SAN JOSE, Calif. — Twenty-four hours earlier, the storyline was whether CJ Cox would play in Thursday, March 26’s Sweet 16.
With 19.4 seconds left, Purdue basketball’s sophomore guard who left last Sunday’s second-round win over Miami with a hyperextended right knee, stood at the free-throw line for his March Madness moment. The Boilermakers led Texas by a single point.
Deafening noise came from the Longhorn fans who made the trip to SAP Center combined with the filtering in of Arkansas and Arizona fans hoping a win would pit their team against a No. 11 seed.
Cox dribbled, released and snapped the net on consecutive shots with a calmness and resilience the Boilermakers showed over a tense final 60 seconds of basketball.
“If I don’t hit those, we probably would have lost,” Cox said, very matter of fact, after a 79-77 victory sent the Boilers to the Elite Eight for the third time in the past seven NCAA Tournaments.
Cox’s poise epitomized the entire Boilermaker roster from the best player to last guy on the bench, perhaps the team’s greatest trait given the do-or-die stakes.
Trey Kaufman-Renn will get the credit, naturally, after he tipped in Braden Smith’s miss with 0.7 seconds remaining, pandemonium or dismay ensued throughout the arena, depending which side you were rooting for.
On the floor, and on Purdue’s bench, there was less emotion.
That calm, like Cox had shown just moments prior, demonstrated how locked in Purdue is.
Fletcher Loyer briefly raised both arms in the air but while also retreating to play defense. Smith, who missed the shot and was under the basket when Kaufman-Renn’s putback dropped in, immediately sought out his man and sprinted to deny him an inbounds pass.
Cox, Jack Benter and Kaufman-Renn in unison all turned to run to their defensive positions.
Sam King, a senior walk-on whose redshirt status this season guarantees he will not play, reached both arms out as wide as his wingspan could go to make sure none of his Purdue teammates prematurely ran onto the court.
And PJ Thompson, the Purdue assistant who drew up the play that won the game, was as cool as ice, gently erasing his white board.
It was the biggest moment of the season and Purdue operated as if they’d just scored the first bucket in a November buy game.
Six weeks ago, Cox stood at the line with 24 seconds left and a chance to seal a road win at Nebraska. He missed both. Eleven seconds later, the Huskers sent the game to overtime.
Purdue eventually held on, but it didn’t diminish the fact Cox felt he’d let his team down.
A Sweet 16 game for which Cox’s status was uncertain going in provided the next opportunity to atone for it.
“He was hurt and hasn’t done much in practice, but, you know, he went out there and competed and helped us win and knocked down the two biggest free throws probably in his career,” Purdue coach Matt Painter said.
Composure carried a veteran Purdue team that’s done this dance before in a highly-intense, highly-physical basketball game in which the Boilermakers somehow went 0-for-12 from 3-point range by anyone not named Fletcher Loyer.
And won.
Never was there panic. Not when Texas made seven straight shots in the first half. Not when Jordan Mark seemingly couldn’t miss during a 29-point performance, which included a 3-pointer to put Texas ahead by four with 5:20 remaining.
Not when Smith missed in the final second and not even when Kaufman-Renn stuck back the miss.
People have pointed to Purdue’s continuity all season, with three starters who’ve played in a national championship game and with a trio that’s played four years together, a rarity in today’s college basketball landscape.
That continuity was questioned at times, especially with Purdue’s finish to the regular season.
On Thursday night, they were in sync with one another when the final play unfolded, but also in the immediate aftermath.
“I think it benefits us more than anybody in the country having that,” Smith said.
Now Purdue, a team that was pegged as a Final Four contender before the season because of its veteran presence — and probably to a degree due to its composure — is one win away from advancing to the Final Four.
Sam King covers sports for the Journal & Courier. Email him at sking@jconline.com and follow him on X and Instagram @samueltking.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Journal & Courier: Purdue basketball shows greatest March Madness trait in win over Texas
Reporting by Sam King, Lafayette Journal & Courier / Lafayette Journal & Courier
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