing in the Palmetto State.
The lone bright spot for the Longhorns was the play of Ivan Melendez. The Hispanic Titanic was 4-for-11 at Founders Park, with three of those four hits landing on the other side of the fence. One homer traveled an estimated 493 feet.
Texas remains in South Carolina where they will face College of Charleston on Tuesday and The Citadel on Wednesday.
Texas viewing for 3/14
Women’s golf – Northrop Grumman Regional Challenge – Palos Verdes Golf Club – Palos Verdes Estates, Calif. – 11 a.m. – Live stats
