No. 1 Texas Longhorns Find A Way To Win Against Mississippi State On The Road

For the No. 1 Texas Longhorns to retake the lead over Mississippi State at the end of the third quarter, senior point guard Rori Harmon nailed a half-court shot as the buzzer expired. In head coach Vic Schaefer's return to Starkville, the Longhorns struggled to find any offensive rhythm until the fourth quarter, when they pulled away thanks to three-point shooting from senior Shay Holle.

The Longhorns would hang on to win 68-64, overcoming a slow offensive start. The one area where Texas outperformed its usual stats was from the three-point line, shooting 50%. Harmon was 2-3 from behind the arc and senior guard Shay Holle was 4-6. Holle would lead all scorers with 16 points, tying her season high.

RORI HARMON OH MY 🤯🤘#HookEm | @roriiiharmonnn pic.twitter.com/poAdz6HigN
— Texas Women's Basketball (@TexasWBB) February 28, 2025

When the offense struggled down the line, the defense held strong. Junior forward Kyla Oldacre had another key block late, denying the Bulldogs on a key possession. Oldacre would struggle on offense but finished with six points, including a late free throw to seal the game.

Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda goes up for a shot against South Carolina — Texas Longhorns guard Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda (32) shoots over defense from South Carolina Gamecocks forward Chloe Kitts (21) in the second half as the Longhorns take on the Gamecocks at the Moody Center, Feb. 9, 2025. Texas won the game 66-62. | Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Ndjakalenga Mwenentanda stepped up, scoring a season-high 15 points and created offense for the Longhorns when the rest of the team struggled. Harmon had another big offensive game, her fourth straight game scoring in double figures, finishing with 10.

In her home state, Madison Booker had a slow offensive night, scoring 12 points and shooting just 5-13 from the floor. She also went 2-4 from the free throw line, usually an 87% free throw shooter.

Though the Longhorns were able to keep the Bulldogs from spoiling Schaefer's homecoming, their work in the SEC is not done. To stay in the running for the SEC regular-season championship and No. 1 seed in the tournament, the Longhorns need to beat Florida on senior day.

In their final regular season matchup, the Longhorns will play the Florida Gators at home on Sunday, March 2. The game will tip off at 1 p.m., and to try and fill the Moody Center for the third time this season, Schaefer has pledged his 10K for 10K again.

If 10,000 fans show up to the Moody Center on Sunday, Schaefer will donate $10,000 to the Neighborhood Longhorns Program. Seniors Shay Holle, Taylor Jones, Rori Harmon and Aaliyah Moore will be honored for senior day after the game.

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