Texas women’s basketball represented the United States on the international stage at the 2025 GLOBL JAM in Toronto, Canada, earlier this month.
A top under-23 tournament, the women’s side consisted of the Canadian, Brazilian and Puerto Rican national teams in addition to the Longhorns. Texas went 3–1 in Toronto, finishing undefeated in round robin play before falling short against host Canada in the final.
While the week concluded in defeat, head coach Vic Schaefer explained how the trip contributed to team chemistry off the court by allowing the Longhorns to spend an extended period of time together.
“That’s one of the things we talked about in the locker room after the game, talking about our relationships with each other and motivating each other and having each other’s backs, being a good teammate,” Schaefer said in an interview. “I feel like that’s something a trip like this really allows you to work on.”
GLOBL JAM was just the beginning of camaraderie-building for the 2025-26 team.
On the court, the Longhorns took on Puerto Rico to open their tournament, making their presence felt immediately with an 85-45 victory. Texas forced its opposition to shoot 16-of-57 from the field and caused 34 turnovers that converted into 36 points for the Longhorns. Slightly over half of Texas’ scoring came from its bench.
Before exiting the game with an injury that kept her out for the remainder of the tournament, senior center Kyla Oldacre tallied 17 points and 11 rebounds in just under nine minutes. Head coach Vic Schaefer spoke about her absence following the Canada loss.
“I’m proud of our team just because when we lost Kyla, it really affected some of our rotations at 4, 5 and made me play some kids at five that don’t know the plays,” Schaefer said. “I think it’s a growing experience for all of us.”
The four newcomers to the roster – freshman guard Aaliyah Crump and transfers senior guard Ashton Judd (Missouri), power forward Breya Cunningham (Arizona) and senior forward Teya Sidberry (Utah and Boston College) – all saw good minutes for the Longhorns in their first action wearing the burnt orange. Cunningham especially had to step up without Oldacre available.
The team followed its blowout of Puerto Rico with a 70-61 win over Canada on Aug. 14, leading for 39 minutes and 22 seconds of game time. While the Canadians pulled within seven with two and a half minutes to play, the Longhorns held on to their lead behind the strong full-team effort.
After a day break, Texas returned with a dominant 90-54 performance against Brazil. Starting guards graduate Rori Harmon and sophomore Bryanna Preston combined for 14 assists, with Preston also leading in scoring with 22 points on 9-of-14 shooting.
On Aug. 17, Texas matched up once again against Canada, which unlike earlier in the week, overcame a halftime deficit to defeat Texas 72-65.
Texas went 3-for-15 from behind the arc, while Canada shot 7-for-21. The Longhorns struggled from three across the tournament, shooting 26%, compared to their 30.1% last season.
“Give Canada credit, I thought they played really well tonight … We were undisciplined, we had numerous breakdowns and they made us pay,” Schaefer said postgame.
Facing Canada, whom Schaefer pointed out as “obviously very talented,” twice in an away environment can prove to be a valuable experience for the team moving forward.
Months away from the season opener, the Longhorns have time to get on the same page ahead of their second run in the Southeastern Conference.
“We’ll grow, we’ll learn from it,” Schaefer said.
