The Purdue Boilermakers beat the Texas Longhorns 79-77 on a Trey Kaufman-Renn putback with less than 1 second left in the Sweet 16 of March Madness.
Kaufman-Renn scores 20 points with 8 rebounds and Fletcher Loyer has 18 points for the Boilers. Braden Smith has 16 points and 5 assists, Oscar Cluff 11 points and 6 rebounds, and C.J. Cox 10 points and 8 rebounds.
Tramon Mark leads Texas with 29 points on 5-of-7 3-pointers despite hobbling on a weak right ankle for much of the second half. Dailyn Swain 15 points, 9 rebounds and 5 assists, and Jordan Pope 12 points.
Purdue (30-8) plays the winner between Arizona and Arkansas on Saturday night for a trip to the Final Four in Indianapolis.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16: Dailyn Swain ties it late
Purdue 77, Texas 77, :11.9 left 2H: Dailyn Swain gets an and-1 as Oscar Cluff fouls out.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16: Oscar Cluff gives the Boilermakers the lead
Purdue 73, Texas 72, :59.5 left 2H: Oscar Cluff gives Purdue a 72-70 lead with 3:20 left.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Purdue 70, Texas 70, 3:56 left 2H: Tramon Mark keeps hitting 3s (5-of-7) and is up to 29 points. Camden Heide, again tied up with Trey Kaufman-Renn, fouls out at the 5:00 mark. Purdue’s Oscar Cluff (9 points, 4 rebounds) picks up his 4th foul with 5:38 to go.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Texas 65, Purdue 63, 7:39 left 2H: Both teams are above 50% from the field, but Purdue is 4-of-17 on 3-pointers. Fletcher Loyer is 4-of-8, others are 0-of-9.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Texas 59, Purdue 58, 10:20 left 2H: Matas Vokietaitis of Texas gets his fourth foul with 12:43 to go. Trey Kaufman-Renn has 16 points and Fletcher Loyer 15 for Purdue.
Despite hobbling, Tramon Mark has 24 points. Texas is 5-of-11 on free throws but has turned the tables on boards, now holding a 4-rebound edge for the game, +7 in the second half.
Cam Heide hits a 3-pointer: Texas basketball score tonight vs. Purdue in Sweet 16
Texas 49, Purdue 45, 15:37 left 2H: Tramon Mark has 19 points, but he rolls his right ankle when he is fouled by Fletcher Loyer on a 3-pointer.
Matas Vokietaitis and Trey Kaufman-Renn get tangled, Vokietaitis picks up his third foul. Purdue’s Oscar Cluff also has 3 fouls. Former teammates Kaufman-Renn and Camden Heide get into wrestling match. Both receive a flagrant foul.
Texas scores the first 4 of the half to take the lead.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Purdue 39, Texas 35, halftime: Fletcher Loyer has 13 points, including 7 in a row in the closing minutes. Trey Kaufman-Renn has 12 points and 5 rebounds. After 9 straight Purdue misses from 3-point range, Loyer hits his 3rd.
Tramon Mark has 12 points and Jordan Pope 9 to lead Texas, which is 6-of-16 on 3-pointers.
Both teams have 3 turnovers. Purdue has a 17-14 rebound edge.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Purdue 30, Texas 30, 3:13 left 1H: Matas Vokietaitis of Texas commits his second foul, a dead ball elbow into C.J. Cox’s jaw. Jordan Pope beats the shot clock to tie the score at 28 at the 5:30 mark.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Purdue 28, Texas 25, 6:45 left 1H: The Boilers haven’t made a 3-pointer since the opening minutes but own a 5-rebound advantage.
Trey Kaufman-Renn goes to work: Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Purdue 24, Texas 23, 9:16 left 1H: Trey Kaufman-Renn is up to 8 points and 4 rebounds for Purdue. Tramon Mark leads Texas with 12.
Purdue basketball score tonight vs. Texas in Sweet 16
Texas 20, Purdue 18, 10:48 left 1H: Fletcher Loyer hits 3-pointers on Purdue’s first two plays, and later misses a couple. C.J. Cox also has 6 points. Tramon Mark has 10 for Texas.
Purdue basketball vs. Texas predictions in Sweet 16: CBS college basketball analysts make picks
Purdue basketball injury updates vs. Texas in Sweet 16 March Madness action: Will C.J. Cox, Jordan Pope play tonight?
Purdue’s C.J. Cox (right knee) will start, but Texas’ Jordan Pope (lower leg) will not. Both were listed as questionable earlier in the day. Both teams will have their usual starting lineup, though Simeon Wilcher was initially listed in Pope’s place for the Longhorns.
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What channel is Texas Longhorns vs Purdue Boilermakers game on tonight, Thursday, March 26? What time does Purdue-Texas March Madness 2026 NCAA tournament game start tonight?
The Purdue Boilermakers and Texas Longhorns will play on CBS at 7:10 p.m. ET, Thursday, March 26, 2026.
Watch NCAA tournament action on Paramount+
How to stream Purdue-Texas game today, Thursday, March 26. Where to watch Texas-Purdue March Madness 2026 NCAA tournament game tonight live
The Texas Longhorns and Purdue Boilermakers will stream via Paramount+ and SlingTV at 7:10 pm. ET, Thursday, March 26, 2026. Fans can download Paramount+ in the Apple App Store or on Google Play. Fans can download SlingTV in the Apple App Store or on Google Play.
Watch NCAA tournament action with a free Fubo trial
Jordan Pope injury update: Texas basketball guard hopes to guard Purdue’s Braden Smith in March Madness game
Jordan Pope averages 13.1 points per game for the Longhorns and suffered a lower-leg injury in Saturday’s win over Gonzaga. He said he was “hopeful” to play against the Boilermakers.
C.J. Cox injury update: Purdue basketball guard’s recovery status before March Madness game vs Texas
C.J. Cox suffered a knee he said was hyperextended during Sunday’s win over Miami. He’s done drills and plenty of rehab work with trainers, he said Wednesday. He hopes to play, of course, but the Boilermakers have depth behind him if he can’t go.
Camden Heide explains transfer from Purdue basketball, joining Texas
Who are Purdue’s best players? Purdue basketball roster
Who is Purdue basketball coach? Matt Painter reaches milestone win, has become one of Big Ten’s best coaches
Matt Painter has twice been recognized for winning 500 games this season. He reached the career milestone early in the season, and with the Round of 32 win over Miami, he notched his 500th win at Purdue.
Painter started his head-coaching career with a 25-5 season leading Southern Illinois in 2003-04. His Salukis won the Missouri Valley Conference and made the NCAA Tournament. He then returned to Purdue as the coach-in-waiting to Gene Keady.
This is his 21st season leading the Boilermakers, and he’s 500-223 with five Big Ten regular-season championships, three league tournament championships and 17 NCAA Tournament berths. Of late, Purdue has been to seven Sweet 16s in the last nine tournaments.
Braden Smith set NCAA assists record in last Purdue basketball game
With his first assist Friday night, Braden Smith tied the NCAA’s all-time assists record. And with his second, he passed Duke’s Bobby Hurley, who finished with 1,076 to close his Duke career in 1993.
There is plenty to know about Braden Smith. He was an underrecruited guard out of Westfield, Indiana, the son of a former Miss Basketball in Arkansas. He’s always showed a cerebral look at the game, and his passing skills grew as he developed.
And, this season, he hunted assists more than his shots (he’s Westfield’s all-time leading scorer, after all). But a strong run in the Big Ten Tournament allowed that pressure of the assists record to ease. He can play freely, and may be his best self.
Who is Bobby Hurley? Former Duke guard who had NCAA assists record
Bobby Hurley played at Duke from 1989-93. He had little pressure to break the assists record in his final season, and did so in 140 games — fewer than Braden Smith (today is 147). Hurley also was a two-time national championship, point guard for the Blue Devils’ title runs in 1991 and 1992.
Hurley went on to be drafted seventh overall in the 1993 NBA Draft to the Sacramento Kings. He played out his rookie contract, four-and-a-half years with the Kings and finishing with Vancouver, before his NBA playing days ended in 1998.
Hurley has spent the last 13 seasons roaming the sidelines. First as Buffalo’s coach, and then as Arizona State’s for the last 11 seasons. He’s 227-187 and made four NCAA Tournament appearances, but his Sun Devils teams went 44-54 over the last three seasons and he was fired earlier this mon
2026 March Madness scores
2026 Texas Longhorns basketball roster
Who is Texas basketball coach? Sean Miller still a winner after up-and-down coaching career
Sean Miller is in his first season as Texas basketball coach, and 21st season leading a program. He had two stints at Xavier and one that ended with NCAA infractions at Arizona that he later was not sanctioned for. His record is 21-14 at Texas and 508-210 for his career, which includes 14 NCAA Tournament berths.
He won five Pac-12 regular-season championships while at Arizona and three A-10 regular-season titles while at Xavier in his first stint.
Former Purdue basketball player Camden Heide often starts for Texas
Camden Heide left Purdue after two seasons looking to make a larger impact. He found it with Texas and Miller. The 6-foot-7 junior has made 46.2% of his 3-pointers, averaging 5.9 points and 2.6 rebounds per game.
Hiede’s biggest shot this season is his most recent, a corner 3 with 14.7 seconds left to seal an upset of No. 3 seeded Gonzaga. He had not played since the 17:42 mark of the second half.
“Yeah, these guys will tell you, I’ll take credit for it. Just the way I saw it was on the last possession of a game, just to have that other guy out there who is capable and in Cam’s case you can make the case he’s our best three-point shooter. To not have him in there, I just didn’t think it made any sense,” Miller said. “Because what happens is exactly what happened. The play gets broken, a guy makes a drive, pivots, next thing you know you find someone.
“In that situation it was great to see him knock it in. I was really, really happy for him. I might have even said, I’m putting you in to make a shot and again, when it happens, it’s almost too good to be true.
“But these guys will tell you, Cam has been a huge part of our team this year, he’s had some ups and downs, and I don’t think anybody deserves to make that shot more than him. He’s just a fantastic teammate.”
Where to listen to Purdue basketball vs. Texas tonight, March 26, in March Madness NCAA Tournament Sweet 16
Purdue vs Texas March Madness predictions, picks
Several of our experts are calculating their predictions as they travel. Check back later for their picks!
Nat Newell, IndyStar: Texas 107, Purdue 106
The NCAA Tournament is better with Cinderella so what could be better than the biggest, richest Cinderella in history. It’s like Cinderella is the stepmother; what a wonderful twist! Hoping the burnt orange pumpkin carriage with longhorns on the front rolls on at least one more game.
Aaron Ferguson, IndyStar: Purdue 77, Texas 68
Purdue has twice withstood first-half tests that they turned around a different result in the second half of wins over Michigan and Miami (Florida) on this six-game postseason winning streak. Expect Matas Vokietaitis to impact the rebounding gap, but the veteran Boilers find a way their path to a possible dream home Final Four.
Nathan Baird, IndyStar: Purdue 83, Texas 76
The Boilers need a big game from their bigs against an opponent which thrives on interior scoring and offensive rebounding. This may also be decided by which defense with a marginal track record all season maintains a recent trajectory of improvement — and does so without fouling. Purdue’s seniors are playing, and leading, better than ever, and this matchup sets up well for another Elite Eight trip.
Sam King, Journal & Courier: Purdue 84, Texas 73
Texas has had a luxury of facing injury-hampered teams to get to the Sweet 16. If C.J. Cox is good to go, Purdue is fine. If Cox can’t, Purdue will still dance on.
And from the USA TODAY desk:
Purdue vs. Texas odds
Odds courtesy of BetMGM.
Purdue basketball March Madness results. Score of Purdue basketball games in NCAA Tournament
Texas basketball March Madness results. Score of UT basketball games in NCAA Tournament
Purdue vs Texas basketball history
Texas holds a 2-1 edge in the series. Purdue won the most recent meeting in the second round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
Sweet 16 bracket, March Madness schedule
2026 NCAA tournament Sweet 16 March Madness games Thursday, March 26
2026 NCAA tournament Sweet 16 March Madness games Friday, March 27
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This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Purdue basketball vs Texas recap: Trey Kaufman-Renn lifts Boilermakers with last-second tip-in
Reporting by Scott Horner, Nathan Baird, Sam King and Aaron Ferguson, Indianapolis Star / Indianapolis Star
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
