At SAP Center in San Jose on March 26, 2026, No. 2 seed Purdue defeated 11th-seeded Texas 79-77 when Trey Kaufman-Renn tipped home a Braden Smith miss with 0.7 seconds remaining. The finish capped a tense Sweet 16 encounter in which Tramon Mark, visibly limping, scored a game-high 29 points for the Longhorns. The win sends Purdue (30-8) to the Elite Eight, where it will face either top-seeded Arizona (34-2) or No. 4 Arkansas (28-8). Texas finished the season 21-15 after a resilient tournament run that ended in San Jose.
Key Takeaways
- Trey Kaufman-Renn scored 20 points and converted the game-winning tip with 0.7 seconds left after Braden Smith missed a driving shot.
- Braden Smith finished with 16 points and five assists, and had driven for what looked like the potential game-winner with 38 seconds left.
- Tramon Mark led Texas with 29 points while visibly favoring an injured leg; his 29 is the most by a Texas player in an NCAA Tournament game since Kevin Durant’s 30 in 2007.
- Texas tied the game at the free-throw line after Dailyn Swain completed an and-1 with 11.9 seconds remaining, but Purdue reclaimed the lead on late free throws by C.J. Cox and the decisive tip.
- Seven-foot center Matas Vokietaitis was not in the game for the final sequence after Oscar Cluff fouled out, affecting Texas’s rim protection in the closing seconds.
- Purdue improves to 30-8 and advances to the Elite Eight; Texas finishes 21-15 and saw its season end despite a late surge to knot the score.
Background
The 2026 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 matchup pitted a veteran Purdue roster against a Texas team that entered the regional as a lower seed but with momentum. Purdue arrived in San Jose as a No. 2 seed riding a deep tournament run built on balanced scoring and interior defense. Texas, the 11th seed, had overcome midseason inconsistency to reach the regionals and leaned on senior leadership, notably Tramon Mark, late in games.
Both programs have recent histories of deep tournament expectations: Purdue under coach Matt Painter has repeatedly been a national contender, and Texas under Sean Miller returned to the Sweet 16 after stabilizing its roster. The matchup therefore carried both program-level narratives — Purdue seeking an Elite Eight berth and Texas aiming to extend a surprising postseason push.
Main Event
The final minutes were a sequence of tight possessions and physical play. With 1:03 remaining Chendall Weaver converted an offensive-rebound putback to pull Texas within 73-72 after Purdue’s Smith missed a front-end free throw. Later, Vokietaitis sank a pair of free throws with 20 seconds left to narrow the margin before C.J. Cox hit two free throws at 19.4 seconds that nudged Purdue ahead.
With Purdue’s Oscar Cluff out after fouling out and Vokietaitis subbed out, Purdue had better access to the rim on the decisive possession. Smith drove and missed with 0.7 seconds remaining; Kaufman-Renn, positioned in front of the rim, redirected the ball through the cylinder to seal the 79-77 victory. Teammates swarmed Kaufman-Renn at the buzzer in a spontaneous celebration on the court.
Throughout the night Kaufman-Renn had been efficient, making his first seven attempts and finishing 20 points while grabbing key rebounds. For Texas, Mark carried the scoring load, contributing 29 points despite clearly favoring an injured leg after a hard fall earlier in the game. Jordan Pope returned from a recent broken foot to score 12 points in his Bay Area homecoming, playing 33 minutes for the Longhorns.
Analysis & Implications
Purdue advances with a narrow margin but preserves the shape of its tournament profile: defensive discipline and opportunistic finishing in late-game scenarios. Kaufman-Renn’s tip-in underlines Purdue’s emphasis on finishing plays at the rim and battling for offensive rebounds against bigger lineups, a trait likely to be decisive against top opponents in the Elite Eight.
For Texas, the loss highlights both the program’s resilience and the thin margins of injury-affected outcomes. Tramon Mark’s 29-point effort was heroic and prolonged the Longhorns’ run, but the physical toll he bore late in the game raises questions about durability and how far this roster can go against deeper teams.
Coaching narratives also matter: Sean Miller made his ninth Sweet 16 appearance in 21 seasons, the most among coaches who have not reached a Final Four, a stat that frames his tenure in patterns of postseason near-misses. Purdue coach Matt Painter’s steady rotation choices and emphasis on contested finishes paid off in a game decided by inches and timing.
Comparison & Data
| Team | Seed | Record | Top Scorer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Purdue | 2 | 30-8 | Trey Kaufman-Renn, 20 |
| Texas | 11 | 21-15 | Tramon Mark, 29 |
The table summarizes seeds, season records and leading scorers for the game. Stat lines from the matchup show a contrast in scoring concentration: Texas relied heavily on Mark, while Purdue received timely production from several players, with Kaufman-Renn’s late contribution proving decisive.
Reactions & Quotes
Coaches and players offered immediate reactions that captured both disappointment and relief. Texas coach Sean Miller emphasized rebounding as the decisive factor that slipped away in the final phase of the contest, noting the difficulty his team had defending the glass against Purdue’s interior effort.
The No. 1 thing for us to have a chance today was to rebound with Purdue; I thought we really struggled to rebound on defense.
Sean Miller, Texas head coach (postgame remarks)
Kaufman-Renn described years of preparation by Purdue staff that prioritized winning hustle plays, framing his tip-in as the culmination of a repeated coaching message to value end-of-possession plays as much as initial looks.
Coach has told us for years that those tip-ins at the end of games matter; it’s special to have it happen in my four years here.
Trey Kaufman-Renn, Purdue guard
Tramon Mark, asked about playing through pain, said competing for teammates motivated him to stay on the floor, a sentiment that underlined the emotional stakes for Texas in what could be the program’s last game of the season.
Just being a competitor wanting to play and wanting to advance for my teammates — I wanted to keep this thing going.
Tramon Mark, Texas senior
Unconfirmed
- The long-term severity of Tramon Mark’s leg issue has not been publicly clarified; team medical updates have not detailed the exact diagnosis or recovery timeline.
- Whether Matas Vokietaitis was removed from the final possession for tactical reasons or due to physical limitation has not been fully explained by Texas staff.
Bottom Line
Purdue’s 79-77 victory over Texas was decided by a last-ditch hustle play rather than a conventional buzzer-beater, highlighting tournament basketball’s razor-thin margins. The Boilermakers advance to the Elite Eight, keeping a national title path open while showcasing the kind of depth and situational focus that can carry teams deep into March.
Texas leaves San Jose with reasons for optimism and lingering questions about roster depth and injury management. Tramon Mark’s 29-point performance will be remembered as a valiant effort in a close elimination game, but Purdue’s timely rebounding and finishing ultimately determined the outcome.
Sources
- ESPN recap (Sports journalism)
- AP March Madness bracket (News organization)
- AP coverage hub (News organization)