Facing their first ranked opponent of the season, Texas turned to junior guard Brittainey Raven as she scored 20 points in a 78-44 defeat of No. 25 Old Dominion Monday at the Frank Erwin Center.
Raven got off to a quick start, scoring Texas’ first 12 points. Fouled on an early drive to the basket, Raven sank one of her two free throws before proceeding to score another 11 points in the first period, helping Texas back from an early deficit to take a 12-point lead at the half.
“This game, it just happened to be me who scored the first 12 points,” Ravens said. “It could have been anybody. They did a great job giving me the ball.”
The Longhorns also outscored the Monarchs by 24 points off the bench. The win over Old Dominion marked the third time in as many days that Texas got more than 30 points from its non-starters.
“I feel like I’m repeating myself, but I feel like it was a great team effort,” Texas head coach Gail Goestenkors said. “And I thought the bench came in and just gave us great focus, great intensity and really lifted us up.”
Texas began to build momentum on Raven’s back, scoring unanswered from the 12th minute onward until Old Dominion sophomore Jen Nuzzo landed a three with four seconds remaining in the half. The momentum continued into the second period for the Longhorns, who made sure the Monarchs never got closer than the 10-point gap they achieved less than a minute in.
Contributions came from all over the court, including Texas’ newest players. When Raven stepped off, freshman guard Yvonne Anderson stepped up. Anderson put in six points against Old Dominion, complimenting her tournament total of 24. More importantly for the Longhorns, she dished out four assists and helped lead the offense when World Vision Classic tournament MVP Raven rested.
Old Dominion’s Tiffany Green was one of two players from her team to be named to the all-tournament squad. She finished with 17 points and four rebounds, but overall, the Longhorns took in a total of 19 more rebounds than the Monarchs.
“I think they were a little fatigued. I also know we were able to get a few of their key players in foul trouble, so they had some of their players sitting on the bench that really make a big difference for them,” Goestenkors said.
Texas experienced another first Monday: the loudest “Texas Fight,” chant of the year, as a season-high 4,183 people attended the game. The crowd was so loud during Old Dominion’s foul shots, Longhorns fan and local resident Gary Tucker said he couldn’t hear the referees on the court.
“It was very exciting,” Tucker said. “I’m optimistic [about this season]. But the Big 12 South is going to be very tough.”
Tucker, a retired 67-year-old who said he lives 20 minutes from the Frank Erwin Center, has been coming to women’s basketball games since 1977.
After playing their first four games in a span of less than two weeks, the Longhorns will have to reload instead of rest as they prepare for the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders on Thursday.
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