When they arrived on the Texas Longhorns‘ campus two summers ago, Bryanna Preston and Jordan Lee really got into puzzles.

Neither Lee or Preston had a car, so their entertainment consisted of riding their scooters, listening to music in the dorms and doing puzzles. On Saturday, the sophomores on the UT basketball team recalled putting together pieces that depicted donuts, flowers and planets. Preston shared that putting together those works “was a vibe, though, very relaxing.”

Article continues below this ad

Texas Longhorns guards Breyanna Preston (1) and Rori Harmon (3) prepare for practice, March 19, 2026 as the Texas Longhorns host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin. Texas will play Missouri State on Friday.

Texas Longhorns guards Breyanna Preston (1) and Rori Harmon (3) prepare for practice, March 19, 2026 as the Texas Longhorns host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin. Texas will play Missouri State on Friday.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-StatesmanTexas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) calls her team together for a huddle during the game against Georgia at the Moody Center on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026 in Austin.

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) calls her team together for a huddle during the game against Georgia at the Moody Center on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026 in Austin.

Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-StatesmanTexas Longhornsguard Rori Harmon (3) hugs guard Bryanna Preston (1) after the game against Georgia at the Moody Center on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026 in Austin.

Texas Longhornsguard Rori Harmon (3) hugs guard Bryanna Preston (1) after the game against Georgia at the Moody Center on Thursday, Feb. 26, 2026 in Austin.

Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-StatesmanTexas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) waits for a play to set up in the second half as the Texas Longhorns play the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026. Texas won the game 87-45.

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) waits for a play to set up in the second half as the Texas Longhorns play the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026. Texas won the game 87-45.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-StatesmanTexas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) shoots over defense from Missouri State Bears forward Faith Lee (11) in the second half as the Texas Longhorns play the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026. Texas won the game 87-45.

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) shoots over defense from Missouri State Bears forward Faith Lee (11) in the second half as the Texas Longhorns play the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026. Texas won the game 87-45.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-StatesmanTexas Longhorns guards Bryanna Preston (1) and Jordan Lee (7) celebrate a score during the game against Mississippi State at the Moody Center on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026 in Austin.

Texas Longhorns guards Bryanna Preston (1) and Jordan Lee (7) celebrate a score during the game against Mississippi State at the Moody Center on Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026 in Austin.

Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-StatesmanTexas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) slots a pass to a teammate in the third quarter as the Longhorns take on the Richmond Spiders at the Moody Center in Austin, Nov. 7, 2025.

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) slots a pass to a teammate in the third quarter as the Longhorns take on the Richmond Spiders at the Moody Center in Austin, Nov. 7, 2025.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman

Lee said she was recently gifted a 1,000-piece bird puzzle from former Texas coach Jody Conradt. The two then conceded that they haven’t had much time to do puzzles over the past six months; something about a basketball season and their sophomore years of college.

More: Subscribe to the Statesman’s Texas sports newsletter

Lee and Preston plan on getting to the bird puzzle in the offseason. But unless they want to start working on that puzzle next week, Preston, Lee and the Longhorns will need to get past Oregon in the second round of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. Texas (32-3) and Oregon (23-12) are respectively the No. 1 and No. 8 seeds in the “Fort Worth 3” section of the bracket, and a spot in a North Texas Sweet 16 game awaits Sunday’s winner.

Article continues below this ad

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) slots a pass to a teammate in the third quarter as the Longhorns take on the Richmond Spiders at the Moody Center in Austin, Nov. 7, 2025.

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) slots a pass to a teammate in the third quarter as the Longhorns take on the Richmond Spiders at the Moody Center in Austin, Nov. 7, 2025.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman

Texas opened its NCAA Tournament run with an 87-45 win Friday over Missouri State. Oregon earned a 70-60 victory against Virginia Tech in the first round.

“(We need to be) punching first, playing with pace out of the gate, especially against an experienced team like Oregon,” Preston said. “We’ve got to make sure we come out and make sure that they don’t get to jump on us.”

Article continues below this ad

Lee ranks second among the Longhorns in scoring at 13.4 points per game, and the 6-foot guard has emerged as one of the team’s top perimeter defenders. Preston, meanwhile, has served as senior point guard Rori Harmon’s understudy throughout this season.

Texas Longhorns guard Sarah Graves (6) celebrates with guard Bryanna Preston (1) following the Longhorns’ 87-45 win over the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026.

Texas Longhorns guard Sarah Graves (6) celebrates with guard Bryanna Preston (1) following the Longhorns’ 87-45 win over the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman

With Bryanna Preston waiting, Texas won’t look in transfer portal for a point guard

1-TEXAS VS. 8-OREGON

When/where: 5 p.m. Sunday at Moody Center.

TV/radio: ESPN; 1300 AM.

Ahead of the Missouri State game, Preston greeted Texas assistant coach Sydney Carter with a customized handshake. That pregame dap happened to the side as the UT starters were being announced. Since she has come off the bench in each of her 51 games at Texas, Preston hasn’t yet gotten to run down the receiving line reserved for starters that ends with a teammate’s specialized salutation.

Article continues below this ad

That is poised to change next season. Harmon’s college career will wrap up sometime in the upcoming weeks, and that will leave Preston and incoming freshman Aaliah Spaight as the only point guards on the Texas roster. If needed, All-American forward Madison Booker can also play the position.

More: Madison Booker debuts new KD19 shoes, helps Texas to NCAA Tournament win

Schaefer has long insisted that the 5-9 Preston will run the Texas offense next season. Last month, Schaefer even went as far to say that he wouldn’t entertain the idea of looking for a point guard in the transfer portal unless something unexpected happened with Preston or Spaight.

“We are going to be in great shape there,” Schaefer said. “Bry’s ready. I have complete and total confidence in her. She’s got the keys to the car. I don’t foresee doing anything in the portal at all.”

Article continues below this ad

Preston has never lacked for confidence or swagger, but she said this weekend that she wants to “be present where my feet are.” So that talk about her future can be left to her teammates, who believe she is ready for the leadership responsibilities that come with being Schaefer’s point guard.

“If she don’t want to (lead), she needs to get to want to, because it’s going to be on her. Coach Schaefer is not going to give anybody else that responsibility on the team other than his point guard,” Harmon said. “But I can see Bry and I can see that she wants it. She’ll definitely be that. I just want to continue to learn throughout this process. And she’ll be a junior, so she’s going to be an upperclassman, and there’s gonna be a lot to expect out of her. I think she’ll answer for sure.”

Said Lee: “Particularly as a friend, Bry is very distinct in that she’s supportive all the time. You can’t put a value on someone that’s like that for you in your life. So for her to kind of take that next step, I’m like ecstatic to see it.”

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) brings the ball down the court in the second half as the Texas Longhorns play the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026. Texas won the game 87-45.

Texas Longhorns guard Bryanna Preston (1) brings the ball down the court in the second half as the Texas Longhorns play the Missouri State Bears in the first round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament at the Moody Center in Austin, March 20, 2026. Texas won the game 87-45.

Sara Diggins/Austin American-Statesman

Bryanna Preston’s mindset was formed during 2024 NCAA Tournament run

As Harmon’s backup, Preston has mostly played a complementary role this season while averaging 5.3 points and 2.4 assists per game. Preston is playing 14.9 minutes per game, but Schaefer notably opted to play her over a struggling Harmon in the fourth quarters of games at LSU and Vanderbilt.

Article continues below this ad

With Harmon getting to rest throughout much of the Longhorns’ lopsided win over Missouri State, Preston earned 18 minutes of playing time. She responded with 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting and four assists. Two of her points were scored after she dribbled the length of the court in the second quarter’s final seconds for a buzzer-beating layup. She later added a pinch of razzle dazzle to the game’s highlight reel when she assisted Teya Sidberry on a fastbreak opportunity with a behind-the-back pass.

“I like to give y’all a little show sometimes,” Preston said afterwards with a laugh. “As long as I make it count, because I know Coach’s not going to be too happy with me (if I miss), but as long as I keep the crowd entertained, get a little excitement going, I love doing that.”

More: The A-B-C’s of Austin’s NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament games

Article continues below this ad

Preston got her feet wet during the 2025 NCAA Tournament with a 12-point performance off the bench that saved the Longhorns from a Sweet 16 setback against Tennessee. One year later, Harmon said that “I think we’re going to really need Bry in this tournament as well.”

“I’m in that mode,” Preston said. “I gotta bring it every day. Some people might be having off nights and things like that, but I gotta make sure I bring it every night. I’m telling myself, I can’t afford (to not be ready). I gotta be ready when Coach calls me. Just having that mindset, it keeps me prepared.”