Following the win over Alabama on March 1, Texas women’s basketball head coach Vic Schaefer referred to the upcoming Southeastern Conference Tournament as the “hardest conference tournament there is in the country.”
At first thought, that may seem like a cliché from someone who has spent more than a decade as a head coach and almost a decade more as an assistant in the league. However, Schaefer’s sentiment is backed up statistically.
The SEC sits atop the NCAA Evaluation Tool rankings, while also boasting the nation’s most inclusions to Monday’s edition of the AP Poll Top 25. ESPN’s most recent Bracketology projects the SEC as an 11-bid conference.
Most, if not all, games in SEC play serve as a postseason-preparing test. The conference tournament marks another chance for the Longhorns to evaluate themselves against some of the top programs in the nation ahead of the NCAA Tournament.
Texas’ SEC Tournament path
Schaefer’s team enters the SEC Tournament as the No. 3 seed after being tied with Vanderbilt at a 13–3 league record, but falling below the Commodores due to their head-to-head matchup.
As a top-four seed, the Longhorns receive a double bye. Their first contest is the quarterfinals on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CT. They will face the winner between Tennessee and Alabama or Missouri.
With a win, Texas would enter a semifinal matchup against Vanderbilt or one of Ole Miss, Texas A&M or Auburn at 6 p.m. CT on Saturday. After the lopsided defeat in Nashville last month, Texas’ potential semifinal rematch versus the Commodores in a neutral location could serve as a measure of the Longhorns’ development since their last loss.
It could also have crucial implications for NCAA Tournament seeding. In the NCAA’s Top 16 reveal from March 1, Texas ranked as the final No. 1 seed, with Vanderbilt right behind as the top No. 2 seed.
A redeeming victory there would lead to a possible trilogy against South Carolina or LSU, who sit as the league’s No. 1 and 4 seeds, respectively, on the opposite side of the bracket. The SEC Tournament Championship is set for 2 p.m. CT on Sunday.
An SEC title could mean Texas positions itself for a Sweet 16 and Elite Eight draw in Fort Worth rather than Sacramento, California, if reached. With much left to be determined as of now, however, that outcome is a distant possibility.
Schaefer’s perspective on tournament location
Since 2023, Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina, has been the recurring host of the annual SEC Tournament. It will continue through at least 2028, per an Oct. 2024 SEC announcement.
Bon Secours Wellness Arena is just over 100 miles away from the South Carolina campus in Columbia. While it is inaccurate to say that the Gamecocks have won the past three SEC championships as a result — they’ve followed up with a Final Four appearance each time — the location does allow them to field a greater home court advantage.
Schaefer acknowledged this reality that his team may face.
“Greenville does such a great job, and they obviously bid on it, and it’s about money,” Schaefer said on Feb. 26. “At the end of the day, our kids are the ones that suffer from that, because if you get into a game where you’ve got to play (South Carolina) … they’re always going to have way more people than you’re going to have.”
In the case that the Longhorns do reach the championship game and face South Carolina, unfavorable surroundings are an undeniable factor to consider. But playing with a target on its back is nothing new for Schaefer’s team.
