GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) — Madison Booker scored 18 points as No. 4 Texas sprinted to a 14-0 lead and beat three-time defending champion and third-ranked South Carolina 78-61 on Sunday to win its first Southeastern Conference Tournament title.
Booker was named MVP of the tournament. Justice Carlton added 15 points and Jordan Lee had 12 for the Longhorns (31-3), who joined the SEC in 2024.
Texas shot 57% from the field to avenge last year’s 19-point loss
to the Gamecocks in the championship game.
Joyce Edwards had 13 points for the Gamecocks (31-3), who had their 12-game win streak snapped.
The powerhouse programs split two tightly contested meetings earlier this season, with the Longhorns winning 66-64 at a neutral site in November and the Gamecocks earning a measure of revenge with a 68-65 win on their home floor in January.
This one was never close.
Texas made its first seven shots and led 14-0 after five early South Carolina turnovers before Tessa Johnson finally hit a 3 to get the Gamecocks on the board.
Carlton outscored South Carolina by herself in the first quarter, finishing with 13 points as Texas built a 27-12 lead by shooting 68% from the field. With a large South Carolina crowd on hand, the Longhorns didn't let up, pushing the lead to 17 at the break — the largest halftime deficit in the SEC Tournament for South Carolina under coach Dawn Staley.
South Carolina managed to get within 11 with 5:22 left, but Lee answered with a 3 and later pushed the lead to 16 with a driving layup with two minutes left. Booker then sealed the Longhorns' eighth straight win with a jumper.
The Gamecocks finished 12 of 23 from the free-throw line.
Both teams are expected to be No. 1 seeds in the women's NCAA Tournament.
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https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball
