No. 6 Texas Longhorns 62

No. 11 Missouri Tigers 59

OKLAHOMA CITY – The Texas Longhorns entered the Big 12 Tournament on their worst slide of the season, dropping five of their last six conference games. It may have appeared to be somewhat of a blessing that the Longhorns’ first round game of the Big 12 matched them up against Missouri, the only team they have beat in nearly a month. The Longhorns were given a tremendous scare on Thursday evening, but they scored nine unanswered points in the final minute in a half to escape with a 62-59 victory over the Tigers.

The first six minutes of the game were dominated by the Longhorns, but the Tigers took control with runs of 18-5 and 9-2 to help drive them to a 31-24 halftime lead. Missouri senior Alyssa Hollins knocked down four of her five three point shots in the first half, and led the Tigers with 16 points. It seemed as if Missouri was in control of the game within the last two minutes, but several unforced turnovers left the door wide open for Texas, which immediately turned those turnovers into six points in a matter of three seconds.

Each team gave up 13 turnovers in the game, but the Longhorns turned their turnovers into 20 points while Missouri converted for just nine. Both Earnesia Williams and Kathleen Nash turned in double-double performances for the Longhorns.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Earnesia Williams, Sr. G, Texas (15 points, 11 rebounds, 9-of-11 from the FT line)

Just 36 hours after a potential life-threatening car accident in which her car flipped several times and landed in the ditch, Williams turned in a tough, emotional performance for the Longhorns in which she recorded the first double-double of her four-year career.

QUOTABLE:

“I’m just glad to be here alive, and to play like that for my team and help us advance to another round, it’s just a blessing.” – Earnesia Williams

WHAT IT MEANS:

No. 3 Iowa State vs. No. 6 Texas at 7:30 pm Friday March 13, Fox Sports Net

The ISU women’s basketball team will get a change to avenge their only loss at Hilton Coliseum when they take on Texas in one of four Big 12 quarterfinals on Friday. The Longhorns beat the Cyclones 55-52 in a hard-fought match on Feb 15, breaking Iowa State’s 13-game home winning streak.