Spiders bested by No. 6 Texas in spar at the Robins Center

To beat the sixth-best college basketball team in the country, almost everything has to go right when it comes to gameplay and execution. 

The University of Richmond ultimately lost by just 11 points, 65-54, to the ranked University of Texas Longhorns on Dec. 15, but not enough went the Spiders’ way to pull off an upset in the most difficult challenge they’ve faced all season. 

“Obviously a really, really tough opponent that we went against today,” UR Head Coach Aaron Roussell said in a postgame press conference. “I was really proud of our players’ effort. As I told them, ‘you have some decisions, you have some things you wish you could have back.’ I’m sure all of us have some plays, wish we could’ve had back.” 

The Spiders took the first lead of the game thanks to a 3-pointer from graduate forward Addie Budnik on their second possession of the first quarter. UR would only hold the lead for four minutes and 26 seconds, however, as the Spiders would trail on the scoreboard the rest of the way. 

In the early going, UR had some opportunities on the offensive end, but its shots just weren’t falling at the pace that they had in past games this season. Through the first 10 minutes, the Spiders shot just 1-for-6 from 3-point range and 5-for-15 from field goal range overall. 

UR’s shooting didn’t improve all that much in the second quarter, as the Spiders only mustered nine shots taken throughout the next 10 minutes of gameplay. By halftime, they had only made two 3-pointers, which was uncharacteristic for a squad that’s had success from distance this season. 

In each of the final two quarters, the Spiders shot over 40% from the field, but the Longhorns’ overpowering play still proved too much for UR to fully stomach. 

“I thought watching them here over this past week, was watching a Final Four team, right?” Roussell said. “That’s a team that can compete for a National Championship.” 

With 6:01 to play in the game, the Spiders had cut what, seven seconds into the fourth quarter, had swelled to a 19-point Longhorns lead to 10 points following buckets from junior forward Maggie Doogan and junior guard Rachel Ullstrom on back-to-back possessions. 

Any hopes of a comeback, however, just never grew within the Spiders’ reach. 

Texas began to pull away as early as in the first quarter and never appeared to look back. UR committing 24 turnovers to the Longhorns’ 11 certainly did not help the Spiders’ case, either. 

What the Spiders can hold their hats on, though, other than the fact that this is just one of the three straight games they will play against a Southeastern Conference opponent to close out their non-conference schedule, is that they held the Longhorns to their lowest scoring output of the season. 

Texas, a team that was averaging 91 points per game coming into play at the Robins Center, had tallied just 33 points at halftime and finished with 65 points when the final buzzer sounded. 

Ullstrom, Budnik, and Doogan were the Spiders’ three double-figure scorers. Ullstrom led the way with 20 points, Budnik had 12 and Doogan finished with 10. 

Graduate guard Faith Alston, who joined the Spiders this offseason following four seasons at Appalachian State University, also had a solid day offensively, as she scored six points in her UR debut. 

“I talked with our players about this moment not being too big for them, they were prepared for it,” Roussell said. “I think they showed that today. And I think you get a little more confidence playing in these sort of games.” 

UR’s next two games will be part of the West Palm Beach Classic, with its first matchup coming against the University of Tennessee at 2:15 p.m. on Dec. 20. 

Contact sports editor Jimmy James at jimmy.james@richmond.edu.