The 57-game winning streak is over. It was supposed to be a cakewalk for the No. 2 South Carolina Gamecocks. The betting experts had all but guaranteed a Gamecocks victory, with odds heavily stacked in their favor! Even Coach Dawn Staley seemed confident, her game plan honed to perfection- especially when it came to the Texas Longhorns Forward Madison Booker. But there was one variable she hadn’t considered: Booker’s determination to prove her wrong in her own “mental” games.

The Gamecocks had last dropped a regular-season SEC game on December 30, 2021! The No. 2 team (22-2, 10-1) suffered their first conference loss of the season, falling 66-62 to No. 6 Texas in the Moody Center in Austin. Madison Booker, who had disappointed in the Longhorns’ 50-67 loss to South Carolina earlier in January, scoring just seven points, was on a mission to redeem herself.

In their previous matchup, Bree Hall had been the thorn in Madison Booker’s side. Hall had done her homework, meticulously studying Booker’s highlights, analyzing her movements, and preparing for the ultimate test: guarding the sophomore star. And she had passed with flying colors, never allowing Booker to find her rhythm in Colonial Life Arena, forcing her into difficult shots and face-guarding her.

Determined to prove that Bree Hall’s strategies wouldn’t work again, Madison Booker came into their rematch fiercely determined. And when the dust settled, she proudly declared her triumph, screaming, “She can’t f—–g guard me,” as she walked Bree Hall down.

Despite being restricted to 7 of 22 from the field, Madison Booker stole the show with 20 points, outpacing Senior Guard Bree Hall’s defensive efforts when it mattered the most. The Longhorns exploited their height advantage, as they effortlessly passed over South Carolina defenders to create scoring opportunities. Since Hall was locked in on Booker, this limited South Carolina’s ability to double-team Texas’s forwards in the paint.

Booker credited her team’s strong mindset for the win, saying, “It’s a mental game… that’s all I got to say.” This comment seemed like a subtle jab at Staley’s earlier remarks, who had attempted to get inside Booker’s head.

During an interaction with the media, Coach Dawn Staley shared her unfiltered thoughts on Madison Booker’s game, saying, “No, bad game, she played a bad game. What’s the approach with that? Same, I mean, you got to make her uncomfortable. You got to get her to think about maybe second-guessing some shots, but she really doesn’t.” 

Staley’s blunt remarks came right before Booker’s impressive milestone- surpassing 1,000 points for Texas in a mere 60 games. There’s no denying the impressiveness of her achievement, but it seems Staley was unconvinced.

She continued, “I mean, all of her shots—some of them were defended, some of them were not defended. But you just got to break up the cadence and disrupt the flow of how she wants to play the game. Because if you allow her to just go at the you speed that she likes to go at and shoot in the same cadence that she practices in an empty gym, she’s going to beat you every time.”

For Booker, the challenge was to respond, and, oh, did she deliver!

“Toughness,” Booker said. “Last time, we got out-toughed. This time, we out-toughed them.” Indeed. Yet, we cannot miss the fact that the South Carolina Gamecocks made some pretty questionable decisions.

Who expected this from the Moneyline favorites?

Be it FanDuel or DraftKings, the Gamecocks remain the Moneyline favorites. Hence, it was shocking for some to see them struggle and miss out on so many opportunities in the game with the Texas Longhorns. The game was tied at 49-49 as the fourth quarter got underway, setting the stage for a thrilling conclusion. However, Texas quickly gained momentum, with Kyla Oldacre and Madison Booker scoring back-to-back buckets to put their team up by two possessions.

The Gamecocks were unable to regain the lead, and their best chance at a comeback slipped away when MiLaysia Fulwiley and Bree Hall mishandled a two-on-one break. Oldacre’s impressive performance continued, as she scored consecutive layups to put Texas back up by five, finishing with 13 points and six rebounds.

In the end, South Carolina’s Tessa Johnson missed her attempt, and Texas secured the rebound to seal the deal, then subsequently scoring two free throws to record a 66-62 win.

Notably, Coach Dawn Staley’s decision to bench forwards Chloe Kitts and Joyce Edwards for the entire fourth quarter raised eyebrows. When questioned, Dawn Staley explained, “Sania is the only one that can guard her (Kyla Oldacre). Like halfway, we give up too much when Chloe or Joyce are on her. We could have tried Adhel (Tac) but they’re just not experienced enough. She’s a very experienced post player. I thought she brought it all home for them.”

Well, the Longhorns entered with an underdog mentality and proved that on any given day, even the mighty can fall – and the Gamecocks became the latest victims of the game’s unpredictable nature.