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'We're tough; we're gritty': Texas salvages Sweet 16 win as freshmen make defensive stands

danny davis, austin american-statesman
·4 min read
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Texas forward Aaliyah Moore works for a shot against Ohio State forward Rebeka Mikulasikova, left, and guard Rikki Harris during the Longhorns' 66-63 Sweet 16 victory Friday in Spokane, Wash. Moore, a freshman, made a key block in the final minute of the game.
Texas forward Aaliyah Moore works for a shot against Ohio State forward Rebeka Mikulasikova, left, and guard Rikki Harris during the Longhorns' 66-63 Sweet 16 victory Friday in Spokane, Wash. Moore, a freshman, made a key block in the final minute of the game.

SPOKANE, Wash. — During the fourth quarter of Friday's Sweet 16 game against Ohio State, Texas freshman Aaliyah Moore never left the court.

Some of those fourth-quarter minutes were memorable. Count among the highlights her two baskets that extended Texas' lead to 10 points. But some of those moments were forgettable. Moore missed two free throws and a layup as the Buckeyes attempted a comeback.

Yet for Moore, the final 20 seconds were all that really mattered. Her block of a second-chance shot saved Texas' season in a 66-63 win at Spokane Arena.

The victory propels the second-seeded Longhorns (29-6) into the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year. Texas will try to book its first trip to the Final Four since 2003 Sunday when it meets top-seeded Stanford, which beat Maryland 72-66 Friday.

"We are three games away (from a national championship). Three," Moore said. "I just love this game, and I love this team, and we just fight. No team out-toughs us."

Texas point guard Rori Harmon reaches for a loose ball between Ohio State guards Taylor Mikesell, right, and Jacy Sheldon during the first half. Harmon battled foul trouble throughout the game but made two key free throws in the closing seconds.
Texas point guard Rori Harmon reaches for a loose ball between Ohio State guards Taylor Mikesell, right, and Jacy Sheldon during the first half. Harmon battled foul trouble throughout the game but made two key free throws in the closing seconds.

Texas led for the entire fourth period, but the Buckeyes (25-6) twice pulled to within a point in the final two minutes.

With UT up 64-63 and 49 seconds left, point guard Rori Harmon beat the Buckeyes' full-court press with a long pass to Moore. Streaking down the court, Moore had a look at a layup but missed.

Ohio State rebounded and called a timeout 14 seconds later. With 28.2 seconds remaining in the game and 17 seconds on the shot clock, the Buckeyes eyed a winning play. Their leading scorer, Jacy Sheldon, took the shot.

It missed, but Ohio State's Taylor Thierry grabbed the rebound near the basket. The 5-foot-11 guard went for the win by trying a put-back, but the 6-1 Moore swatted the shot away.

That was only the fifth shot Moore had blocked this season.

Texas forward Aaliyah Moore, left, celebrates the Sweet 16 win over Ohio State with teammate Lauren Ebo. Moore missed a layup late in the game but also came up with a key block. "I'm glad even as a freshman she could keep her head in it, and that was extremely important," Ebo said.
Texas forward Aaliyah Moore, left, celebrates the Sweet 16 win over Ohio State with teammate Lauren Ebo. Moore missed a layup late in the game but also came up with a key block. "I'm glad even as a freshman she could keep her head in it, and that was extremely important," Ebo said.

"It's just a basketball play," Moore said. "I mean, I go down, miss an easy layup that I should have made. Smoked that. Missed two free throws before that. ... I just didn't stop playing. At the end of the day, I just really wanted that game."

More: Four takeaways from Texas' Sweet 16 showdown with Ohio State

After the layup that wasn't, Moore was visibly frustrated. During the ensuing timeout, she said her teammates and coaches told her to keep her head up.

In his postgame press conference, Texas coach Vic Schaefer remarked that "when it gets hard, when it gets tough, when it really gets difficult, it's about how we like it at Texas."

His message to Moore during that timeout was that the missed layup wasn't a big deal and that she now needed to help get a stop on defense.

"I'm glad even as a freshman she could keep her head in it, and that was extremely important," senior forward Lauren Ebo said. "We all told her how much that meant for our team and for the win."

After Moore stuffed Thierry, Harmon sank two free throws to extend Texas' lead to three points. Ohio State still had 10.7 seconds to salvage its season.

Even though the Longhorns had a foul to spare, they chose not to use it. "I'm not a big foul-to-give guy," Schaefer explained. "That's when things happen that are crazy."

Ohio State guard Jacy Sheldon tries to get off a shot against Texas' Rori Harmon. Sheldon was the Buckeyes' leading scorer this season. Texas advanced to play Stanford in Sunday's Elite Eight.
Ohio State guard Jacy Sheldon tries to get off a shot against Texas' Rori Harmon. Sheldon was the Buckeyes' leading scorer this season. Texas advanced to play Stanford in Sunday's Elite Eight.

Instead, Harmon picked up and pestered Sheldon the length of the court. The Buckeyes guard was unable to get off a shot and OSU couldn't get the ball to Taylor Mikesell, who's No. 2 nationally in made 3-pointers. Buckeyes forward Tanaya Beacham got off a desperation 3-pointer at the buzzer that was blocked by Moore.

"Obviously we needed a 3, being down three," OSU coach Kevin McGuff said. "So we had an action on the backside, but they did a great job of defending it. We weren't able to turn the corner to try to skip it across the baseline."

Texas got 17 points from Joanne Allen-Taylor. Aliyah Matharu chipped in 10. Combined, Allen-Taylor and Matharu hit 11 of their 19 shots.

But the two biggest highlights for the Longhorns were recorded on defense. And perhaps that was appropriate for a team that entered the game with the Big 12's best scoring defense, allowing 56.5 points per game.

"We're tough; we're gritty," Moore said. "At the end, it showed. I'm just so grateful. I'm so glad to be here and ready for the Elite Eight."

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas' defense holds strong in Sweet 16 win over Ohio State