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EDINBURG – In what is believed to be its first home game against a ranked opponent in nearly 21 years, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) women's basketball team stayed close most of the way in an 81-66 loss to No. 12 Texas on Thursday at the UTRGV Fieldhouse in front of a sellout crowd of 2,655.
 
UTRGV (6-5) is believed to have last hosted a ranked opponent on Feb. 14, 1998, when No. 4 Louisiana Tech came to the fieldhouse. This was UTRGV's first home game against a Big 12 opponent since hosting Texas A&M on Dec. 18, 2000 and the second-straight year UTRGV has hosted a Power 5 opponent after facing (RV) USC exactly one year earlier.
 
This was the first time Texas (9-2) had visited UTRGV for women's basketball and is believed to be the first time they have visited the Rio Grande Valley for any sport since 1971 for a baseball series.
 
This was UTRGV's largest crowd since welcoming a program record 3,411 fans on Jan. 10, 2002 for a game against Centenary.
 
Senior Quynne Huggins led UTRGV with a career-high 25 points while hitting a career-high seven three-pointers, tied for the fourth-highest single-game total in program history.Senior Idil Türk scored 17 points while hitting a career-high tying five three-pointers.
 
As a team, UTRGV hit 14 three-pointers, tied for the second-highest single-game total in program history.
 
Jatarie White led Texas with 20 points, 12 rebounds and two steals. Joyner Holmes scored 15 points with five rebounds, four assists and two steals. Sug Sutton scored 13 points with nine assists and two steals.
 
Huggins opened the game with a three-pointer before White and Holmes combined for four-straight layups to give Texas the lead. UTRGV responded with an 11-2 run that featured threes by Türk, Huggins and freshman Amara Graham to take a 14-10 lead.
 
After Texas tied the game, senior Krisynthia Sampson sunk a pair of free throws give UTRGV a 16-14 lead with 3:01 remaining in the first quarter.
 
UTRGV was within 21-20 early in the second after a Huggins three, but Texas scored nine-straight points to go up 10. Huggins answered by knocking down back-to-back threes as part of an 8-0 run to bring UTRGV within 30-28.
 
UTRGV climbed to within one at the start of the third quarter when a Türk three capped a 10-3 run and made the score 41-40.
 
Texas scored the next 15 points and took its largest lead of the game at 67-48 early in the fourth.
 
Türk responded with two three pointers and a layup to power a 10-0 run that brought UTRGV within 67-58 midway through the quarter, but that's as close as UTRGV got.
 
UTRGV is back in action on Dec. 29 at 12 p.m. at (RV) Texas A&M.

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