The motivated Longhorns storm out to a 14-0 lead at the outset and never look back to claim their first SEC Tournament championship, 78-61, over the Gamecocks.
Vic Schaefer shared a group hug with his Texas players and asked excitedly, “Where’s the confetti?”
A moment later, the veteran coach looked up and the celebratory confetti began falling from the rafters at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena as the last of thousands of disappointed South Carolina fans disappeared through the exits.
Madison Booker (6'1''-F-2005, college: USA NT U16) scored 18 points as the fourth-ranked Longhorns sprinted to a 14-0 lead and beat three-time defending champion and No. 3 South Carolina 78-61 on Sunday to win its first Southeastern Conference Tournament title.
Justice Carlton added 15 points and Jordan Lee (6'0''-G-2006) had 12 for the Longhorns (31-3), who joined the SEC in 2024.
“We belong in the SEC,” Booker said. “We’re here to play and we’re here to win.”
And they did it on what many view as South Carolina’s “other” home floor.
The Gamecocks were 20-1 under coach Dawn Staley in SEC Tournament games in Greenville — just 90 minutes from campus — and had won six of the last seven tournaments here.
“I couldn’t be more proud of a group of ladies, of this team, to do what they did in this environment and against this team — it is just really impressive,” Schaefer said. “They were laser-focused. I had some kids that were here on a mission.”
Texas shot a blistering 57% from the field to avenge last year’s 19-point loss to the Gamecocks in the title game.
Booker, who was named MVP of the tournament, finished 8 of 15 from the field and had four rebounds and two assists. She scored 14 points in the second half on 6-of-11 shooting.
“When her shot is going in like that, they are very difficult to beat,” Staley said.
Joyce Edwards (6'3''-F-2006) had 13 points for the Gamecocks (31-3), who saw their 12-game win streak snapped.
The powerhouse programs split two tightly contested meetings earlier this season, with the Longhorns winning 66-64 at a neutral site in November and the Gamecocks earning a measure of revenge with a 68-65 win on their home floor in January.
This one was never close.
Texas made its first seven shots and built a 14-0 lead after five early South Carolina turnovers before Tessa Johnson (6'0''-G)’s 3 stopped the bleeding. Staley never called timeout during the run, instead opting to let her team play through it.
Carlton outscored South Carolina by herself in the first quarter, finishing with 13 points as Texas built a 27-12 lead after shooting 68%.
“It was bad,” Edwards said. “All of the starters, we were supposed to set the tone out there and we didn’t do that.”
Texas guard Rori Harmon was confident the fast start would lead to victory.
“Losing is not an option,” Harmon said. “Don’t step on the court if you’re not ready to win.”
With fans urging the Gamecocks to make a run, the Longhorns didn’t let up, pushing the lead to 17 at the break — the largest halftime deficit in the SEC Tournament for South Carolina under Staley.
South Carolina managed to get within 11 with 5:22 left, but Lee answered with a 3 and later pushed the lead to 16 with a driving layup with two minutes left. Booker then sealed the Longhorns’ eighth straight win with a midrange jumper.
“Every time that we would try to make a run, we had just like mental lapses, like uncharacteristic turnovers,” Staley said. “Some of it was us, some of it was Texas — and they took advantage of it every single time.”
Staley said if there is a silver lining to the loss, it’s that the last time the Gamecocks fell in the SEC title game, in 2022, they went on to win the national championship.
“It might be the very thing this team needs,” Staley said. “It’s not what I would have thought coming in today, but now that we’re here and it’s a reality, you search for things that have a connection that can give your team what it needs to make this run for a national championship.”
If South Carolina hopes to win its fourth national title under Staley, it will need to improve its free-throw shooting. The Gamecocks finished 12 of 23 from the foul line.

Courtesy of secsports.com

Final:
South Carolina - Texas 61-78

Semis:
South Carolina - LSU 83-77
Texas - Ole Miss 85-68