It was the kind of hug you give someone when you know it might be your last.
“I prayed for that a long time last night to have that moment today with her,” Schaefer said Monday.
Knowing each game could be their last together has been part of what’s driven Schaefer and Harmon during this NCAA Tournament run — where the Longhorns are back in the Final Four for the second consecutive season and are seeking their first national title since 1986. The Longhorns won their first four tournament games by an average of 35.5 points and now face fellow 1-seed UCLA Friday at 8:30 p.m. CT in Phoenix in the semifinals.
When Texas either wins it all or loses one of its last two games, Harmon’s career will be over. She and Schaefer have spent five seasons and 156 games together.
“She’s been the heart of our team and program for a while,” Schaefer said. “Her job is to run my team.”
The Houston native is rare among college basketball players these days, spending all five years at one place, battling through adversity and embracing a changing role. She went from being a freshman standout back in 2021-22, to having to battle back from a debilitating knee injury just 12 games into her junior season, to becoming a grittier, defense-focused guard in her final two years.
But that style of play has fit perfectly into the system Schaefer likes to run.
“We’re very similar in that way,” she said. “Like, we just are really focused on winning. We’re very competitive. We like to do things right.”
After Texas’ last loss, which was against Vanderbilt on Feb. 12, Schaefer said Harmon took it upon herself to inspire her teammates to focus on their defense.
“Rori stood up and said, ‘Y’all, I’ve been here five years. The standard here is under 60 points. We’re not living up to the standard,’” Schaefer said. “That came from Rori.”
Harmon went from averaging 14 points per game before her injury as a junior to just 8.4 her senior year. Some of her greater contributions have been in assisting her teammates, averaging 6.3 per game, or stealing the ball from opponents 2.8 times per game.
But she still has those scoring abilities. They were fully on display during Texas’ 76-65 win over UCLA on Nov. 26 where she scored a season-high 26 points.
As the Longhorns look to take down the Bruins for a second time to reach the national championship, they know Harmon may not have another 26-point performance in her.
But their point guard will be central to any success they have in Phoenix, just as she has been for the last five years.
“Whenever this thing does end, it’s going to be a little different for the old ball coach to come walking into the gym after five years, and Rori Harmon ain’t going to be in there,” Schaefer said. “It will be different.”