Purdue Boilermakersguard (#2) Fletcher Loyer shoots a 24-foot three-pointer jumper to start the 2nd half between the Texas Longhorns in the West Regional ‘Sweet 16’ matchup on March 26th, 2026, in SAP Center at San Jose, CA
By Michael Villanueva
SAN JOSE – The Longhorns and Boilermakers have had a long history between them since before tonight’s “Sweet 16” matchup in the NCAA March Madness Tournament. However, this game and performance from both schools will go down as another historical game in the all-time series. Purdue and Texas would go back and forth on Thursday afternoon, with 16 lead changes, tied 10 times, and with only one team having a large lead of just 7 points. However, Purdue Trey Kaufman-Renn’s tip-in with less than a second left lifts the No.2 Purdue to a 79-77 win over No.11 Texas.
No.2 Purdue started with guards Braden Smith, Fletcher Loyer, C.J. Cox, forward Trey Kaufman-Renn, and center Oscar Cluff. The Boilmakers hope this squad can send them to their third Elite Eight in the last seven years. Purdue and Texas are set to face each other for the seventh time in their series history, with the Longhorns currently holding a 4-2 lead. Their upcoming matchup will be their first meeting since Purdue’s 81-71 victory over Texas in the second round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
No.11 Texas Longhorns started with guards Tramon Mark, Jordan Pope, forwards Dailyn Swain, Camden Heide, and center Matas Vokietaitis. Longhorns came into this game feeling really good with the turnaround theyb had this season. Texas Longhorns head coach Sean Miller is making his ninth Sweet 16 appearance in 21 seasons as a head coach. With a 25-13 record across 14 NCAA Tournament appearances, Miller ranks ninth among active Division I coaches for the most career NCAA Tournament wins.
Purdue came out at Texas right at tip-off, feeling the hype from the crowds in San Jose. Purdue guard Fletcher Loyer started the game off with back-to-back three pointers to get the Boilermakers on their feet and an early 6-0 lead. However, there’s a reason this Texas team has made it this far in the tournament. As Texas guard Tramon Mark gets going.
Texas guard Tramon Mark would get the Longhorns after Purdue’s hot shooting start. In fact, Tramon Mark locked in for Texas and took over as their main scorer in the rest of the 1st half. He is shooting efficiently, going 4-for-5 from the field, including two three-pointers, and leads all scorers with 10 points. The Longhorns hold a 21-18 lead with 10:48 remaining in the first half. Then, a minute later, Mark would eventually have half of Texas’ points.
The Boilermakers have been creating good scoring opportunities, especially in the paint with 18 points, largely thanks to Braden Smith, the NCAA’s newly crowned assist leader. Purdue is 2-of-7 from three-point range but has missed several open looks. Their two three-pointers came right at tip-off, and they struggled from deep afterward, missing nine straight attempts. After Fletcher Loyer made two early threes, the drought ended when he knocked down another late in the half. At the 1:03 mark, Loyer leads all scorers with 13 points, and Purdue holds a narrow 37-35 lead.
By halftime, Purdue would see themselves with a 4 point lead, 39-35. Purdue is able to withhold Texas hustle and athleticism by outrebounding them 18 to 13, and the Boilers shot 53.1 percent from the field were a big factor on how they’re holding the lead. However, Texas was able to knock down more three-pointers than Purdue since the Boilermakers three-pointers only came from guard Fletcher Loyer. The Longhorns ended the 1st half with 6-of-16 three-point shooting.
Texas guard Tramon Mark made his name and presence felt here in the first game of the Sweet 16 matchups. He picked up right where he left off from his 1st half performance, and knocked down some big shots. Mark reached the 2,000 career points milestone through his 19th point, spanning six seasons with Houston, Arkansas, and Texas. He finished the first half with 12 points, marking his highest-scoring first half in any NCAA tournament game. This tournament appearance is his 13th across his career at Texas and Houston. Texas leads 49-45 at the 15:37 mark.
Purdue was still able to see some success even though they still weren’t able to make any three-pointer in the 2nd half with 10 minutes left. Purdue’s defense locked in as Texas made 3 costly turnovers in the final minutes. Also, the Longhorns would also pick up some crucial fouls that gave Purdue trips to the line. By then, the Boilermakers were up by 1 point in the final minute of the game. There have been over 15 lead changes in this close game.
With just 11.9 seconds left in the game, Texas ties it up, 77-77, after Longhorn forward Dailyn Smith drives to the basket hard and makes his layup, with the foul, converting it to a three-point play. He would get sent to the line and tie it up from there. Then Purdue guard Braden Smith would drive it to the basket, miss his layup, but Purdue’s big man, Trey Kaufman-Renn, would tip it in and win the game for Purdue, 79-77.
Purdue Boilermakers now advance to the Elite Eight. They will take on the winner between of No.1 Arizona Wildcats and No.4 Arkansas Razorbacks. The Elite Eight game will be played right back in here at SAP Center in San Jose, CA, on March 28th, 2026.
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