When Texas snuck into the NCAA Tournament as one of the last four teams in, the Longhorns knew they’d have to be resilient.
They’d have to win one more game than any other team to reach the Final Four and find a quick turnaround after losing six of their last seven games ahead of the tournament.
But teams in the First Four have historically found a way to be resilient, and this Texas team has joined them. After wins over 11-seed NC State, 6-seed BYU and 3-seed Gonzaga, the Longhorns face 2-seed Purdue Thursday night in their first Sweet 16 appearance since 2023.
Texas is the sixth team from the First Four to advance to the Sweet 16 since the NCAA expanded the tournament to 68 teams in 2011. This weekend, the Longhorns are seeking to become just the third to make the Final Four, joining 2021 UCLA and 2011 VCU. Two more wins would take Texas to its first Final Four appearance since 2003.
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“Where we began and where we ended are two different places,” Texas coach Sean Miller said. “I’m just incredibly proud of our group and the resiliency that we’ve shown and even just the resiliency in the last week with what we had to do to be here.”
To earn their fourth win in the tournament, Texas will have to be resilient again, facing its biggest challenge yet against a Purdue team that won the Big Ten tournament just weeks ago. The Boilermakers have become tournament regulars, reaching their third consecutive Sweet 16. They’re led by point guard Braden Smith, who averages 14.3 points and 9.0 assists. He broke the Division I career assist record in the first round of the tournament against Queens, surpassing Bobby Hurley’s 33-year-old record of 1,076 career assists.
“You’ve just got to make it tough on him throughout the whole game, make sure none of his passes are just easy darts to his teammates for easy shots,” Texas guard Tramon Mark said. “All that requires effort, and that’s what we’re going to do.”
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Miller says his team will need to be at its best to take down Purdue despite what’s been a grueling start to the tournament. In just the last week, the Longhorns have had to travel from Austin, to Dayton, to Portland, back to Austin and now to San Jose. Their point guard, Jordan Pope, has also not been 100%, playing with a noticeable limp in the final few minutes of Texas’ game against Gonzaga.
“We’re hopeful that he can [play],” Miller said. “We’ve given him a lot of rest since our last game, and I think he’s really responding to it.”
Purdue may be the favorites on paper, and rightfully so, but Miller, who is coaching in his ninth Sweet 16 in his first season at Texas, understands that’s rarely what it comes down to.
“The best team doesn’t always win in this tournament,” Miller said. “It’s the team that plays the very best on that particular day.”
With center Matas Vokietaitis averaging 18.3 points and 11 rebounds in the tournament and a committee of Longhorns guards contributing consistently around him, Texas hopes it has the pieces and momentum necessary to pull off another upset this March.
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