Aggie women to host Longhorns

It's pretty easy to explain how Texas A&M has built an 11-game winning streak against Texas: The Aggies' best players have played well.

It started five years ago with A'Quonesia Franklin, Danielle Gant and Takia Starks and continued last season with Danielle Adams, Sydney Colson and Tyra White. And if A&M wants to extend the streak, Sydney Carter, Kelsey Bone and White are going to have to play well in Wednesday's game at 6 p.m. at Reed Arena.

But they can't do it alone. The 12th-ranked Aggies (10-3, 1-1) will need others to contribute, especially forward Adaora Elonu. The 6-foot-1 senior has been a part of eight victories over the Longhorns (10-4, 0-2).

She played only three minutes in her first game against Texas but was a huge contributor in a 76-65 victory at Reed Arena in 2009. She scored on back-to-back possessions off the bench en route to scoring 10 points. Elonu hit 5 of 6 shots in only 14 minutes to support Gant, who had a double-double, and Starks, who scored 18 points.

Elonu has continued playing well over the last six games against Texas, averaging 9.0 points per game while hitting 20 of 47 shots (42.6 percent) and 11 of 14 from the free-throw line (78.6 percent).

Elonu said she tries to treat Texas like any other opponent but realizes the importance of the rivalry and would like to be part of the second straight A&M senior class to go undefeated against Texas. She'll probably have a big say in whether that happens.

It's still early, but Elonu is having her best season so far, averaging 11.5 points per game -- three points higher than last season. She's also averaging 6.8 rebounds, which is almost a rebound better than last season, and she's shooting 47.5 percent from the field.

She's coming off a solid performance in A&M's recent 75-58 victory over Oklahoma. She had a tough start with a couple turnovers and two poor shots but ended with 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting. It was a typical Elonu game. Bone, Carter and White earned most of the credit for the victory, but Elonu had a game-high 10 rebounds.

"I just thought I was too anxious [early]," Elonu said. "In the second half, I let the game come to me more."

Elonu typically plays without much emotion, which can irritate fans when things aren't going well.

"She's a 3.5 student who's graduated," A&M head coach Gary Blair said. "She's going to finish her master's at an age before I even got into college. She's got a laid-back personality. Even though she's a team captain, she tries to lead quietly with examples."

Elonu doesn't yell at teammates because it's not in her nature, Blair said.

"They would like to be like her because she's got it all together, academically, off the court, and familywise," Blair said. "In basketball, she's got a nice jumper and she runs the floor, and she's a complete player."

As for turning Elonu into an emotional player like Gant, forget it.

"You don't," Blair said. "But I think Danielle Gant would like to have a lot of the attributes that Adaora Elonu has off the court."

Blair doesn't want to change Elonu's personality nor her inside play against Texas. Over the last six games against the Longhorns, she is averaging 7.0 rebounds per game. Elonu will be facing 6-4 Cokie Reed and 6-4 Ashley Gayle, whom Blair calls "possibly the best defensive post player in the league."

Gayle and Reed wearing burnt orange uniforms should be enough to get Elonu's motor running.

"Oh, I'm definitely not rah-rah," she says, flashing a smile that shows off her braces. "But if something pumps me up, I am going to get excited. I'm not just boring Jane. I think at times, I can be into the game, but at times, I do feel like I am more the reserved type, trying to get things done and not trying to do too much. I think I'm pretty mellow."

Recent Longhorn teams might beg to differ.

*

NOTES -- A&M is ranked 10th in this week's USA Today/ESPN coaches poll. ... Texas' top three scorers Yvonne Anderson, Chassidy Fussell and Ashleigh Fontenette hit a combined 3 of 27 field goals in the Longhorns' 70-51 loss at Oklahoma State on Saturday.

A&M WOMEN'S BASKETBALL

Texas (10-4, 0-2 in the Big 12) at No. 12 A&M (10-3, 1-1)

6 p.m. Wednesday, Reed Arena.

TV: Suddenlink, Ch. 22; DirecTV, Ch. 675; Dish Network, Ch. 444. Radio: 1150 AM, KZNE

Tickets: $7-15.

TEXAS A&M

Pos.NameHeightClassPPGRPG

G Adrienne Pratcher 5-7 Jr. 7.5*4.7

G Sydney Carter 5-6 Sr. 11.63.3

G Tyra White 6-0 Sr. 14.55.3

F Adaora Elonu 6-1 Sr. 11.5 6.8

C Kelsey Bone 6-4 Jr. 13.07.5

TEXAS

Pos.NameHeightClassPPGRPG

G Yvonne Anderson5-7Sr.10.5*4.5

G Chassidy Fussell5-10So.15.73.7

GAshleigh Fontenette5-8Sr.12.0*4.3

P Ashley Gayle6-4Sr.5.28.7

P Cokie Reed6-4So.8.85.4