It’s the SEC and heavyweights are going to collide often.
Texas women’s basketball coach Vic Schaefer is no fan of the conference schedule makers and voiced his displeasure over the last few days, but after the talk was over, his team still had to show up Thursday night in Columbia, S.C., where the No. 2-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks were waiting.
Article continues below this ad
Raven Johnson (right) of the South Carolina Gamecocks guards Madison Booker (left) of the Texas Longhorns in the first half during their game at Colonial Life Arena on Jan. 15, 2026 in Columbia, S.C.
Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
The 68-65 loss wasn’t artistic in any shape or form, but even basketball purists would have to admit: Between the combined 42 turnovers and only 19 assists, we were witnessing two teams who are on the short list of national championship contenders as we lurch into the meaty part of the conference schedule.
NO. 4 TEXAS VS. TEXAS A&M
When/where: 3 p.m. Sunday at Moody Center.
TV/radio: SEC Network; 1300 AM.
MORE CED: How Texas men accepted coach Miller’s challenge
Article continues below this ad
The fourth-ranked Longhorns gave the hosts all they could handle, but when you bounce the ball off your foot 22 times, it’s going to be difficult to win in a hostile road environment against a college basketball blue blood that was aching for revenge after a close loss in November.
Sign up for Ced’s Corner
Sign up for Cedric Golden’s newsletter for hot takes and expert analysis each Tuesday on Texas Longhorns football and beyond. It’s called Ced’s Corner, from the mind of the American-Statesman’s resident sports columnist.
Article continues below this ad
“When you get two teams like this together that know each other so well, you’re going to have these knock-down drag outs,” Schaefer said. “To be in that environment tonight, to see these kids compete the way they did and again … for us, we’ve been on the road for the last six days. So it is what it is.”
Maddy McDaniel (right) of the South Carolina Gamecocks guards Rori Harmon (left) of the Texas Longhorns in the first half during their game at Colonial Life Arena on Jan. 15, 2026 in Columbia, S.C.
Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
So what? They have lost two games in a row. It happens. Schaefer has been in the game long enough to know that an 18-0 start to the season before losses to fellow Hall of Fame coaches Kim Mulkey and Dawn Staley don’t exactly signal it’s time to panic.
Article continues below this ad
Sure, he’s still sore about the scheduling, but it can happen in a beehive basketball league like this. Shoot, Missouri went 0-4 against four consecutive ranked opponents before rebounding with a win over Arkansas and the Tigers will soon be playing consecutive road games against LSU and South Carolina in a month. So it’s not just Texas.
MORE CED:An open letter to Texas WR Cam Coleman
Thursday will go down as the night South Carolina center Madine Okot sank only her third career 3-pointer in six attempts to push her team across the finish line against the Longhorns — who couldn’t get out of their own way for most of the evening. It was a real mudder, but the intensity and effort displayed from baseline to baseline made the errors bearable.
At one point late in the third quarter, the teams had combined for 36 made field goals and 36 turnovers. These are title contenders who made the Final Four last season, yet at times they struggled to get off shots because the turnovers were seemingly falling from the sky.
Article continues below this ad
The sloppy play wasn’t from a lack of effort. The flow wasn’t there and that can happen when two teams whose coaches swear by defense run into one another.
“We won the game by gutting it out,” South Carolina’s Staley said.
MORE HORNS: Texas lands Wake Forest lineman
The Horns were right there, but didn’t play their typical brand of ball to push through. The Gamecocks had a lot to do with that. To that end, expect Texas to show up looking much better when its hosts Texas A&M Sunday. At 18-2 overall and 3-2 in league play, they’re in wonderful position to earn a high seed in the NCAAs. Two losses doesn’t change that.
Article continues below this ad
Joyce Edwards (left) of the South Carolina Gamecocks and Jordan Lee (right) of the Texas Longhorns dive for the ball in the first half during their game at Colonial Life Arena on Jan. 15, 2026 in Columbia, S.C.
Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images
Better yet, they won’t have to face the Gamecocks again in the regular season.
“I’m tired of seeing them,” UT’s Madison Booker said. “It’s always a dogfight.”
This was the second act. At least one more will follow, probably in the conference tournament and perhaps in the Big Dance.
Article continues below this ad
“Texas is a really good team,” said South Carolina guard Raven Johnson. “We will see them again in the SEC Tournament and I’m pretty sure they will bring it again. This is just our conference. Our conference is one of the best.”
Longhorns were too careless with the ball
If anything, the LSU-South Carolina double gives Schaefer an opportunity to follow the familiar blueprint of an us-against-the-world mentality as the Horns attempt to fight back from their first two-game losing streak since the opening month of the 2023 season. Anyone who follows Texas knows that defense and taking care of the ball are the cornerstones of this program, and while the Horns did force the Gamecocks into a bounty of miscues, their own missteps blunted a great chance to get a bounce-back after losing 70-65 at LSU on Sunday. (That the first of a two-game gantlet that had Schaefer railing at the league, going as far as to say it was a vendetta against his program).
He cooled his jets a couple of days later, but knowing him like I do, he still isn’t pleased. Schaefer knows his players are hurting enough after a sloppy affair. His two best players? Booker and Rori Harmon showed up for 40 of Texas’ 65 points, but guard Jordan Lee never got going and fouled out with 10 points in 30 minutes.
Article continues below this ad
With newcomer Aaliyah Crump still on the shelf, the pressure is on Lee and Booker, along with Harmon to carry the load, but the supporting cast didn’t do enough. Schaefer, ever the basketball psychologist, knows when to push his team and when not to. As he sat in postgame interviews with his most important players, he pulled back on the throttle.
“We didn’t play great tonight, but man, we played hard and we competed our tail off,” Schaefer said. “I got no complaints. Any of our faults, you can blame me for. I’m obviously the coach, and I haven’t coached them well enough to teach them to make some decisions where we don’t turn the ball over. I mean, I’ll wear that. These kids played their heart out. I’m good.”
Schaefer had their backs Thursday night, but he’ll be back in their face at the next practice.
Article continues below this ad
The expectations haven’t changed around here.