No. 4 Texas 79, No. 13 East Carolina 40 - Box Score
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Shaylee Gonzales scored 20 points and No. 4 Texas rolled to a 79-40 win over No. 13 East Carolina on Saturday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament on the Longhorns’ home court.

Texas rallied from a poor start to the season to earn the role of host for the first two rounds and made quick work of the Pirates. Taylor Jones had 16 points, eight rebounds and five blocks for Texas (26-9).

The Longhorns raced to a 45-24 lead by halftime with Rori Harmon’s eight assists in the first half driving the Texas offense.

Gonzales, a graduate transfer from BYU and last season’s West Coast Conference player of the year, made three consecutive baskets in the opening minutes of the third quarter that pushed her over 2,000 points for her career. Texas led by 33 to start the fourth.

Texas advanced to Monday’s second-round matchup with No. 5 Louisville (24-11), which beat No. 12 Drake 83-81 earlier Saturday.

Danae McNeal led East Carolina (23-10) with 13 points in the Pirates’ first NCAA Tournament game since 2007.