It's Family Affair for Kenny Brooks & Vic Schaefer as UK & Texas Meet in NCAA Sweet Sixteen

2 hours ago
5 min read

By Jamie H. Vaught

Longtime coaches Kenny Brooks of Kentucky and Vic Schaefer of Texas have a lot in common.

They are highly successful coaches in women's college basketball. They respect each other. They share stories, including difficult times. And they also have their daughters involved with the team.

And both coaches will meet in a NCAA Sweet Sixteen showdown Saturday afternoon in Fort Worth. The matchup, featuring No. 5 seed Kentucky (25-10) and No. 1 seed Texas (33-3), will be shown on ABC at 3 p.m. ET.

"Kenny and I have had some really unique and special conversations regarding family," said Schaefer, whose third-ranked Texas squad defeated the Wildcats 64-53 earlier this season. "He and I have both been through some really challenging and life-altering situations. He with his wife battling cancer (and recovering), and with me almost losing my son, who is the twin brother of Blair, who is on my staff.

"I think when you go through those kinds of things, it changes you, and it changes perspective sometimes. It doesn't mean that he and I aren't any more passionate and intense with trying to do the job we have.

"But, for me, I can tell you, when I've had a tough day or not, might get my rear end beat one night, it just takes one phone call to my son to hear his voice on the other end of a phone call and it grounds me really quick. So, for he and I, it has been so special. First, to have Blair play for me (at Mississippi State). A little bit 5'5", 5'6", ends up being on the all-defensive team in the SEC. Her and Sydney Carter both on my staff played for me, and both of them, probably two of the toughest kids I've ever coached. It is special. To see Blair's growth as a player and helping take us to back-to-back national championship games her junior and senior year to now having her on staff, she's earned her way in both situations."

Blair is now in her fourth year as an assistant coach at Texas.

''I'm so fortunate because I got all my family in Austin," said 65-year-old Schaefer. "I get to see my son, my daughter, my wife. I can see them every day if I wanted to, and we still try to have family dinners just like when they were in college. It is a really unique. I count it as a blessing. The good Lord has blessed me in so many different ways, and to be able to coach with Blair, first coach her and now coach with her, what a blessing the good Lord has given me and our team because she's really good at what she does."

Added Brooks, who once guided Virginia Tech to the 2023 Final Four, "Vic is one of the best. I admire Vic so much. Not only in the way that he coaches his team. Vic and I share similar stories with family. He has his daughter on his staff. He was an inspiration to me because so many times people would tell me that you can't have your family around your program. It can be a distraction. It can't be good for your program.

"I watched Vic. I took my middle daughter to the Final Four when Mississippi State beat UConn, and it was just she and I. We were there. I watched Vic coach his daughter, and to success. Then I watched Vic put his daughter on staff, and he and I have shared many, many stories. We've talked about it. He's inspired me a lot, and having family around my program has been the best thing that I've ever, ever done professionally, because it not only gives your culture a family-style culture, it gives I call it bonus time. I have bonus time with my family.

"When I missed so much growing up, I was so busy trying to make a life I wasn't living a life. I remember during COVID, we were all around the table with three of my daughters, and they would talk about all these stories growing up, and I'm like, 'Where was I?' They were like, "Well, you were probably recruiting.'

"For me to be able to enjoy these moments of having them on the sidelines with me and around, it's the best thing that's happened to me. That's been an inspiration because of what Vic has taught me and told me about everything."

Brooks currently has two daughters on the UK staff with 5-foot-10 junior Gabby Brooks on the playing roster and Kendyl Brooks working as operations coordinator.

But, when Saturday's game starts, these coaches won't be smiling at each other.

"When I go up against him, he's a fiery competitor," said Brooks. "I mean, he will kick your butt and then come shake your hand and tell you that you're the best person in the world and you believe it. He does mean it. He's sincere. He's one of the best people in this business.

"If anybody wants to look to somebody for inspiration or just guidance or mentorship or how they want to be, Vic Schaefer is the epitome of that, and I respect him a lot. His teams always play well. He's been a huge inspiration for me."

On facing Texas, which has First Team All-American in Madison Booker, Brooks said, "They're hitting on all cylinders right now, which is evident by winning the SEC Tournament and then their first two round games. They looked spectacular.

"It's kind of interesting how things match up. The game we played against West Virginia was tremendous preparation for us and what we're going to be able to see. There is familiarity because we have seen Texas. We've played against them. We know their size. We know their speed. We know how they play.

"But, nonetheless, this game is going to be a one-off game. It's for all the marbles, win or go home. It's going to be a different intensity level. Essentially it's probably going to be a home game for them, so to speak, but we've played well in front of crowds that weren't for us, which was evident in the West Virginia game, when we went to Louisville and played; we played at LSU and were very successful.

"I think we're prepared for it, but they're a great team. Vic does a tremendous job in getting his players to play to their fullest, and we're going to have our hands full."

Some interesting tidbits:

--Kentucky and Texas are the only two teams in the nation with three incoming McDonald’s All-Americans in 2026-27.

--This is the fifth all-time meeting between the Wildcats and the Longhorns, and the second this season. UK trails Texas, 4-0, in the all-time series.

--The Wildcats have a 6-7 record against Associated Press Top 25 teams this season. Also, the Cats have had two Top 5 wins in a regular season for the first time in program history. In four of its seven losses against AP Top 25 teams, it lost by a combined nine points.

--First Team All-SEC selection Clara Strack is leading the team in points, rebounds, blocks and steals.

--All-SEC guard Tonie Morgan leads the nation in total assists (279) and is second in apg (7.97).

Jamie H. Vaught, a longtime sports columnist in Kentucky, is the author of seven books about UK basketball, including newly published “Unforgettable Journey with the Cats: Inside Kentucky Hoops Madness.” Now a retired college professor who taught at Southeast Kentucky Community and Technical College in Middlesboro, he is the editor and founder of KySportsStyle.com Magazine. You can follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @KySportsStyle or reach him via email at KySportsStyle44@gmail.com.