Picking up steam
Longhorns shun skeptics on way to upset, Elite Eight date
AUSTIN — Apparently, Kyra Lambert and her teammates won Drake some money Sunday night.
See, Champagne Papi wagered on Texas upsetting Maryland in the Sweet 16. Call it a lucrative hunch. And the sixth-seeded Longhorns delivered, clamping the second-seeded Terrapins' rollicking offense in a 64-61 win at San Antonio's Alamodome.
In the afterglow of “their” win, Drake posted an Instagram story of the Longhorns celebrating on ESPN, signing off with: “Hook 'em! Great game, ladies. Incredible game.”
“My teammates were excited,” Lambert said Monday, chuckling over the new bandwagon
fan’s victorious bet. “I mean, that’s something special. I think everybody loves Drake.
“You know, a lot of people didn’t pick us. But we picked ourselves.”
Few picked Texas to upset Maryland in the Hemisfair Regional semifinals. Fewer believed the Terps’ offense, which led the nation in scoring and hung 198 points on its first two NCAA Tournament opponents, could be muzzled in such impressive fashion.
The Longhorns didn’t do anything fancy or revolutionary to hold Maryland to a season-low scoring performance on 40 percent shooting with just five 3s. Coach Vic Schaefer and his staff trained this team to become like shadows to their individual matchups, and over the past couple months they’ve fully bought into — and achieved the Olympiclevel conditioning necessary for — defending one-onone, often across the length of the court.
That’s the biggest reason Texas (21-9) has been able to overcome a shaky offense and reach the Elite Eight for the first time since 2016 and just the third time since the field expanded to 64 teams in 1994. And that crankedup defense just might be the great equalizer against No. 1 seed South Carolina (25-4) when the teams meet in the region final Tuesday at the Alamodome.
“I mean, where we are today compared to where we were, you know, six weeks ago, is really remarkable,” Schaefer said Monday, eyes a bit dreary after a late night. “You have to give the kids credit for buying in. Because that’s what you’re seeing.”
UT looked to be on the verge of shattering a few minutes into Sunday’s game. By the 5:30 mark of the opening quarter, Maryland led 13-2 and threatened to teach Schaefer’s Longhorns a long, painful lesson.
But over the next 35 minutes, the Longhorns reshaped the game into a more meandering mud fight, mitigating the Terps’ high-octane attack with a more favorable tempo. And not once, even after tumbling into that early hole, did Texas question whether it could do something that hasn’t been done often around these parts.
“It’s something special to watch,” Lambert said. “But to be in it, to be in those hurdles, to look at my teammates’ eyes and say, ‘Hey, we got this.’ There was a point in the game yesterday where I look in Jo’s eyes ( Joanne Allen-taylor), I look in Charli’s eyes (Charli Collier), Celeste (Taylor), Lauren (Ebo), Audrey (Warren). And there’s nothing but belief in this team. There’s nothing but fight in this team.”
“It’s something special to watch,” Lambert said. “But to be in it, to be in those hurdles, to look at my teammates eyes and say, ‘Hey, we got this.’ There was a point in the game (Sunday) where I look in Jo’s eyes, I look in Charli’s eyes, Celeste, Lauren, Audrey. And there’s nothing but belief in this team, there’s nothing but fight in this team.”
No rest for the weary in San Antonio, though.
A team that survived tilts with No. 11 seed Bradley, No. 3 seed UCLA and No. 2 seed Maryland now gets a date with coach Dawn Staley’s South Carolina powerhouse.
The Gamecocks haven’t been pushed much in this tournament, winning all three games by at least 11 points. They’re led by 6foot-5 sophomore forward Aaliyah Boston, the nation’s only dual finalist for the Naismith trophy and Naismith defensive player of the year award. And she could have some colossal clashes with Texas’ 6-5 centerpiece Charli Collier.
“Those are two of the premier players in the country, regardless of position,” Schaefer said. “I’m glad I’ve got Charli on my team. And we’ll give her some good advice on trying to deal with Aaliyah cause she’s obviously very special.”
This Texas team, Schaefer’s first, feels special, too. And it is, in a sense, considering the Longhorns have been this close to the Final Four only twice in the past three decades.
Even the personal stories have a tinge of that “March Madness” sparkle.
Lambert overcame three knee surgeries to return home — she starred at Steele and Clemens what seems like a lifetime ago — and play her most sublime basketball inside the 210. Junior guard Joanne Allen-taylor matured from bench warmer to long-range gunslinger, nearly tripling her scoring average from a season ago. Sophomore Celeste Taylor has blossomed into a twoway menace. Junior Audrey Warren is a charge-taking, floor-crashing cult hero.
And Collier, of course, is likely the WNBA’S next No. 1 pick.
“He always preaches that we’re good enough, we’re good enough, we’re good enough,” Taylor said. “And we believe it.”
Schaefer never had much success against Staley’s Gamecocks in his eight years at Mississippi State. South Carolina led that series 12-3 during Schaefer’s tenure, with wins in the 2017 NCAA championship game and there different SEC tournament finals.
But not many expected Texas to be one of eight