The Best of the Big 12 is now the best reign in the SEC.
On Tuesday, the Southeastern Conference announced that Texas women’s basketball standout Madison Booker has been selected as the player of the year. Last year, while Texas played for the Big 12, Booker shared the conference’s Player of the Year award with Oklahoma’s Skyler Van.
Booker will join Annette Smith as the only longhorn named conference player of the year in consecutive seasons. Smith was recognized as a top Southwest Conference player in 1983 and 1984.
With media availability on Wednesday, Booker expressed surprise at the victory. The sophomore forward even said he chose LSU forward Anesh Morrow if he was allowed to vote in place of the league’s 16 head coaches.
“I didn’t think it was me this year,” Booker said. “It’s just a blessing. I would like to thank my teammates. I think they really helped me win this award. Honestly, I don’t appreciate myself. I would only thank them, my coaching staff, my overall program in general, my support staff, my parents and friends.
Booker then added:
After being moonlighted as Texas point guard last season, Booker returned to her natural position this winter after a healthy Loli Harmon returned to her longhorn lineup. This season, Booker averages team-high 16.0 points, shooting 46.4% off the field. She also averages 6.5 rebounds for Texas, which earned a share in the SEC Championship.
Booker, a two-time winner of the SEC Player of the Week Awards, has scored at least 20 points in five conference games this season. She recorded a double-double performance against the Texas A&M (17 points, 13 rebounds). 2 South Carolinas (20 points, 11 rebounds), no at the time. 5 LSU (16 points, 10 rebounds) and Ole Miss (12 points, 10 rebounds). Booker also hit the game-winning shot in the final seconds of UT’s victory over Tennessee and Ole Miss.
“She knows now that she’s not a secret to anyone, and she still has the ability to show up almost every night and get to her place,” Texas A&M coach Joni Taylor said on February 2nd. “She has a great presence about her.
“There’s nothing more difficult than leading head-on,” Texas coach Vic Schafer said Tuesday. Away from her dynamic debut, Booker entered this season with high expectations. Booker was tabbed as the Preseason Player of the Year by both SEC coaches and media members covering the league, and she also made cuts with the Associated Press’ Preseason All-American team.
“It’s the most difficult thing ever, and it leads head on,” Booker said. “People already meet you, people, they’re coming for you. They’re basically trying to test you. You can’t ruin you, you can’t get to your head because you’re not yours yet. You have to go out and get it.”
It wasn’t just the longhorns recognized by the SEC. Vic Schaefer was named SEC Coach of the Year, the award that won Mississippi State in 2015, 2018 and 2019.
Harmon won a spot on the SEC’s all-defensive team, and Guard Jordan Lee was praised as one of the conference’s top eight freshmen. However, Booker was the only longhorn to appear among the 17 winners on the first and second teams of the All-SEC team, as Harmon and post players Taylor Jones and Kyla Aldakre.
“I’m going to be really careful here,” Schafer said. “We have so many great players in our league. We don’t want to take anything from the people on the first and second teams, but we believe that when we get 16 coaches in the room and start picking who we want on the roster and team, we don’t get multiple players selected from our team.”
Texas went 15-1 in the conference play this season and shared the top spot in the SEC standings with South Carolina. With the loss of the coin flip, UT will become the second seed when the conference tournament begins on Wednesday in Greenville, South Carolina. Texas (29-2) will face Mississippi, Ole Miss or Missouri in the SEC quarterfinals on Friday evening.
“Now we have a regular season SEC championship. We celebrate it. It’s over now.
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