Madison Booker: 3 things to know about Texas women's basketball star, All-American
· Yahoo Sports
Texas women's basketball is looking to play one more game. To do that it's going to need a bit more from three-time All-American Madison Booker.
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The junior from Ridgeland, Miss., has burst onto the scene as one of the Longhorns' most reliable scorers with her midrange jumpshot. But she's struggled through the first half of the Final Four, making just one field goal. But there's still time left for her to make an imprint in the national semifinal Friday.
Texas Longhorns forward Madison Booker (35) and guard Rori Harmon (3) look at eachother after winning the second round of the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament against Oregon at the Moody Center on Sunday, March 22, 2026 in Austin. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)LIVE UPDATES:Texas battles UCLA in Final Four
You may remember that she was named the Most Outstanding Player of the Fort Worth 3 Regional and has scored 90 points over the Longhorns' four tournament games — including a career-high 40 points against Oregon.
Here are three things to know about Booker:
A deep appreciation for Kevin Durant
There's a reason why Booker wears No. 35: it's the same jersey number as her favorite player: former Texas men's basketball star Kevin Durant. The Houston Rockets All-Star was an All-American in his lone season as a Longhorn; he's one of three UT men's basketball players with their number retired.
"She's gonna have that thing retired on the other side," Durant said in 2024 when asked about how well Booker represents the number.
Booker has said she models some of her game after Durant, specifically the midrange jumpshot, and it has worked well — Booker has made more of those shots than 329 NCAA teams this year. She leads the Longhorns with her 52.3% field goal shooting. She was also recently named as the first Texas player, man or woman, to be in an NIL partnership with Durant's company and Nike.
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Gold medalist with USA basketball
Like most of her teammates, Booker was busy working on her game over the summer. But her work came overseas in Chile as a member of the FIBA Women’s AmeriCup tournament. One of 12 players selected, Booker started in the gold medal game, which the USA won 92-84 over Brazil. She averaged 7.1 points over the course of the tournament; highlights include 12 points in the semifinals against Canada and 13 points and six steals in a quarterfinal win over the Dominican Republic.
She also appeared on gold-medal winning rosters for FIBA U17 Women’s World Cup, 2021 U16 Americas Championship and U19 World Cup.
Texas Longhorns forward Madison Booker wipes confetti off of head coach Vic Schaefer's head after winning the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament Elite 8 game against Michigan at Dickies Arena on Monday, March 30, 2026 in Fort Worth, Texas. (Aaron E. Martinez/Austin American-Statesman)Already an incredibly decorated player
Booker is the only Texas player to be named a three-time All-American. She's been the SEC player of the year and Big 12 player of the year, which she won as a freshman. She's a finalist for the Wooden Award, which goes to the nation's best player. But the accolades have been raining in for years.
A graduate of Gremantown High School, she was named an all-state honoree three times, according to her UT bio. During her junior year in the 2021-22 season, she averaged 16.6 points and 7.6 rebounds. Booker was the No. 12-ranked prospect in her class. In 2023 she was a McDonald’s All-American and Naismith High School All-American. When she signed with Texas, Booker became the 27th player Longhorn in program history to play in the All-American game.