How Texas freshmen helped Longhorns defeat Tennessee

Still, for No. 1 seed Texas (34-3) to advance to its fourth Elite Eight in the last five seasons, the Longhorns’ senior point guard and the SEC Player of the Year needed some extra firepower and intensity. Or as head coach Vic Scheafer described it, Texas needed some extra “juice” to defeat No. 5 Tennessee (24-10) 67-59 on Saturday afternoon, giving the Longhorns their ticket to the Elite Eight sweepstakes and a decisive Texas showdown against No. 2 seed TCU (34-3) on Monday night.

Like most teams competing for women’s college basketball’s most coveted possession, help comes in different forms in the month of March. In some cases, it is multiple star players willing their team to a victory by any means necessary. Facing a gritty Volunteers’ squad — one that brought loads of full-court pressure defensively and an offense that demanded Texas to defend — seeking to land a major upset, the Longhorns additional yet timely production came from their freshmen Jordan Lee and Bryanna Preston, as the two combined for 25 of Texas’ 67 points in the victory.

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“This is our juice,” Schaefer told reporters postgame. “This is our energy. They’re so unselfish. They really stepped up today.”

Texas picked up a second win against its SEC foe on Saturday after defeating the Volunteers 80-76 at home nearly two months ago in league play. In the first matchup, it was Booker and Longhorns senior forward Taylor Jones who played an integral part in the Longhorns’ win. In Saturday’s “knockdown, drag-out” type of battle according to Schaefer, it required Booker’s prowess as well as Lee’s 13 points and Preston’s 12 points off the bench.

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While some may view Lee and Preston’s breakout second-half performances as a surprise, the two freshmen have been groomed for the moment long before the Longhorns’ second clash against the Volunteers. Prior to Saturday, Lee tallied eight double-digit scoring performances this season with her most recent in Texas’ 105-61 win against William & Mary where she notched 13 points. The Stockton, Calif., native has never been afraid when her number is called thanks to a continuous source of support around her.

“I knew coming in I’m going to be playing behind some amazing people and amazing leaders,” Lee said postgame. “… I leaned on my circle to get some feedback and advice throughout the year, and keeping my mind in the right frame. Being able to take advantage of the opportunity when it presents itself and Bryanna and I were able to do that tonight.”

Preston generated a new season-high in points in the win and marked the fifth time the Jonesboro, Ga., native registered double-digit outings this season. Her last contest with 10 or more points took place against Arkansas at home on Jan. 5 as she finished with 11 points in the Longhorns’ win.

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However, Preston’s impact went further than her ability to put points on the scoreboard. With 6:22 to play in the game, Preston made a break on the ball off of a bad pass from Vols’ Zee Spearman to force a Tennessee turnover. In that moment, the 5’9” guard slapped the floor with energy that ignited a fire inside the Texas’ five players on the court as well as the Longhorns’ bench.

“Very exciting [emotion] as everyone could probably tell on the court,” Preston said postgame. “It was just a great moment for me and I just fed off of that energy. …I just played hard every single possession because at the end of the day, the game can come down to one possession and we want to be on top.”

Preston’s intensity became part of a Texas defensive barrage that held Tennessee to nine points in the fourth quarter and the third highest scoring team in the country to nearly 28 points fewer than it typically averages per game. After Saturday’s win, Texas improved to 8-0 when it scores 60-69 points per contest and 23-0 when it holds its opponents to 59 points or less in a game.

As for Schaefer, putting his hand on his head during different occasions in amazement while also appearing to engage in a sigh of relief in the win-or-go-home contest, he was proud of his team.

“When we broke the huddle to start the fourth quarter I told them, 50 points in three quarters is a lot,” Schaefer said postgame. “It’s a little bit outside of where we like to be at that point. …They went out there and guarded hard and defended.”

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As the Longhorns turn their attention to TCU, Schaefer didn’t shy away from the challenge that awaits them. Monday will mark Schaefer’s fifth Elite Eight appearance, four at Texas and one from his previous coaching tenure at Mississippi State. Collectively, he holds a 1-3 record in those games with three losses — South Carolina, Stanford and NC State — during his Texas coaching span.

“It [Elite Eight] is the hardest one to win,” Schaefer said postgame.

Now, Schaefer will seek to elevate the Longhorns to their first Final Four appearance since 2003 while picking up his second Elite Eight victory to earn his third appearance among the nation’s top four teams in the country.

But for the Longhorns’ journey to continue, it will require Texas’ role players to continue to elevate when the lights shine the brightest.

“…It’s not just us seniors or us who have more experience that stepped up to the plate to just tell everybody just lock in,” Harmon said postgame. “… It was just collectively we all just wanted it so bad.”