March Madness: Point guard Harmon back in the postseason for No. 1 Texas after last season’s injury

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Rori Harmon could only watch Texas’ run to the Elite Eight last season, her right knee in a brace as she recovered from an injury that required surgery.

The Longhorns’ senior point guard and defensive dynamo is back for the NCAA Tournament this year, and itching to take No. 1 seed Texas to a championship.

The Longhorns (31-3) are heavily favored in Saturday night’s first-round matchup with No. 16 William & Mary (16-18). But for Harmon, it will be a special moment she won’t take for granted. It will be her first NCAA Tournament game since a second-round loss to Louisville on Texas’ home court in 2023.

“I was so excited that my team was able to do what they were doing (last year), but I was upset at the same time because I wished I was playing,” Harmon said Friday. “I think I definitely have that chip, my personal chip on my shoulder, coming into this tournament just being able to play again.”

Harmon was the Big 12 preseason player of the year heading into the 2023-2024 season, and had Texas humming when she went down with a torn knee ligament in a routine practice drill early in the season.

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That forced Texas to put the point guard duties on Madison Booker, who was a freshman. Booker delivered, leading Texas to the Elite Eight. Harmon cheered from the bench, but the entire postseason carried a feeling of “what if” had she had been healthy and the two worked the backcourt together.

Harmon’s eventual recovery allowed Booker to return to her natural instincts as a free-flowing shooter. And returned Harmon as the leader in the Longhorns’ pressure-cooker defense.

The impact has been huge. Texas rose to No. 1 in the regular season for the first time since 2004, and won a share of the Southeastern Conference title its first year in the league.

Booker earned SEC player of the year honors and was named first-team All-American, while Harmon was named the league’s all-defense team after posting 75 steals.

Texas coach Vic Schaefer twice led Mississippi State to tournament championship games, and led the Longhorns to the Elite Eight three of the past four seasons. He calls Harmon the best defensive player he’s ever coached.

“She’s not only great on the ball, she’s a great help defender,” Schaefer said. “She’ll take a charge, she’ll get run over by a freight train, but then she does what I want her to do on the other end, which is go run my team, make a big shot, make a great decision.”

Harmon averages 9.4 points and 5.9 assists, and is a 76% free throw shooter. On defense, she’ll likely be assigned to guard William & Mary’s top scorer, guard Bella Nascimento, who averages 16.5 points.

“She wants to guard the best player. She wants the challenge,” Booker said. “Just that energy and just that mentality she has, it really just keeps this team going on defense.”

Postseason success

Illinois is making its second NCAA Tournament appearance in three years as a No. 8 seed and will play No. 9 Creighton (29-6).

Illinois guard guard Adalia McKenzie points to last season’s WBIT championship as paving the way for the Illini this year. It may be a lesser tournament, but it carried valuable lessons about what it takes to win a championship, she said.

Illinois had to win five games to win the WBIT trophy.

“The WBIT was a great experience for us, just knowing what it takes mentally and physically, having that relentless pursuit of just going 1-0 every game and not letting anything get in the way,” McKenzie said.

Piling up points

Creighton is playing in its fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament and brings a veteran group with four senior starters led by a pair of all-Big East players in guard Lauren Jensen and forward Morgan Maly.

The fifth-year players have both tallied more than 2,000 career points, and were sophomores when Creighton advanced to the Elite Eight in 2022.

Losing record, winning streak

William & Mary is the only team in this year’s tournament with a losing record. The Tribe made a surprise run through the Colonial Athletic Association tournament to earn an automatic bid, then beat High Point 69-63 on Thursday night in a play-in game.

That fifth consecutive win earned bragging rights for the school’s first NCAA Tournament victory, and a matchup with No. 1 Texas on the Longhorns’ home court.

Asked to size up the challenge against Texas, Tribe coach Erin Dickerson Davis called the Longhorns “Goliath.”

“(My players) love this. They don’t want it to end,” Dickerson Davis said. “They are in full competitor mode ... Let’s really compete and how we can keep competing against one of the best in the country.”

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