SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE WOMEN'S BASKETBALL TOURNAMENT

March 6, 2026

Vic Schaefer

Madison Booker

Jordan Lee

Bon Secours Wellness Arena

Texas Longhorns

Postgame Press Conference

Texas 83, Alabama 60

THE MODERATOR: We're joined by Texas head coach Vic Schaefer and student-athletes Madison Booker and Jordan Lee. We'll begin with an opening statement for Coach, take questions for the student-athletes, and then take questions for Coach.

VIC SCHAEFER: First, I'm just really proud of my team. I want to congratulate Kristy and Alabama. I just think they're so good. We've had two really tough games with them. I'm sure catching them on Day 3 of three in a row, they had such a great victory last night.

I'm proud of my kids. I thought we played really well the first half. I thought we were really locked in. I liked our focus and especially defensively. We really did a nice job.

Offensively, we executed some really good stuff. Some kids made some big shots. I thought our execution was really good. I think we had two turnovers in the second quarter after six in the first. But we shot a pretty good number in the first half and held them to about 28 percent.

So it was a really good first half for us. Typical of young kids and teams. It's hard to keep your foot on the pedal, and we had a hard time doing that in the second half with everybody. It wasn't just our bench. It was our starters too.

But, again, we knew Alabama would continue to fight, and so, again, we'll take the victory and give God the glory for win number 29. Again, get ready to play tomorrow against obviously a really hot Mississippi team, playing really well. Coach Yo has them playing at a very high level, and we'll have to be ready to go.

Again, proud of my kids. Thought they were really good tonight. That first half is about as good as we can play on both ends. Again, I think that's what happens when you're focused and you've kind of eliminated some distractions.

THE MODERATOR: Questions for the student-athletes.

Q. Maddie, I was wondering what your impressions of Bryanna Preston, her growth over this year as a floor general and as a teammate.

MADISON BOOKER: Yeah, I think, you know, Bry as a person, you know, as a player also, she's amazing. Like on-and-off-court energy, it spreads throughout the team. In practice, her vibes, it definitely helps us have a great practice and have energy and also have fun on the court too.

Bry has just been ready for her name to be called. She's always ready on the court and always go out there and have fun and play with her teammates and get the teammates open and run the team. It tells you about the person she is, the type of player she is. Yeah, it's been fun to have her as a teammate this year.

Q. Jordan, I think over the last couple of months, we've gotten to talk to your teammates a lot about your confidence and kind of whether it's wavered and stuff like that. We really haven't gotten to talk to you a lot. So has your confidence wavered at all this season? Where are you at after these last few games?

JORDAN LEE: Not at all, actually. I'm really excited for March. I think watching a lot of game film throughout SEC, I wanted to do a lot of things better going forward, finishing out the season, it being underwhelming to my standards, the way I shot the ball.

That being my mindset going forward, knowing I always have more in me, and at the end of the day wanting to do whatever it takes to put my team in the best position to be successful. So no confidence waver. I stay consistent.

People like Maddie and Bry are just in my ear constantly about things that I could do better, that I'm a shooter, whatever it takes kind of in practice and during the game. They're always a big help, and it's incredibly fun when you're playing with teammates like them.

Q. As a follow-up, did you notice anything wrong with your game? Was there something you just didn't like that you were doing incorrectly? What was kind of the difference in these last few games, as opposed to kind of your swoon?

JORDAN LEE: I don't know, it was pretty frustrating, to say the least. Coach talks about you get out what you put in. Like I mentioned, making sure I'm level-headed, watching film, staying in the gym. At the end of the day, you'll miss more shots than you make. If I maintain a certain level of confidence, the ball's got to go in at some point.

Q. Maddie, I'm not sure the last time was you got to sit out over 17 minutes in the second half. What were you doing on the bench? How good was it to get rest and not have to play a lot in the second half?

MADISON BOOKER: I mean, definitely just hyping up my teammates. I would say definitely a target for us, which was Aaliyah Crump, honestly, just making sure that she was out of her head and just ready for her name to be called and just go out there and perform.

But it's everybody too. It was Bry. It was Rori when she was on the court, Jordan when she was on the court, Ashton. Just the whole team, honestly, making sure I'm being vocal on the bench, a leader for the team. Keep having that mindset where you make a mistake, it's the next play. Don't dwell on the past; we've still got more game ahead of us.

Just kind of be in their ear, keeping the vibes positive, basically.

I mean, yeah, we just have -- it's more game. We're not done yet. We're trying to make it to the end if possible. I think everybody getting some minutes and their feet wet here at the tournament is a good starting point.

Q. The combination tomorrow, the crowd and the four teams that will be here, how cool is it going to be to pull up and come into the gym and play in the doubleheader?

JORDAN LEE: It's fantastic. The SEC is amazing top to bottom, players and coaches. It's amazing to be in the second day, third day. We have a lot of respect for our opponents, what they do year in, year out. Scout them and be ready in a day's turnaround is a challenge, but incredibly fun for this team for sure.

THE MODERATOR: Ladies, thank you very much.

We'll take questions for Coach.

Q. Hi, Coach. Like I asked Maddie, overall impressions of Bryanna Preston tonight and her growth.

VIC SCHAEFER: She's been practicing well. Really felt like she's ready to kind of get back to doing what I've kind of felt like she could do all year long. An injury set her back, and it's taken a while. I think the thing that's impressed me the most here in the last week is when you're waiting, you've got to work while you wait.

A lot of players won't. They won't work while they're waiting. They're just mad or they just think they deserve this or this. And they don't work while they wait.

Bry has had a good, good, solid week, week and a half of practice. I thought tonight she played well offensively. She knows defensively she's probably got some things she can do a little bit better. Offensively, I thought she brought a lot to the table, obviously making the two 3s is something.

But, again, I've seen her make them in practice here in the last week and a half, two weeks. A lot of confidence in Bry. She's a great kid, and, again, it's been fun to watch her work in practice and play well in practice and take it to the floor tonight and play well.

There's nobody on the planet happier than I am to see her have success.

Q. If I could peek ahead real quick to tomorrow, Coach Yo obviously loves playing solid defense, and it seems like she has the team right now playing at a really high level. What's the challenge on such short rest? Obviously, you're very familiar with them in preparing for a team playing defense at a high level right now.

VIC SCHAEFER: We haven't played them in two months. We played them back on January 3rd. So it's been a minute. I just think when you look at her team and how they're playing here in the last couple, two or three games, they're really back to doing what she wants them to do defensively.

So you've got to be ready to match that intensity, take care of the ball on offense, and you've got to be able to attack them. You can't get on your heels. They are a tough, physical basketball team. You better bring the wood when you're coming to play them because they're bringing the wood.

That stick they're bringing is a big stick so we better bring our big stick with us. Again, we had a knock-down, drag-out with them earlier in the year. They've got one of the best players in the country in Cotie, who is a great offensive player. Tasha is playing really well for them right now. So we'll have our hands full tomorrow, no doubt about it.

But first thing we better bring is a little bit of a competitive spirit with us because that's what they -- I mean, they came out tonight. That's a really good Vanderbilt team, and they got them on their heels, and I don't know that they ever recovered, at least while I was watching them.

Q. Vic, while Jordan was working her way through her struggles this season, why did you not lose confidence in her as a player?

VIC SCHAEFER: Why did I lose? Not lose. Well, again, I think the biggest thing, she struggled for a long time. Most of January and half of February. But I think, again, like she said, you stay in the gym, you keep working.

I saw her in the gym every day. I saw the ball going in so I had a lot of confidence that she could get it fixed. We've got that machine in our gym that spits out arcs on shots. So it's really -- you get feedback right away on every shot. Her shot was flat there for about a month and a half.

So it's real easy to fix your shot. And so she got in there, and we spent some time. She spent some time getting up shots. Again, the kid's a confident kid. So between her and Aaliyah Crump, you get Crump back from injury, well, Crump comes back and has some good ball games for us shooting the ball. So we've got some good competition right now.

Now Bry's in that mix getting to play a little bit off the ball too. So competition will kind of get things right a lot of times. So, again, I think all those kids work. They spend time on their craft. It's good to see them come out and have some success.

Q. Vic, do you think with what happened with Vanderbilt today, and you guys winning, that you still have work to do to secure that No. 1 seed, or do you think today did it?

VIC SCHAEFER: I don't know what else we could possibly do, Danny, even before today. We've beaten more top 25s than anybody in the country. We've got two wins over two top 5s on neutral floors. Neutral floors. Not on my home floor. I played them and beat them on two neutral floors or the same neutral floor, and I lost to one of them by one possession.

I just don't know what else. If the thing is you've got to play a good nonconference schedule to go with your conference schedule, who else has done what we've done? Who else has played the schedule we've played and had the success we've had? I don't know what else we need to do.

I've been thinking to myself, how could we be even considered not in the top four in the country, knowing who we've played and who we've beaten? I mean, I don't understand that line of thinking.

Everything we're told is strength of schedule and playing people and all that. We went and played a schedule. We played the best schedule in the country when it comes to top 25s, and we won. So I don't know what else we could possibly do. But at the end of the day, all I can control is the next game, and that's Mississippi tomorrow. So we'll get ready for them.

Again, I like my team. We play like we played tonight, especially that first half, I'm gonna like 'em a lot, and they're gonna play for a while. We've got to get ready for tomorrow because we've got our work cut out for us.

THE MODERATOR: Coach, thank you for your time.

VIC SCHAEFER: All right. Praise the Lord and hook 'em horns. Thank y'all.