What Vic Schaefer said about Texas facing South Carolina in SEC Tournament final
South Carolina will face Texas in the championship game of the SEC Tournament on Sunday.
The No. 2 seeded Longhorns advanced Saturday evening after beating No. 3 LSU 56-49 in the semifinals and will now face the No. 1 seed Gamecocks. South Carolina advanced to the SEC Tournament title game after beating No. 5 seed Oklahoma 93-75 on Saturday.
What channel is the South Carolina-Texas game on?
- Who: No. 1 South Carolina vs. Texas
- When: 3 p.m. Sunday
- Where: Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC
- TV Network: ESPN
- Stream: ESPN+ and the ESPN app
- Radio: 107.5 FM in the Columbia area
Series history vs Texas
South Carolina and Texas started the season as relative strangers but have really gotten to know one another.
The Gamecocks and Longhorns had played just four times before playing twice this season.
South Carolina won the first matchup in Columbia 67-50 in early January. Texas then won the second matchup of the season 66-62 in Austin last month.
After splitting the season series, both South Carolina and Texas finished 15-1 in SEC play this year, leading to an infamous coin flip to break their tie. The Gamecocks won the toss, giving them the No. 1 seed and the Longhorns the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament.
Sunday will be South Carolina and Texas’ third matchup of the season.
What Vic Schaefer said about facing South Carolina
Despite this being Texas’ first appearance in the SEC Tournament championship game, this isn’t VIc Schaefer’s first rodeo. Schaefer took Mississippi State to the conference title game five times in his eight years at the SEC school in Starkville.
Schaefer-led Mississippi State teams played South Carolina in the SEC Tournament finals four times. The Gamecocks won each matchup.
“I’ve been in that game a lot and against that team a lot,” Schaefer said. “They’re gonna have the crowd. It’s a home game for them. We have a strong contingent of Longhorn fans here, which I appreciate.”
Schaefer said he is considering skipping shoot-around Sunday morning, something that doesn’t happen often, to make sure his team is well-rested for the SEC title game. He said daylights saving time is playing a factor in that decision.
“If you don’t have your physical body tomorrow, your frame and your well-being (Sunday), then you’ve got no chance against South Carolina,” Schaefer said. “I’ve learned that over the course of time.”
Schaefer acknowledged the championship bout is essentially a home game for South Carolina but is more focused on the game itself than how the atmosphere will be.
“You’re playing a great team,” Schaefer said. “They’ve been number one this year, they’ve been number one last year, they’ve been number (the) one year before. So they’re obviously a really good team. We know what happened the first time. We know what it took the second time to compete and win that game. So I do believe that our kids understand that. We’re way different than we were back that first time we played in Columbia. So it’s a great opportunity. It’s how I look at it.”
Opposing player to watch
Texas has a roster chock full of talent, but Madison Booker stands out in the crowd.
Booker was named the SEC Player of the Year and to the All-SEC First Team. She leads Texas with 16.1 points per game.
During her freshman campaign last year, Booker was named the Big 12 Rookie of the Year was an All-Big 12 player.
Booker scored just seven points against South Carolina in the teams first matchup this season, but scored 20 against the Gamecocks in Austin. Booker scored 25 points in Texas’ win over LSU on Saturday.
Gamecocks’ SEC Tournament history
The Gamecocks have won eight SEC Tournament titles in program history, all of which have come in the last 10 years under coach Dawn Staley.
South Carolina has an overall record of 36-25 in the SEC Tournament since the Gamecocks joined the conference in the 1991-92 season. Staley has a 33-8 record in the SEC Tournament as head coach at USC.
The Gamecocks are 17-1 in SEC Tournament games played in Greenville dating back to 2017, making Bon Secours Wellness Arena a home away from home of sorts. USC’s sole loss in that span came in the 2019 SEC quarterfinals against Arkansas.
This story was originally published March 8, 2025 at 9:23 PM with the headline "What Vic Schaefer said about Texas facing South Carolina in SEC Tournament final."
