The No. 11 Texas Longhorns’ Cinderella story in the NCAA Tournament came to a heartbreaking end on Thursday night, as Trey Kaufman-Renn’s tip with 0.7 seconds left on the clock gave No. 2 Purdue a 79-77 lead to advance to the Elite Eight.
It was a thriller to the end in this Sweet 16 matchup between a team that needed to play in the First Four to kick off the tournament, and one of the higher seeds in March Madness.
The Longhorns’ Dailyn Swain made a clutch and-one layup with 11 seconds left that allowed him the opportunity to tie the game at 77 apiece if he made his free throw. He nailed it with the pressure on, but the Boilermakers had 11 seconds to get up court and potentially win the game.
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It was Braden Smith finding his way to the lane and putting up his own layup. However, the ball didn’t have the correct English off the glass, as it started to roll off the rim.
But Kaufman-Renn, who positioned himself underneath the basket, tipped home the game-winning bucket, giving himself 20 total points to help Purdue move on and keep their tournament dreams alive.
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There was some discourse on social media, though, as an overhead shot of Kaufman-Renn’s tip showed a potential foul, as he was hooking the arm of the Longhorns player jostling for the rebound.
Either way, no whistle blew, and the Boilermakers were celebrating, while the Longhorns couldn’t believe their season came to a close in that fashion.
This was a back-and-forth game throughout the 40 minutes on the court, as both teams traded the lead, especially in the second half. The largest lead any team had was Purdue at only seven points, while Texas’ lead never got higher than four.
But it’s because both teams were shooting well, with Texas making 52% of its shots (29-of-56), while Purdue poured in 48% (30-of-62).
Looking more into the box score, every Boilermakers starter had at least 10 points, while Fletcher Loyer (18), and Braden Smith (16) doing crucial work in the backcourt to help the winning cause.
Meanwhile, Texas’ Tramon Mark left it all out on the court, shooting 11-of-15 for 29 points, including 5-of-7 made from beyond the arc. Swain also just missed a double-double with nine rebounds, while tallying five assists.
Purdue now awaits the winner of Arkansas and Arizona to see who they must play to earn a spot in this year’s Final Four, which will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
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