Freshman forward Madison Booker led No. 5 Texas women’s basketball to an 82-66 road win over Houston. The victory marked head coach Vic Schaefer’s 400th career win.
“I’ve had really good players, lots of really good assistant coaches,” Schaefer said. “I’ve had a couple of really good administrations that supported our kids and program.”
Before coming to Texas in 2020, Schaefer was the head coach of the Mississippi State Bulldogs for eight years, leading the team to two NCAA championship games. Schaefer met his now right-hand Booker, originally from Ridgeland, MS, during his time there. The head coach is one of 60 active Division I coaches to reach this mark.
Booker had 23 points at Fertitta Center in Houston after being named to the Naismith Trophy Women’s Player of the Year Midseason Team. She is the only Texas player and one of three true freshmen who made the 30-player list. The matchup was her 15th consecutive game scoring in double figures and eighth with 20 or more points.
Despite having said she feels more comfortable on the wing, Booker has been thriving as a point guard.
“[Madison] got thrown into the point guard role right when conference play started and she has stepped up in such a big way,” Schaefer said. “It is hard enough for a freshman to learn one position, but then be thrown into another position, and the point guard has to know all the other positions too. She works so hard and is so humble. From a skillset position and having to run a team she is special and is doing it in challenging circumstances.”
Booker opened the scoreboard for the evening, to put Texas ahead. The Longhorns held the lead throughout the entire first quarter, but the Cougars stayed close. With two minutes left in the quarter, Houston graduate guard Britney Onyeje tied the game for the first time at 13-13. Texas led again heading into the second quarter, but Houston managed to keep up until Texas junior forward DeYona Gaston scored back-to-back two-pointers in the paint with six minutes left in the first half. After that, Texas went on a 15-0 run and left no room for a Houston comeback.
“In the last six minutes we stopped sharing the basketball,” Houston head coach Ronald Hughey said. “(We) stopped attacking like we needed to.”
Gaston started the game on the bench, but in her 25 minutes of playing time, she dominated on both ends of the court. The forward had 21 points and eight rebounds at the end of the night in her Houston homecoming. Both Gaston and Booker had a 100% free-throw conversion percentage.
Texas is now 10-3 in Big 12 play and sits in second place behind Oklahoma. The Longhorns will attempt to climb up the ranks as they host Iowa State and Texas Tech at Moody Center on Feb. 17 and 21 ahead of the Big 12 Championship in Kansas City beginning on March 7.
