Texas’ Schaefer knows how to win in March

AUSTIN, Texas — Vic Schaefer built a powerhouse basketball program at Mississippi State that twice came achingly close to winning a national championship.

Then he moved home to Texas to try to build another.

His first season at Texas has Schaefer’s Longhorns riding into the NCAA Tournament as the No. 6-seed in the Hemisfair Regional, where they will play No. 11 Bradley in the first round Monday in San Marcos, Texas. Leading the way is junior center Charli Collier, who averages 20.1 points and 11.7 rebounds and is projected as a potential No. 1 pick in the NBA draft. Collier has already announced she’ll turn pro after the tournament.

“I love this team,” Schaefer said. “Once we hit March, we have to find a way to get hot ... The key to these tournaments, you’ve got to get hot.”

Schaefer’s Mississippi State teams used to sizzle this time of year.

In 2017, they ended UConn’s 111-game win streak and made it to the national title game before losing to South Carolina, the top-seed in the Hemisfair Regional this season. They returned to the title game a year later, losing to Notre Dame on 3-pointer on a last-second 3-pointer. Things were humming in Starkville, but the call from Texas lured Schaefer to the city where he was born and the state that launched his coaching career. He now lives just a short drive away from where his sister is and his parents are buried.

Texas (18-9) wasn’t a moribund program before he arrived, it just wasn’t living up to expectations. The Longhorns were just stuck far behind Baylor in the Big 12 and hadn’t maintained the momentum of an Elite Eight appearance in 2016. The last tournament appearance in 2019 was a firstround exit. Karen Aston’s contract expired and Texas handed Schaefer a 7-year guaranteed contract worth $13.8 million.

Schaefer brought Texas an unmatched attention to detail, whether drawing up plays or making sure the team practices with the correct brand of basketball depending on the opponent or tournament. Wilson is the official ball of the NCAA Tournament.

“I’ll coach it all. I’ll coach the pregame meal. I’ll coach the getting on the bus if I have to,” Schaefer said.