Texas basketball is headed to the Sweet 16 after Jordan Pope, Matas Vokietaitis and Camden Heide powered a 74-68 NCAA Tournament win over Gonzaga.
Texas basketball is suddenly one of the best stories in March Madness.
The Longhorns, an 11-seed that had to fight through the First Four just to reach the bracket, are now headed to the Sweet 16 after knocking off Gonzaga 74-68 in a statement win that showcased resilience, shot-making, and the steady postseason touch of first-year coach Sean Miller.
That journey has been anything but smooth.
“Our ride has never been easy, but we fought the good fight the whole way and we did it again,” Miller said, and that line perfectly captured what this Texas team has become.
The Longhorns didn’t limp into the NCAA Tournament and fold. They regrouped, found another gear, and now they’re the first First Four team in five years to reach the second weekend.
Jordan Pope and Matas Vokietaitis each scored 17 points, giving Texas the offensive balance it needed against a Gonzaga team that had been one of the hottest groups in the field.
Dailyn Swain added 11 points and helped spark key stretches as the Longhorns erased an early deficit and stayed composed when the game tightened late.
Then came the dagger. After Gonzaga trimmed the lead to one in the final minute, Miller called a timeout and trusted Camden Heide, who had barely scored all game, to be ready for the moment.
“He’s our best 3-point shooter,” Miller said. “To not have him in there, I just didn’t think it made any sense, because what happens is exactly what happened. The play gets broken, a guy makes a drive, pivots, next thing you know, you find someone.”
That someone was Heide, and his corner 3 changed everything.
Gonzaga coach Mark Few summed up the finish plainly. “We were both kind of trading punches,” he said. “Both teams were having a hard time getting stops down the stretch, and we just couldn’t get one on that last possession.”
Texas believed this run was possible even when the path looked shaky. “We just needed a chance,” Swain said. Right now, the Longhorns are making the most of it.
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