Texas Longhorns To Face Former Star vs. Auburn Tigers

AUSTIN -- As the Texas Longhorns gear up to face the Auburn Tigers, there is one face on the other side who is very familiar to head coach Vic Schaefer. After four seasons with Schaefer, following him from Mississippi State to Texas after he changed jobs, DeYona Gaston transferred to Auburn for her fifth and final year of eligibility.

Gaston will now face off against her former coach and team when the No. 7 Longhorns visit the Tigers on Thursday.

Texas is coming off a 67-50 loss to South Carolina, its first in conference play. Auburn is on a five-game losing streak and looking to get back in the win column by upsetting Texas.

Auburn forward DeYona Gaston is fouled on a shot by Oregon center Phillipina Kyei as the Oregon Ducks host the Auburn Tigers Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024 at Matthew Knight Arena in Eugene, Ore. | Ben Lonergan/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Auburn is currently 9-8 overall and 0-4 in SEC play with Gaston being the leading scorer in all but five of the team's games. But Schaefer wants his team to forget about Auburn's record. Last season the Tigers started SEC play 0-3 but finished the season winning seven of its last ten games to make the NCAA tournament.

"There's a lot of basketball left, if you remember, think they started 0-3 last year and won eight of their last you know, 13 to go eight and eight and make the NCAA tournament," Schaefer said. "So I don't get too caught up in the records. I look at film, I know what I'm looking at on film, a team that plays extremely hard. They're well coached, and we're going to have to be ready for all that."

For Schaefer, facing Gaston brings many challenges as she knows Schaefer well and Texas knows her tendencies. But he knows he will not only have to worry about his former player, but the rest of a tough Auburn team.

"We had her for four years, and we're happy for her and proud of her, and for us, I think the thing you look at with Auburn is how hard they play," Schaefer said. "They, too are a very tough team. They'll defend you, they'll guard you, they'll take charges. And so I think you've got to really prepare for all of that."

Schaefer's Longhorns were tested on the road at South Carolina, unable to come away with the victory despite dominating the stat columns in several different categories. Now, they will travel to Auburn to look for their fourth SEC win and second conference road win.

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