Texas Longhorns vs. Purdue Boilermakers: Winner to the Sweet 16

The Texas Longhorns advanced to the Round of 32 for the first time since 2014 on Friday, and will now face the Purdue Boilermakers on Sunday with the winner advancing to the Sweet 16.

Inside Texas gives a brief rundown of what you need to know headed into Sunday.

Texas Longhorns and Chris Beard

No. 6 seed Texas Longhorns (22-11) vs. No. 3 seed Purdue (28-7)

Sunday, March 20 tipoff at 8:40pm ET

Pomeroy Ratings for Texas:

Adjusted Offense No. 26

Adjusted Defense No. 13

The Longhorns are 6-9 vs. NCAA Tournament teams

Texas is 1-4 vs. No. 1 seeds (Gonzaga, Kansas and Baylor), 1-2 vs. No. 3 seeds (Texas Tech and Tennessee) and 4-3 vs. No. 8-11 seeds (TCU, Iowa State, Seton Hall and Virginia Tech)

Three and D is the key

Texas’ 81-73 win over Virginia Tech was the first game with 10 made three-pointers this season. 

The Longhorns headed into the NCAA Tournament shooting 30.5% from three against high-major opponents. Texas was better in road and neutral games from three, at 33.5%. The team had only posted three games of 40% or more from three out of 23 such games. The game at West Virginia was the lone game at 50% on the season. 

In the 14 games against NCAA Tournament teams headed into the tournament, Texas shot a paltry 29.8% from the three-point line (84-282). Important to note that home and road/neutral tell two different stories. The Longhorns couldn’t hit water from a boat in Austin. In six games, Texas converted just 24.6% from three (30-122). On the road and at neutral sites, Texas hit 33.8% (54-160) in eight games. 

Adding in the 10-19 performance in the Round of 64 victory, the Longhorns have shot 35.8% (64-179) road and neutral. The percentage goal for this team has sat at 37-38% all season. Texas’ last four road/neutral games against the tournament field have yielded 40.5% (32-79). 

Purdue’s three-point defense ranks No. 172 (of 350) in college basketball, surrendering 33.3%. 

Chris Beard in the NCAA Tournament

Beard is now 5-0 in Round of 64 games with the 81-73 win over Virginia Tech. 

Little Rock (1-0)

Texas Tech (3-0)

Texas (1-0)

Beard is 2-2 in round of 32 games headed into Sunday nights contest against Purdue. 

Little Rock (No. 12 seed) lost to No. 4 seed Iowa State 78-61 in 2016.

Texas Tech (No. 3 seed) beat No. 6 seed Florida 69-66 in 2018

Texas Tech (No. 3 seed) beat No. 6 seed Buffalo 78-58 in 2019

Beard is 2-0 vs. Purdue in the NCAA Tournament:

Little Rock (No. 12 seed) beat Purdue (No. 5 seed) 85-83 (2 OT) in 2016. 

Texas Tech (N. 3 seed) beat Purdue (No. 2 seed) 78-65 in 2018.

Matt Painter in the NCAA Tournament

Painter is in his 13th season at Purdue. He has a career record of 16-13 in the NCAA Tournament, including 16-12 at Purdue. He is now 10-4 in the Round of 64 with the 76-56 win over Yale Friday. Painter has a record of 5-4 in the Round of 32. 

Purdue is 13-7 vs. the NCAA Tournament field

Beat North Carolina 93-84

Win over Villanova 80-74

Beat Wright State 

Split with Rutgers

Went 0-2 against Wisconsin (Texas likes this)

Beat Illinois twice

Was 1-1 against Indiana

Went 2-1 against Iowa

Beat Ohio State in only meeting

Was 1-1 against Michigan (82-58 worst loss of season, and only time under 60 points all season)

Went 1-1 against Michigan State

Beat Yale 76-56 in round of 64

What to know about Purdue

Boilermakers sophomore 6-foot-4 guard Jaden Ivey is a projected lottery selection in the 2022 NBA Draft. Ivey is averaging 17.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 3.1 assists and one steal per game this season. He converts 46.2% from the field, 36.1% from three (61-169) and 73.7% from the free throw line. He has 14 games of 20 points or more this season, including the last three in a row. 

Keeping 6-foot-5 senior guard Sasha Stefanovic from getting clean looks will be crucial. He has hit just nine of 40 from three in the Boilermakers seven losses. He’s a 43% three-point shooter with 75 makes in the 28 wins. 

Senior power forward Trevion Williams is one of the top passing big men in college basketball. He makes the correct read and pass a very high percentage of the time, and averages 3.1 assists per game. 

Purdue is No. 2 in rebound advantage in college basketball at +9.5. The Boilermakers are No. 4 in the country in three-point percentage at 38.9%. Despite having very good size in the front court, Purdue isn’t a great shot blocking team, checking in at No. 130 in the country. For instance, Texas is No. 138 in blocks per game. Purdue shoots 70% from the free throw line. 

Purdue is 25-0 when scoring 70 points or more. 3-7 when held under 70 points.