One of the longest-status rivalries in Dallas-Fort Worth university basketball is taking at least a one-12 months hiatus.
The North Texas and SMU ladies’ basketball teams will now not play q4, pausing an annual collection that dates again to each programs’ debut campaigns in 1976-seventy seven. The groups have confronted off at least as soon as each season for the last forty-three years.
“Unfortunately, they didn’t want to play this year,” UNT teach Jalie Mitchell stated. “They opted out of this year and want to pick it up once more subsequent yr.”
UNT released its nonconference agenda this week.
SMU leads the collection 32-18 after triumphing closing season’s game 73-66 at Moody Coliseum in Dallas.
UNT delivered a recreation in opposition to Texas-Arlington to fill the void in its time table. The Mean Green’s national sport against UTA is one of the highlights of a nonconference slate that still consists of 3 games within the Rainbow Wahine Showdown in Hawaii in late November.
UNT’s series towards SMU has blanketed several memorable games over the years, including a 60-fifty seven Mean Green win in Mitchell’s first season as head taught in 2015-16.
UNT won the first game between the teams 56-54 in 1977. SMU broke via for a 67-66 win over the Mean Green inside the beginning game of the 1979-80 season.
Mitchell performed for UNT from 1998-2002 and went 2-3 in opposition to SMU on her way to turning into the Mean Green’s all-time primary scorer with 1,764 factors. The UNT Athletics Hall of Famer is hoping to see the series resume.
“It’s a good sport for both groups,” Mitchell stated. “It’s a natural rival. We recruit in opposition to every other. You always want to be a satisfactory application inside the Metroplex.”
UNT adds guard, loses veteran
Mitchell announced Tuesday that Seminole State College defend Summer Jones has signed with UNT.
Jones averaged 13.4 points and a pair of.2 rebounds as a remaining sophomore season when she shot 40.Five% from 3-factor range.
“Summer puts the ball within the hole,” Mitchell stated. “She proves it each recreation out, plus she brings revel in coming from junior college. That will gain what is going to be a young team this 12 months.”
The five-8 shield will help UNT fill the void left when it misplaced 3 of its top 4 3-point shooters from last season. Terrell Bradley graduated after hitting fifty-three pictures from behind the arc on her manner to leading the crew with an average of 15.Eight factors in keeping with recreation.
Fellow protect Callie Owens is about to return after hitting 32 shots from three-factor range. Grace Goodhart, UNT’s 0.33-main scorer at 6.2 points according to recreation, made 31 shots from beyond the arc in her senior season.
Velma Mitchell related on 23 photographs from beyond the arc however will not go back after undergoing career-ending foot surgical treatment. She averaged 4.8 points a remaining season.
“Summer will take that spot,” Jamie Mitchell said. “She has similar revel into Velma and will play a comparable role.”
Jones is the today’s addition to what will be an in large part revamped roster. UNT landed six excessive faculty players all through the early signing length in November. Jones is the third switch UNT has added to that authentic signing class.
Forward Rochelle Lee and defend Quincy Noble transferred from Chattanooga and New Mexico, respectively, and could sit out the upcoming season.
