GREENVILLE, S.C. — Twenty seconds into the women’s SEC tournament championship game, Texas opened the scoring with a layup. Another bucket in the paint came 26 seconds later. Three more layups and a few jumpers later, the Longhorns had a shocking 14-0 lead on three-time defending champ South Carolina.

Those opening 5½ minutes set the tone for the entire game. No. 3 South Carolina (31-3) tried to make a run, but No. 4 Texas (13-3) answered every single time — never letting its lead dip below double digits en route to a 78-61 victory and its first SEC tournament title Sunday afternoon.

“I had some kids that were here on a mission,” Longhorns coach Vic Schaefer said.

One of them was tournament MVP Madison Booker, who scored 18 points and averaged 20 points on 61% shooting in the three tournament wins.

“We belong in the SEC,” said Booker, who scored 14 points in the second half on 6-of-11 shooting. “We’re here to play, and we’re here to win.”

The victory was as thorough as it was stunning. Not only had South Carolina won the past three SEC tournament titles, but the Gamecocks had not lost this badly in an SEC tournament game since 2011.

Even when the Gamecocks found themselves down during their run of conference dominance, they found ways to respond. But on Sunday, in front of a crowd packed with South Carolina fans, the Gamecocks came out mentally and physically tired.

Texas took full advantage as Schaefer, who also guided Mississippi State to the crown in 2019, became the first coach to win a women’s SEC tournament title at multiple schools.

“Our team knows we didn’t play our best basketball, not nearly what we’re capable of doing,” South Carolina coach Dawn Staley said.

As for the message she delivered to her team in the postgame locker room?

“I told them that the last time we lost in this situation, we won the national championship,” Staley said. “It might be the very thing this team needs. It’s not what I would think coming in today, but now that we’re here and it’s a reality, you search for things that have a connection, that can give your team what it needs to make this run for a national championship. I do think we have enough in the room to do that.”

So does Schaefer. Both teams should still end up as No. 1 seeds in the upcoming NCAA tournament, but there is little doubt Texas is playing its best basketball of the season — having dominated South Carolina much as it did Ole Miss and Alabama in this tournament.

“If you could put it in a bottle and put a cork on it … if we can undo that cork every game and play like that? Be a tough out,” Schaefer said.

“But that’s the challenge with coaching kids. Sometimes you don’t know what you’re going to get day to day and game to game. But that’s their 31st win. They’ve found a way to win most nights. From a confidence standpoint right now, our kids are pretty confident. I thought they played like that tonight.”

Texas now has 14 wins over AP ranked opponents this season — including three against top-five teams (two vs. South Carolina, one vs. UCLA).

The opening minutes proved to be crucial. Schaefer said he started challenging his team Saturday to play with toughness, particularly in an environment that would be pro-South Carolina. On the board in the locker room, he again mentioned that this game would be about toughness, resilience and bringing an edge.

Texas did that from the jump — starting 7-of-7. Six of those shots came in the paint, where South Carolina typically has been so good defensively. Justice Carlton was particularly effective driving the lane in the opening quarter, helping set the tone with 13 first-quarter points. “Did anybody, including me, think we’re going to jump out 14 to nothing in this game, in that arena with that team?” Schaefer said. “You want to keep those kids in the moment. They’re going to make a run, and you’ve got to be there to answer it. And that’s what was so impressive. By the end of the first quarter, I’m good. I just felt like my group was ready. They have really responded in the last three weeks and are in a different zone right now.”

Staley called a timeout after Texas opened 14-0 but said she never considered calling it earlier because he wanted to see whether her team could gather itself and make a few plays. Instead, as Texas made all its shots, South Carolina had one field goal attempt and five turnovers. That was the longest game-opening run against the Gamecocks in the past eight years.

“They forced us to play a certain way. I mean, turning the ball over isn’t something that you can start a game like Texas and give them a head start,” Staley said.

South Carolina had to change its offensive game plan to try to get back into the game, and that limited opportunities for guards Ta’Niya Latson and Raven Johnson. Latson finished with just four points, while Johnson — after scoring a career-high 22 points Saturday — had nine.

“Against a team like Texas, they’re going to capitalize off of those bad starts, and there was no excuse for that,” Latson said. “We were fatigued, but we still had to go out there and fight. They were just as fatigued, too. They came out with more energy, and they hit first. We already had the mindset of, we’re tired. We didn’t come out with the mindset that we needed to.”

Staley and her players said they hope to use the loss as a teachable moment headed into the NCAA tournament. But the loss means that the Gamecocks could end up going to Sacramento as a No. 1 seed, while Texas would get to play close to home in Fort Worth at the other regional site.

After everything Schaefer has said about South Carolina having an advantage in the SEC tournament by playing so close to home, Texas could end up with that same edge with a chance to make it to the Final Four.

Schaefer said he was not thinking that far ahead.

“I’m always a one-game-at-a-time guy, so I’m going to worry like heck over that first-round matchup,” Schaefer said. “After that, I’ll go wherever they send me. I’ll take this team to Timbuktu.

“It would be cool to obviously be able to stay around just because our fans. I think they would really embrace the opportunity to follow us, but I’m not going to get down that road right now. Our kids, what they’ve done throughout the course of the season, the résumé speaks for itself.”