Texas Longhorns
Overall Rank: #34
Conference Rank: #4 Big 12
Coach Vic Schaefer’s first year leading Texas was a very good one. The Longhorns only managed to finish fifth in the Big 12, but they earned a six seed in the NCAA Tournament and upset UCLA and Maryland enroute to an appearance in the Elite Eight. Repeating that March success may be difficult without Charli Collier and two other starters, but Texas has some talent returning that is ready to step into larger roles. They also have a few transfers and a great recruiting class that will pay immediate dividends.
2020-21 Record: 21-10, 11-7
2020-21 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Vic Schaefer
Coach Record: 21-10 at Texas, 322-182 overall
Key Departed Players (starters in bold)
Charli Collier, Forward/Center, 19.0 ppg
Celeste Taylor, Guard, 12.3 ppg
Kyra Lambert, Guard, 7.1 ppg
Krisma Ortiz, Guard, 3.6 ppg
Key Returning Players (starters in bold)
Joanne Allen-Taylor, Senior, Guard, 12.1 ppg
Audrey Warren, Senior, Guard/Forward, 10.3 ppg
DeYona Gaston, Sophomore, Forward, 6.6 ppg
Lauren Ebo, Senior, Center/Forward, 4.7 ppg
Ashley Chevalier, Sophomore, Guard, 2.9 ppg
Shay Holle, Sophomore, Guard, 1.1 ppg
Key New Players
Rori Harmon, Freshman, Guard
Kyndall Hunter, Freshman, Guard
Kobe King-Hawea, Sophomore, Guard/Forward, JC Transfer
Latasha Lattimore, Freshman, Forward
Femme Masudi, Sophomore, Center, JC Transfer
Aliyah Matharu, Junior, Guard, Transfer from Mississippi State
Aaliyah Moore, Freshman, Forward
Projection:
Joanne Allen-Taylor and Audrey Warren are returning senior starters who will be the new leaders of this team. Allen-Taylor was on the floor for over 35 minutes per game and averaged 12.1 points and 2.6 assists per game. She knocked down a team high 42 three-pointers. Warren did not shoot too often from beyond the arc, but she is very effective attacking the basket and averaged 10.3 points and 5.0 rebounds. DeYona Gaston had a very promising freshman campaign despite playing in just 11 games. She averaged 6.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.9 blocks and will look to play a much larger role this time around. Lauren Ebo is an experienced senior who will add a big presence in the paint and Ashley Chevalier is another promising sophomore who can spend some time running the point. Aliyah Matharu from Mississippi State and a couple of junior college transfers will add a bit more experience to the roster. However, it is the incoming class of freshmen that have Texas fans excited. All four freshmen are ranked in the top 30 of this class, highlighted by 6-1 forward Aaliyah Moore. There may be a few growing pains along the way compared to some other teams in the Big 12 who return more starters, but this is a very talented Texas team that should be extremely dangerous by March.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 68.9 (106th in nation, 8th in conference)
Scoring Defense: 62.6 (115, 3)
Field-Goal Percentage: 40.3 (156, 8)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.3 (261, 8)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 5.3 (224, 9)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 32.2 (121, 6)
Free-Throw Percentage: 70.2 (167, 9)
Rebound Margin: 2.2 (105, 4)
Assists Per Game: 12.3 (198, 10)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.7 (55, 2)
Madness 2021 Women’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#3 Aaliyah Moore
#10 Rori Harmon
#18 Kyndall Hunter
#26 Latasha Lattimore
