No. 5 Texas women’s basketball fell short in Columbia, losing 67-50 to No. 2 South Carolina and dropping its record to 16-2 on the season.
In just their second loss of the season, the Longhorns shot 22-79 from the field. Under a 20% clip, a team that has been efficient all year shot a shocking 30% worse than its half-lead-slip-despite-johnsons-26-falls-74-70-to-no-1-tennessee/” title=”Texas lets second-half lead slip despite Johnson's 26, falls 74-70 to No. 1 Tennessee”>season average.
“Her teams, to her credit, are very tough,” head coach Vic Schaefer said about South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley. “It’s not just the physical component, it’s the mental component. I thought we were really mentally weak today. I was so disappointed.”
Sophomore star forward Madison Booker, who leads the team in scoring with 15.3 points a game and comes off an impressive 21 point-18 minute performance against No. 18 Alabama, missed eight shots in the first quarter without making one. She would end her afternoon 3-19 from the field with just seven points to her name.
The tone of the game was set early. In the first quarter alone, Texas shot the ball 18 more times than South Carolina but made one less basket.
“I don’t know what happened today,” Schaefer said. “We talk about doing your job and being the thermostat and not the thermometer. Well we wanted to be the thermostat but we were the thermometer. (South Carolina) set the thermostat.”
By the end of the first half, Texas had just 22 points on 10-44 shooting, with not one shot being attempted beyond the three point mark. It was the lowest first half scoring performance by the Longhorns all season.
A positive highlight for the Longhorns was Miami transfer and junior center Kyla Oldacre’s performance. She led the team in points with 11, going 5-11 from the field and grabbing 16 rebounds as well. Of those 16 boards, 12 were offensive, as she played a big role in Texas winning the second-chance battle 10-6.
“I’m proud of Ky (Oldacre) for battling in there,” Schaefer said. “She was a clothesline with a bunch of clothes hanging on her bunch.”
But by the end of the game, Texas was held to just 50 points, which is the lowest scoring performance since Texas’ elite eight game against Stanford of the 2021-22 season. The Longhorns also notch their second loss of the year in 18 games played. Texas’ only losses this season have come from top 10 opponents on the road, with the first loss being handed by No. 10 Notre Dame in South Bend, Ind.
The reigning national champion, South Carolina, extended its SEC win streak to 51, increasing the conference record in the process. Gamecock head coach Dawn Staley also maintains her undefeated record against Schaefer, now 14-3 against the Longhorn leader.
Texas will stay on the road, traveling to Auburn on Thursday, Jan. 16th with hopes to get back on track.
