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Defense paces Texas past TCU, South Carolina awaits in Final Four

by:Josh Florey•03/31/25
Vic Schaefer
Vic Schaefer (Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images)

Texas defeated TCU 58-47 to advance to their first Final Four since 2003. Texas has made it to the Elite Eight in 4 of the last 5 years, but has yet to advance past that point—until now.

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Defense wins championships…

The Horns forced 21 turnovers, holding the Horned Frogs to just 47 points. Texas turned the Horned Frogs’ turnovers into 17 points, almost a third of the Horns’ 58 points. A huge momentum shift in the game came when Kyla Oldacre stole an inbound pass and took it all the way from halfcourt for an and-1 basket.

Texas held one of the nation’s top 3-point shooting teams to just 20% (4-20) from deep and 26.7% (12-45) overall, shutting down their offense. The full court pressure, especially early in the game, never allowed TCU to get into any rhythm, and the aggressive on-ball pressure of Rori Harmon slowed down star player Hailey Van Lith just enough for Texas to win.

Offense did just enough

Madison Booker once again led Texas in scoring, with 18 points. However, she only scored 4 in the first half, struggling from the floor until later in the game. In the first half, Harmon was the main offensive piece for the Longhorns, scoring 7 of their first 9 points. She ended the game with 13 points and 5 assists. The two bigs, Taylor Jones and Kyla Oldacre, both played very solid, giving 7 and 9 points respectively. 

What’s next?

Texas will play South Carolina for the fourth time this season, this time for the chance to advance to the National Championship game. The Longhorns won their matchup in Austin, but lost both the game in Columbus and the SEC Championship.

If you could critique anything from the win tonight, it would be that the Horns gave up too many offensive rebounds, 11, and gave up too many open 3-pointers. TCU might not have been able to take full advantage, but South Carolina definitely will.

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But in the meantime, it is still a huge win for the Horns, for the team, and for the program. This Texas team can beat anyone in the nation, and is right on the cusp of a national title. 

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