Krista Gerlich Responds to Longhorns Sour Grapes After Upset Win
Krista Gerlich accepted the head coaching job for the Lady Raiders under less than ideal circumstances. It was late, and she was taking over a program locked in turmoil with the previous regime's scandals still smoldering as she walked back in the door as head coach.
No stranger to Texas Tech as a player or to the Big 12 as an assistant under Marsha Sharp, Gerlich got to work.
That work has been slow through a year and a half on the job, but there are obvious signs of improvement with the Lady Raiders under Gerlich. The team is 8-5 this season, but 1-1 in Big 12 play after hanging with a ranked OU team last weekend and dismantling the 9th ranked Texas Longhorns in Austin.
The Lady Raiders’ win over Texas was the program's first top-10 win since 2011, and its first win in Austin since 2013. This is the second season in a row the Lady Raiders have a victory of the Longhorns after beating the team in Lubbock last year. The Lady Raiders’ first win over a top-25 team since 2007 under a first-year head coach.
Texas Tech led the contest for more than 38 minutes of the 40-minute game and outrebounded the Longhorns 44-33. Just the second loss for Texas this season, head coach Vic Shaefer was having trouble with the beatdown. The Lady Raiders were an impressive 34-of-44 from the free-throw line and held Texas to just 29 percent shooting.
As the Lady Raiders have been many times in the last two seasons, Vivian Gray led the team Wednesday night, filling in the box score with 23 points and seven rebounds. Taylah Thomas added a double-double with points and rebounds, while Bre-Amber Scott added 21 points of her own.
The Lady Raiders celebrated accordingly after the huge win by dousing Gerlich in a post-game celebration.
A celebration that good needs a second angle:
The game wasn't without some drama though. Between halves, Texas Tech's Gerlich and Texas' Schaefer were basically restrained from each other after a mix-up at the scorer's table.
During the game, the broadcasters were befuddled, but Vic Schaefer took Gerlich to task after the game for allegedly raising her voice at his people. Schaefer also made it personal with Gerlich, saying he didn't "give a shit who you are." Gerlich responded to the halftime altercation in the postgame, but she took the high road by just saying that she was trying to defend herself and the players in the situation.
However, after Gerlich heard the comments by Schaefer in the postgame conference, she gave more clarity on the situation saying that it was an A-B conversation going on at the table and Schaefer should have C-n his way out of it. Gerlich also said it might have been sour grapes that made him react that way after a loss that Schaefer said was one of the most embarrassing of his career, like Texas Tech shouldn't have beaten him.
The bad news for Schaefer is that Gerlich is now 2-1 against him in her Lady Raiders head coaching career; she doesn't back down from anyone, and she doesn't give a shit who you are.
Gerlich doubled down on Schaefer this afternoon on an interview with Gabe Ikard on Sirus XM saying that Schaefer had made a mountain out of a molehill. She also took the time to explain exactly what had happened and what set her off about Schaefer inserting himself into the situation.
The Lady Raiders return to action on Saturday when the Oklahoma State Cowgirls visit Lubbock as part of a United Supermarkets Arena double-header after the Red Raiders host the Kansas Jayhawks. The men's game tips off at 3:00 pm while the Lady Raiders hit the court at 7:30 pm.