March Madness: Trey Kaufman-Renn’s tip-in basketball leads Purdue to Elite Eight

The Cinderella story of the Texas Longhorns, who are seeded 11th in the NCAA Tournament, came to a heartbreaking end Thursday night when Trey Kaufman-Renn tipped in with 0.7 seconds left on the clock. No. 2 Purdue took a 79-77 lead to advance to the Elite Eight.

This Sweet 16 matchup between a team that needed to play in the Top Four to start the tournament and a team that was top-seeded in March Madness was a thriller until the end.

The Longhorns’ Dailyn Swain made a clutch layup with 11 seconds left, giving him the opportunity to tie the game at 77 points if he makes the free throw. He did it with the pressure on, but the Boilermakers had 11 seconds to get on the field and possibly win the game.

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It was Braden Smith who found his way to the lane and made his own layup. But there was no proper English on the glass as the ball began to roll off the rim.

But under the basket, Kaufman-Renn made the game-winning basket, giving herself 20 total points to help Purdue advance and keep its tournament dreams alive.

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However, there was some speculation on social media that Kaufman-Renn’s header, as he grabbed the arm of a Longhorns player who was jostling for a rebound, indicated a possible foul.

Either way, no whistle blew, and while the Boilermakers were celebrating, the Longhorns couldn’t believe their season had ended this way.

Purdue Boilermakers’ Trey Kaufman-Renn makes the game-winning shot against the Texas Longhorns in the second half of the Sweet Sixteen of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at SAP Center on March 26, 2026 in San Jose, California. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

There was a mutual game on the field for 40 minutes and both teams took the lead, especially in the second half. While the largest lead any team had was Purdue by just seven points, Texas’ lead was never more than four points.

But that was because both teams were shooting well; Texas made 52% of its shots (29/56) while Purdue made 48% (30/62).

A closer look at the box score shows that all of the Boilermakers’ starters had at least 10 points, while Fletcher Loyer (18) and Braden Smith (16) did crucial work in the backcourt to help the winning cause.

Meanwhile, Texas’ Tramon Mark went all out from the field, scoring 29 points on 11/15 shooting, including 5/7 from beyond the arc. Swain also just missed a double-double with 9 rebounds and 5 assists.

Purdue Boilermakers’ Trey Kaufman-Renn celebrates with teammates after making the game-winning shot against the Texas Longhorns in the second half of the Sweet Sixteen of the 2026 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at SAP Center on March 26, 2026 in San Jose, California. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

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Purdue now looks to the winner of Arkansas and Arizona to see who it must play to earn a spot in this year’s Final Four, which will be played at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

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