After a Sweet 16 birth last year, coach Karen Aston and the Longhorns are back at it this year. Sitting at 19-1 and ranked sixth in the Associated Press poll, Texas is positioned to challenge for a BIG XII title and make another deep run in the NCAA Tournament.
By: @JLHemingwayPSB
The Program
Since coach Karen Aston took over in 2012 the Longhorns have been very active on the recruiting trail. The 2016 class is ranked No. 2 nationally, which includes the No. 1 prospect in the nation in Joyner Holmes. Also 5-star point guard, Alecia Sutton, who is ranked No. 10 in the nation signed with the Longhorns last November. Add in Jada Underwood as an athletic forward, and the Longhorns have a bright future in front of them for years to come.
Recently Brandon Clay, who serves as a WNBA Draft analyst for ProspectsNation.com, visited Austin, Texas for their game versus Oklahoma. He had this to say, “Coach Karen Aston has steered the Longhorns back to the top of the BIG XII totem pole. In the process, the bar has raised to NCAA Tournament appearances are a given and Sweet 16 runs are an annual expectation. That is exactly what Aston and her staff envisioned when they took over four season ago. In the process, Travis Mays and Georgie Washington have ensured that Aston would have the talent at her disposal to make sure those visions became a reality. The next step for this program is getting back to the Final Four. With lengendary National Championship coach Jody Conradt’s support, Aston has the eyes of Texas set on bringing another title back to Austin.”
Yesterday’s Home: Austin, Texas Saw @CoachKarenA‘s team get a BIG W vs. Oklahoma. UT Sr. C Imani Boyette is a pro. pic.twitter.com/X9Y8RswWHh
— Brandon Clay (@BrandonClayPSB) January 24, 2016
Then last night with a win over Kansas University, Texas became only the 5th NCAA Division-1 team to win 1,000 games in their program’s history.
ISN’T IT GRAND? @TexasWBB becomes 5th program in NCAA D-I history to reach 1,000 wins. https://t.co/htsLlkBK60 pic.twitter.com/dEsL2JTC24
— Texas Longhorns (@TexasSports) January 28, 2016
Player Feature
Senior post player Imani Boyette is the go-to player for this year’s team. The 6-foot-7 center was a 5-star recruit out of high school. We wrote about the high expectations of Boyette (then known as Imani Stafford) for SLAM online Magazine in 2012. Boyette has endured a number of injuries during her collegiate playing days. Nevertheless, she is finishing her career in Austin impressively this year.
Currently Boyette is averaging 13 points, 10 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game while shooting 56% from the field and 77% from the free throw line. She is currently on the ProspectsNation.com WNBA Draft Board at No. 14 in the class of 2016. International director of scouting for ProspectsNation.com, Keil Moore, says “Boyette is so important to the Longhorns success. She protects the lane defensively and cleans up missed shots on the offensive end.”
Inside the Playbook
A quick look at Boyette’s touches in their game versus Oklahoma will show that Aston keeps it simple. A fair percentage of their offensive sets run through a 4-out, 1-in formation. In a day where many coaches bring their post players away from the basket, Boyette’s skill set lends itself to posting big on the block and getting angles to score. She showed advanced footwork and soft touch in one on one situations. In the win, Boyette finished with 18 points on 6-9 shooting from the field and 6-6 from the free throw line.
Looking at the diagrams below, what makes Boyette’s post feeds effective is what happens away from the basketball. Notice the basket cuts, down screens and movement even when Boyette has the ball in the post. That keeps the defense from bringing hard double teams from the weakside. Add in the fact that point guard Brooke McCarty is shooting 40% from 3-point range and Texas has the inside-out attack to keep defenses off balance.
Read last year’s Program Feature
(2014-2015 Texas Women’s Basketball)
Jonathan Hemingway is the Assistant Director of Scouting for the JumpOffPlus.com International Scouting Report, is on the Naismith Trophy Board of Selectors and owns CoachHemi.com, the go-to source for coaches for X’s and O’s. He is the floor director of #TeamEBA camps, a site director for #TeamPSB tournaments and can be reached at jonathanhemingway@peachstatebasketball.com.
