Texas rolls past Michigan in Fort Worth to book return trip to women\u2019s Final Four<\/p>\n
Published 11:55 pm Monday, March 30, 2026<\/p>\n
FORT WORTH \u2014 Texas cruised through the first three rounds of the NCAA Tournament to return to the Elite Eight for a third straight year in front of a crowd full of burnt orange at Dickies Arena.<\/p>\n
The Longhorns thought maybe, finally, they\u2019d face a bump in the road against a skilled Michigan team while seeking to reach their second consecutive Final Four.<\/p>\n
But Monday evening, Texas showed just how dominant it has been, taking down Michigan 77-41 and riding a lights-out start to the finish. The Longhorns\u2019 average margin of victory through four tournament games now sits at 35.5 points.<\/p>\n
With the win, the Longhorns reached consecutive Final Fours for the first time since 1986-87 when Jody Conradt led Texas to its lone national title the first of those years. Texas will face fellow 1-seed UCLA Friday in Phoenix.<\/p>\n
All season long, the four 1-seeds have been, by far, better than the rest. With a South Carolina win over TCU later Monday night, those four teams would get to duke it out for the national title.<\/p>\n
Texas looked like the better team from the start Monday and jumped out to a lead from which Michigan could never recover. Texas took an 18-4 lead in the first quarter, starting 9 for 9 from the field, while Michigan started 1 for 7.<\/p>\n
Texas missed just one field goal in the first quarter, emerging with a 22-9 lead.<\/p>\n
Michigan put up a better fight in the second quarter but could never make up enough ground to close the sizable Texas advantage. Any time the Wolverines went on a run, Madison Booker answered. Texas\u2019 leading scorer led the Longhorns again with 19 points on 8-of-13 shooting and seven rebounds.<\/p>\n
In the second half, her fellow post players took over. The Longhorns capitalized on their size inside, outscoring Michigan 36-18 in the paint and finishing with a 49-32 advantage on the boards.<\/p>\n
Booker, Kyla Oldacre, Justice Carlton and Breya Cunningham combined for a 15-2 run late in the third quarter to put Texas up 28 points. The lead grew to 40 points in the fourth quarter. All four post players finished in double figures.<\/p>\n
Texas\u2019 guards weren\u2019t as productive. Rori Harmon and Jordan Lee combined for just 11 points, despite averaging 22. Lee shot just 2 of 17 from the field and 0 of 8 from 3-point range. Texas started 0 of 9 from 3-point range before making its first midway through the third quarter. Harmon, however, had 13 assists and just three turnovers.<\/p>\n
Olivia Olson and Mila Holloway led Michigan with 11 points each. The Wolverines shot just 22.8% from the field and 13.3% from 3-point range.<\/p>\n
Texas and its next opponent, UCLA, both suffered heartbreaking blowouts in the Final Four last year. The Bruins lost 85-51 to UConn, while Texas lost 74-57 to South Carolina.<\/p>\n
This time around, one will advance a round further and might even get a chance at revenge depending on whom its national championship opponent will be.<\/p>\n
____<\/p>\n
\u00a92026 The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.<\/p>\n
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