Madison Booker's offense disappears during tough shooting night as Texas falls to UCLA in Final Four
Madison Booker's offense disappears during tough shooting night as Texas falls to UCLA in Final Four
DAVID BRANDT Sat, April 4, 2026 at 4:07 AM UTC
0
1 / 0NCAA Texas UCLA BasketballTexas forward Madison Booker (35) drives against UCLA guard Gabriela Jaquez (11) during the first half of a women's NCAA college basketball tournament semifinal game at the Final Four, Friday, April 3, 2026, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri) ()
PHOENIX (AP) — Madison Booker has led Texas' offense all season, so it was little surprise that she hit a jumper less than a minute into the game to give the Longhorns an early two-point lead.
It was the last shot she would make for more than three quarters.
The AP All-America forward missed her next 17 attempts from the field as the Longhorns fell to UCLA 51-44 on Friday night in the national semifinals of the women's Final Four.
Booker recovered somewhat in the final minutes as the Longhorns made a frantic push, contributing a pair of baskets to help cut the deficit to 47-44 with less than 30 seconds remaining. The rally ended when Booker was stuffed by UCLA's 6-foot-7 Lauren Betts on a driving layup with 20 seconds remaining.
Trailing 49-44 in the final seconds, Booker slipped and fell to the ground while trying to make a play, ending a night to forget. She finished 3 of 23 from the field, missing all four of her 3-point attempts, and had six points.
Advertisement
It's the second straight year Booker's season has ended with a disappointing game. She had just 11 points and one rebound while fighting foul trouble in a 74-57 loss to South Carolina in last year's national semifinals.
The loss wasn't all Booker's fault as the Longhorns struggled offensively the entire night. Texas shot just 30.8% from the field and only one player — Kyla Oldacre — finished in double figures with 11 points.
Texas was one of the hottest teams in the country coming into the Final Four, riding a 12-game winning streak into Friday’s game. During that stretch, the Longhorns beat fellow Final Four participant South Carolina by 17 points in the SEC Tournament championship and crushed Michigan 77-41 in the Elite Eight.
___
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-womens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
Source: “AOL Sports”
