DAYTON, Ohio — Graduate guard Tramon Mark hit a game-winning jumper from the right wing with 1.1 seconds left to lift Texas (19-14) to a 68-66 victory over NC State (20-14) in a NCAA Tournament First Four contest at University of Dayton Arena on Tuesday night. With the win, the Longhorns advance to the NCAA West Region First Round and will face No. 6 seed BYU in Portland on Thursday, March 19 at 6:25 p.m. Central (4:25 p.m. Pacific) on TBS.
Mark recorded his fifth career collegiate game-winning basket, as he previously had two game-winners while at Houston, one while at Arkansas and now two during his time at Texas. Mark posted a team-high 17 points while converting 7-of-14 field goals (2-5 threes) and adding five rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocked shots in 33 minutes. Senior Chendall Weaver registered his first career double-double with 11 points (3-5 FG, 5-6 FT), a career-high-tying 10 rebounds (four offensive) and two steals in 27 minutes. Sophomore Matas Vokietaitis registered 15 points and eight rebounds (four offensive) in 26 minutes, and junior Dailyn Swain added 13 points (8-9 FT), eight rebounds, four assists and two steals in 38 minutes.
Texas used an early 9-0 run to jump out to a 9-2 advantage following a Camden Heide three-pointer at the 15:47 mark. The Wolf Pack trimmed the margin to 12-9 after a Quadir Copeland layup with 12:59 remaining, before the Longhorns responded with a 13-6 spurt over the next five minutes to build a 25-15 cushion following a Weaver free throw at the 8:08 mark.
NC State scored six-straight point to cut the deficit to 25-21 after a Copeland layup with 5:27 left. Texas increased its advantage to 30-23 following a pair of Weaver free throws at the 4:06 mark, but the Wolf Pack closed the half on a 6-0 run to pull to within 30-29 at the break.
NC State took its first lead (34-32) since the opening minute of the contest after a Paul McNeil Jr. three-pointer with 18:11 left, before the Longhorns answered with a 7-0 spurt over the next three-plus minutes to grab a 39-34 advantage following a Swain layup in transition at the 14:37 mark. Texas increased its cushion to 49-42 after a pair of Vokietaitis free throws with 8:20 remaining, but the Wolf Pack used a 7-1 run to close to within 50-49 following a Copeland dunk at the 6:46 mark.
The Longhorns built a 62-53 lead after a pair of Weaver free throws with 2:56 left, but NC State went on a 13-3 run to even the score at 66-66 following a Tre Holloman free throw with 18 seconds remaining. That set the stage for Mark’s heroics, as he drove the ball from the top of the key to the right wing and raised up from 18 feet for the game-winner.
Texas Basketball Postgame Notes
NCAA Tournament First Four
No. 11 seed Texas 68, No. 11 seed NC State 66
March 17, 2026
University of Dayton Arena (Dayton, Ohio)
Attendance: 11,756
Team Notes
With the win, Texas advances to the NCAA West Region First Round and will face No. 6 seed BYU on Thursday, March 19 in Portland. Tip time is set for 6:25 p.m. Central (4:25 p.m. Pacific) at Moda Center, and the game will be televised nationally by TBS.
Tramon Mark converted a game-winning 18-foot jumper from the right wing with 1.1 seconds left. This marked the first buzzer beater by the Longhorns in a NCAA Tournament contest since Cameron Ridley hit a put-back as time expired to lift Texas to an 87-85 victory over Arizona State in the 2014 NCAA Round of 64 in Milwaukee, Wis.
The Longhorns improved to 41-42 all-time in 40 NCAA Tournament appearances.
Texas improved to 5-2 in the all-time series against NC State.
UT limited NC State to 66 points on 39.0-percent (23-59) from the floor on the evening.
The Longhorns won the rebound battle by a plus-12 (45-33) margin, including a 15-7 edge on the offensive glass. Texas has outrebounded 27 of its first 33 opponents this year. The Longhorns have reached double digits in offensive rebounds in 23 of their first 33 games.
Texas tallied a 15-4 advantage in bench scoring and posted a 13-9 edge in second-chance points.
The Longhorns held the lead for a total time of 35:14 compared to 4:13 by NC State.
Hit the game-winning jumper with 1.1 seconds left. This marked Mark’s fifth career collegiate game-winning basket (two at Houston, one at Arkansas, two at Texas).
Reached double figures in scoring (team-high 17 points) for the 22nd time this season (33 games) and 96th time in his career (169 games)
Reached double figures in scoring (13 points) for the 30th time this season (33 games) and 55th time in his career (96 games)
Reached double figures in scoring (15 points) for the 29th time this year (33 games) and 47th time in his career (67 games)
Recorded a double-double (11 points, 10 rebounds) for the first time this season (33 games) and in his career (119 games)
Tied his career high in rebounds, also had 10 (while at UTA) at San Francisco (Dec. 19, 2022)
Reached double figures in scoring for the fifth time this season and 34th time in his career
Reached double digits in rebounds for the first time this year and second time in his career