First Look: Purdue’s Sweet 16 Opponents

For the seventh time in the last nine NCAA Tournaments, Purdue will play in the Sweet 16. Purdue rolled past Queens 101-74 in the first round before surviving a 79-69 scare against Miami.

Now, the Boilermakers will head to the West Regional in San Jose, Calif. for their Sweet 16 matchup with Texas and a possible Elite Eight showdown with Arizona or Arkansas.

11 SEED TEXAS LONGHORNS 21-14 (9-9 SEC)

Texas schedule/results | Texas roster | Texas stats

The lone double-digit seed to advance to the second weekend, Texas won three games in five days last week to reach this point. It needed a late basket to edge North Carolina State in the First Four before handling BYU in the first round. Then, Purdue transfer Camden Heide’s three-pointer lifted the Longhorns past Gonzaga in the second round.

Purdue and Texas need no introduction to one another in the NCAA Tournament. Though the two programs have met just six times in history, four of those came in the NCAA Tournament. Second-seeded Purdue fell just short against a 10th-seeded Texas squad in Indianapolis’ RCA Dome in 1990, but Purdue returned the favor in Boston in the 1999 first round.

Gene Keady’s final NCAA Tournament game took place in 2003’s second round, where a top-seeded Texas squad trailed Purdue at halftime before downing the Boilermakers on their way to the Final Four. And, in 2022, a late three-pointer by Jaden Ivey helped Purdue hold off Texas in a second round matchup in Milwaukee.

Expect to hear about the Heide storyline early and often. He averages 22 minutes per game, scoring 5.9 points and adding 2.6 rebounds. The Minnesota native broke through from deep this season, though, shooting 46% from three on respectable volume.

6-8 forward Dailyn Swain will present a challenge for the Boilermakers, as he’s a capable three-point shooter who can attack off the bounce. Swain leads the Longhorns in scoring and rebounding. Lithiuanian big man Matas Vokietaitis has excelled early on in the Big Dance, and guards Tramon Mark and Jordan Pope will get their fair share of shot attempts.

An efficient offense helps Texas win, as it enters the second weekend rated 15th nationally in offensive efficiency per KenPom. While it shoots well enough from both two and three-point range, Texas gets to the free-throw line as frequently as anyone in the nation. Purdue and Texas both prefer a half-court offense style of game, so a slower tempo should be expected.

Defensively, the metrics don’t paint as pretty a picture for Texas. The Longhorns rarely force turnovers, and opponents get to the free-throw line at a high rate.

Texas finished 9-9 in SEC league play and lost in the first round of the SEC Tournament to Ole Miss. On Selection Sunday, it reached the tournament as the third-to-last team in the field.

As of Sunday evening, sportsbooks favored the Boilermakers by 8.5 points. The game tips off at 7:10 p.m. EDT on Thursday evening and will air on CBS.

1 SEED ARIZONA WILDCATS 34-2 (16-2 BIG 12)

Arizona schedule/results | Arizona roster | Arizona stats

Arizona enters the Sweet 16 tied with Duke for the best record in the country at 34-2. Winners of both the regular season and conference tournament, the Wildcats rolled through a strong Big 12 with ease.

Both offensive and defensive efficiency numbers place Arizona inside the top five nationally, as elite length and size help the Wildcats stifle opponents. Arizona’s defense allows opponents to shoot below 44% from two-point range and just 31% from deep.

Though one might expect high turnover generation from the length that Arizona puts on the floor, it rates just middle of the pack. Arizona embraces a defense that forces opponents to take tough two-point field goals and dominates on the glass.

An anomaly in this era of basketball, the Wildcats rarely shoot three-pointers. Just 26.7% of Arizona’s field goal attempts come from long range. Only two teams in Division I attempt fewer threes than the Wildcats.

Former five-star freshmen Brayden Burries and Koa Peat lead the team in scoring, averaging nearly 30 combined points per game. While the 6-8 Peat rarely shoots from outside, 6-4 Burries can score at every level. Both appear likely to become NBA Draft picks over the summer with high-level ability.

Point guard Jaden Bradley won Big 12 Player of the Year honors, a true weapon on both ends of the floor.

By playing inside so much, Arizona gets to the foul line at one of the nation’s best rates. Once there, they shoot respectably well. Arizona plays at a fast tempo, maximizing its opportunities to distance itself from opponents.

The two losses came by a combined seven points to Kansas and Texas Tech. Aside from the back-to-back losses, it has been domination from the Wildcats, although Utah State put up a scare.

4 SEED ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS 28-8 (13-5 SEC)

Arkansas schedule/results | Arkansas roster | Arkansas stats

Led by John Calipari, Arkansas reached the Sweet 16 for the second straight year. The Razorbacks raced past Hawaii in the first round before surviving a shootout against High Point to reach the second weekend.

Playing at one of the nation’s fastest tempos, Arkansas boasts one of the nation’s best offenses. Nobody turns the ball over less frequently than Arkansas. Despite shooting three-pointers at a low frequency, the offense remains ranked among the top in the country.

Fresh off a 36-point outburst, Darius Acuff Jr. leads the team in scoring, averaging 23.3 points per game. A soon-to-be lottery pick, the true freshman offers dynamic scoring ability from all three levels. He can take over a game on his own.

Meleek Thomas and Trevon Brazil join him to build a lethal offense, both strong three-point shooters who can score inside.

Arkansas does lack on the defensive end, however. Opponents shoot very well from two-point range and can get to the basket too easily at times, and Arkansas doesn’t force turnovers at a high clip. A positive? the Razorback defense blocks lots of shots, as impressive positional size impacts opposing shooters.

While Arizona will be rightfully favored when the two meet on Thursday, Arkansas’ length and offensive ability will give it a chance against any opponent it faces. The question will remain if it can get enough stops to create a margin, or if Arkansas must out-score its opponents in shootout fashion.