Auburn woman’s basketball hosted No. 7 Texas in its fifth straight conference game. With the Tigers roster being riddled by the injury bug, Auburn’s new transfer additions arrive at a pivotal time.

Yuting Deng and Julia Geis joined the woman’s team in the spring semester after signing last fall. Deng suited up Thursday evening for the first time as both are expected to play the remainder of the season.

“She has been here less than a week and had two practices,” Auburn coach Johnnie Harris said. “Especially with the language barrier, we’re probably going to shorten her package just so she can learn.”

Deng transferred in from Hunan Province China and was ranked as the 27th best player in the country. She chose the Tigers over schools like Indiana, Washington, BYU, and San Francisco.

She competed for China’s U24 national team in FIBA 3×3 and China’s U18 national team in the FIBA Asia cup. During 3×3 competition, Deng led China to a championship victory leading with 11 points and five rebounds.

Thursday night, Deng finished scoreless with two turnovers playing just six minutes in the first half.

“I thought she handled it really well. Not knowing how much she exactly understands has been a challenge for us,” Harris said. “We just have to make sure she’s comfortable and put in a position to be successful.”

“She’s a player with high IQ. Probably had some nerves out there because she’s been really good and wearing us out at practice.”

Harris believes once Yuting settles in Auburn fans will be able to see the true skills she brings to a roster.

“She’s just coming into the country and learning a lot. So much has been thrown at her these last couple of days,” Harris said. “We will give her some grace and a little time, but she works extremely hard.”

As for Geis, Harris says she’s been working majority on the scout team and is fitting in great.

Auburn returns back to Neville arena to host Missouri Sunday.