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Purdue is in the Elite Eight for the second time in three seasons thanks to some late-game heroics.
Trey Kaufman-Renn tipped in a Braden Smith layup with 0.7 seconds to go to give the No. 2 Boilermakers a 79-77 win over No. 11 Texas. Smith got to the lane and had a clear chance at the game winner, but his shot bounced off the backboard and the rim before Kaufman-Renn knocked it in.
The senior’s bucket capped a frantic final 40 seconds. Smith gave Purdue a three-point lead on a layup with 37.7 seconds to go. After Texas missed a 3-pointer, the Longhorns retained possession on a jump ball with 21.5 seconds to go.
Purdue then fouled to make sure that Texas didn’t have a chance at the tie. Matas Vokietaitis made both his free throws, but then Purdue’s C.J. Cox pushed the lead back to three with two free throws of his own.
However, Texas tied the game with less than 12 seconds to go when Dailyn Swain got to the rim and got an and-one when he was fouled by Purdue’s Oscar Cluff. Swain’s free throw tied the game, and Purdue called timeout to set up Smith’s drive to the rim.
Texas guard Tramon Mark scored 29 points while hobbling around for much of the second half.
Mark landed on Fletcher Loyer’s foot on a 3-point attempt during the half and got three free throws out of the shot even though he jumped considerably inside the arc.
The painful landing had Mark down for a moment before he attempted to walk off the ankle injury. It clearly affected his mobility for the rest of the game, though he continued to shoot well before missing his final two shots. Mark, a transfer from Houston and Arkansas, was 11-of-15 from the field and was 5-of-7 from behind the arc.
The Longhorns were in position to win the game even as Vokietaitis dealt with foul trouble for much of it. The big man played just 23 minutes as he finished with four fouls — including a dead-ball technical foul for a flailing elbow — yet wasn’t on the floor for the game-winning basket.
Texas coach Sean Miller subbed Vokietaitis out for Nic Codie during Purdue’s final timeout.
The Longhorns shot over 50% from the field and 44% from behind the 3-point line as they nearly won their fourth NCAA tournament game. Texas became just the sixth team in men’s NCAA tournament history to make the Sweet 16 after playing in the First Four.
Kaufman-Renn made all six of his field goal attempts in the first half and finished the game 8-of-10 shooting from the field with 20 points and eight rebounds.
All five of Purdue’s starters finished with at least 11 points as they again carried the bulk of the scoring burden. Purdue got five bench points in its second-round win over Miami. On Thursday night, the Boilermakers got four points from the bench.
After the game, Kaufman-Renn noted how the veteran team wasn’t nervous as the clocked ticked down. And this Purdue team has been through a lot.
Four years ago, Kaufman-Renn, Smith and Loyer were part of a Purdue team that became the second No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 in NCAA tournament history when the Boilermakers fell to St. Peter’s.
Since then, Purdue has won 10 NCAA tournament games over the past three seasons. In 2024, Purdue made the national championship game before losing to UConn and made the Sweet 16 as a No. 4 seed a season ago before falling to a No. 1 Houston team that played for the national title.
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Trey Kaufman-Renn tipped in a Braden Smith layup with 0.7 seconds to go to give the No. 2 Boilermakers a 79-77 win over No. 11 Texas. Smith got to the lane and had a clear chance at the game winner, but his shot bounced off the backboard and the rim before Kaufman-Renn knocked it in.
The senior’s bucket capped a frantic final 40 seconds. Smith gave Purdue a three-point lead on a layup with 37.7 seconds to go. After Texas missed a 3-pointer, the Longhorns retained possession on a jump ball with 21.5 seconds to go.
Purdue then fouled to make sure that Texas didn’t have a chance at the tie. Matas Vokietaitis made both his free throws, but then Purdue’s C.J. Cox pushed the lead back to three with two free throws of his own.
However, Texas tied the game with less than 12 seconds to go when Dailyn Swain got to the rim and got an and-one when he was fouled by Purdue’s Oscar Cluff. Swain’s free throw tied the game, and Purdue called timeout to set up Smith’s drive to the rim.
Purdue survives Tramon Mark’s big night
Texas guard Tramon Mark scored 29 points while hobbling around for much of the second half.
Mark landed on Fletcher Loyer’s foot on a 3-point attempt during the half and got three free throws out of the shot even though he jumped considerably inside the arc.
The painful landing had Mark down for a moment before he attempted to walk off the ankle injury. It clearly affected his mobility for the rest of the game, though he continued to shoot well before missing his final two shots. Mark, a transfer from Houston and Arkansas, was 11-of-15 from the field and was 5-of-7 from behind the arc.
The Longhorns were in position to win the game even as Vokietaitis dealt with foul trouble for much of it. The big man played just 23 minutes as he finished with four fouls — including a dead-ball technical foul for a flailing elbow — yet wasn’t on the floor for the game-winning basket.
Texas coach Sean Miller subbed Vokietaitis out for Nic Codie during Purdue’s final timeout.
The Longhorns shot over 50% from the field and 44% from behind the 3-point line as they nearly won their fourth NCAA tournament game. Texas became just the sixth team in men’s NCAA tournament history to make the Sweet 16 after playing in the First Four.
Kaufman-Renn scores 20
Kaufman-Renn made all six of his field goal attempts in the first half and finished the game 8-of-10 shooting from the field with 20 points and eight rebounds.
All five of Purdue’s starters finished with at least 11 points as they again carried the bulk of the scoring burden. Purdue got five bench points in its second-round win over Miami. On Thursday night, the Boilermakers got four points from the bench.
After the game, Kaufman-Renn noted how the veteran team wasn’t nervous as the clocked ticked down. And this Purdue team has been through a lot.
Four years ago, Kaufman-Renn, Smith and Loyer were part of a Purdue team that became the second No. 1 seed to lose to a No. 16 in NCAA tournament history when the Boilermakers fell to St. Peter’s.
Since then, Purdue has won 10 NCAA tournament games over the past three seasons. In 2024, Purdue made the national championship game before losing to UConn and made the Sweet 16 as a No. 4 seed a season ago before falling to a No. 1 Houston team that played for the national title.
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