By Jalon DixonShareNewsweek is a Trust Project memberFifth-year senior Rori Harmon made sure Texas never broke.
With No. 4 Texas watching a 23-point lead shrink to four late in the fourth quarter, Harmon took complete control, finishing with 26 points to push the Longhorns past No. 3 UCLA 76-65 on Wednesday at the Players Era Festival. She scored 10 points in the final period and went 4-for-4 at the free-throw line in the last 46 seconds to seal the win.
“That’s what the best point guard in the country looks like,” Texas coach Vic Schaefer said. “In the fourth quarter, she’s the only one who looked like she wanted it, so I emptied the playbook for her.”
Texas (6-0) advances to Thursday’s championship game against No. 2 South Carolina. It will be their first meeting since the Gamecocks eliminated the Longhorns in last season’s Final Four.
Harmon Sets the Tone on Both Ends
...Harmon shot 9 of 15 from the field and added five assists with only one turnover. She also anchored the first-half defensive surge that buried UCLA early, drawing three charges and helping double AP preseason All-American Lauren Betts in the post.
Betts, who entered averaging 15.2 points and 7.5 rebounds, was limited to eight points on 4-of-8 shooting.
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Texas led 45-25 at halftime after forcing seven first-quarter turnovers and holding UCLA to 44.4 percent shooting in the opening 20 minutes.
“We just came together and understood what was at stake,” Harmon said. “We wanted to win that bad.”
UCLA’s Rally Falls Short
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UCLA (6-1) stormed back with a 24-7 run sparked by Kiki Rice’s 12-point burst. The Bruins cut the deficit to 66-62 with 2:26 left, but three empty possessions, a missed three and two turnovers halted the comeback.
Rice and Gianna Kneepkens led UCLA with 17 points each. Charlisse Leger-Walker added 13.
Madison Booker finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and five assists for Texas, while Jordan Lee added 13 and Justice Carlton chipped in 10. Freshman scorer Aaliyah Crump missed the game with a foot injury, joining guards Bryanna Preston and Ashton Judd on the injury list.
Schaefer said the shorthanded effort added to the significance of the win.
“I get emotional talking about my team,” he said. “They laid it all on the line. That’s a really good team we just beat.”
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