Big 12 Basketball

The Texas Longhorns are reportedly removing the interim tag fo head coach Rodney Terry and rewarding him with a long-term contract to lead the men's basketball team.

According to Jeff Goodman of Stadium, the Big 12 program and Terry agreed Monday on a five-year deal that will keep him in place to try to build on the momentum he generated with a strong finish to the 2022-23 campaign.

Kirk Bohls of the Austin American-Statesman reported the deal is worth $15.3 million.

This was anything but a surprise since Chip Brown of 247Sports cited "a high-level university source" Sunday who said the offer for Terry was coming.

Brown noted a number of Texas players advocated on the coach's behalf following their Elite Eight loss to Miami, including forward Dillon Mitchell.

"I'd vouch for RT any day," Mitchell said. "Not only because of the coach he is on the court but because of the man he is off the court. He shows you how much he loves you and cares about you. After the game, you could see it in his face. You could see the emotion in his face about how proud he was of us."

Terry was previously an assistant coach for the program under Rick Barnes before he was the head coach at Fresno State from 2011-12 through 2017-18 and UTEP from 2018-19 through 2020-21.

Texas brought him back as associate head coach under Chris Beard and then gave him the interim head coaching position when it fired Beard in January.

Beard was arrested on a third-degree felony charge of assault by strangulation, family violence, though the charge was dropped. Ole Miss hired him as its men's basketball coach earlier this month.

It wasn't the easiest situation for Terry to step into as the interim coach, but he found immediate success and led the Longhorns to a 22-8 record and Big 12 tournament title. Their 20-point victory over Kansas in the conference tournament championship game was one of the most impressive wins of the season.

Texas then reached the Elite Eight with NCAA tournament wins over Colgate, Penn State and Xavier, though its Big Dance run came to an end when it lost a 13-point second-half lead to the Hurricanes on Sunday.

Terry had the Longhorns one win from their first Final Four in 20 years and now has five years to build the program in his image.

The Texas Longhorns men's basketball team's season came to a disappointing end with Sunday's loss to Miami in the Elite Eight, but interim head coach Rodney Terry will reportedly receive some good news in the near future.

According to Chip Brown of 247Sports, a "high-level university source" said the plan is for Texas to offer Terry the permanent coaching job and perhaps make an announcement as soon as Tuesday.

"Rodney Terry stepped up and did an amazing, classy job leading this program and absolutely deserves this opportunity," the source said.

Jeff Goodman of Stadium weighed in as well:

Terry took over the position when Texas fired Chris Beard in January after he was arrested on a third-degree felony charge of family violence.

In February, Katie Hall and Thomas Jones of the Austin American-Statesman reported the Travis County district attorney's office dropped the felony domestic violence charge. Ole Miss has since hired Beard as its men's basketball head coach.

As for Terry, he led the Longhorns to a 22-8 record in 30 games and also directed a run to the Big 12 tournament championship. Texas defeated Kansas by 20 points in a dominant performance in the tournament's championship game.

That gave the team plenty of momentum heading into the Big Dance, and it parlayed that into victories over Colgate, Penn State and Xavier to reach the Elite Eight. It seemed like it would reach its first Final Four in 20 years when it built a double-digit lead over Miami in Sunday's contest, but the Hurricanes came charging back for the comeback win.

It wasn't the end the team was looking for, but it was still an impressive run under Terry.

Brown noted Dylan Disu, Dillon Mitchell, Arterio Morris and Timmy Allen were among the players who advocated for Terry to keep the job after the loss.

"I'd vouch for RT [Terry] any day," Mitchell said. "Not only because of the coach he is on the court but because of the man he is off the court. He shows you how much he loves you and cares about you. After the game, you could see it in his face. You could see the emotion in his face about how proud he was of us."

It seems like those players are going to get their wish.

Texas forward Dylan Disu will sit out Sunday's NCAA men's basketball tournament game against the Miami Hurricanes with a bone bruise in his left foot.

Disu left Texas' 83-71 Sweet Sixteen win over the Xavier Musketeers on Friday early and returned to the bench wearing a walking boot. Before the injury, he averaged 22.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game in the Longhorns' first two March Madness contests.

Texas must have a "next man up" mentality when facing down the Hurricanes without Disu, interim coach Rodney Terry said Saturday.

If the Longhorns can find the depth to win, it will mark the team's first trip to the Final Four in 20 years. Tipoff is at 5:05pm ET.

After contributing 17 points and 10 rebounds to help the Longhorns knock out the Colgate Raiders in the first round of the NCAA tournament, the 6'9" senior enjoyed his best game of the season during Texas' 71-66 second-round win over Penn State on March 18.

Disu led his team with season-high 28 points, and his 14 two-pointers broke a Longhorns record set by Kevin Durant and LaMarcus Aldridge for field goals in a single NCAA tournament game.

It was a stunning breakout for a forward who averaged 8.8 points per game, and only once recorded double-digit field goals, throughout Texas' regular season.

"I feel really confident right now," Disu told reporters after the Penn State game. "I think it comes from the encouragement of Coach Terry and my teammates. They're telling me to continue to do what I'm doing for a couple weeks now, and they believe in me."

Disu, whose early college career at Vanderbilt was limited by injuries, suffered the bone bruise prior to Friday's contest against Xavier, CBS reported. He only played two minutes before exiting the game.

Forward Christian Bishop should start for Texas against Miami. During Disu's absence on Friday, Bishop stepped up to record 18 points and snagged nine rebounds to help the Longhorns reach the Elite Eight.

The No. 2 seed Texas Longhorns continued its dominant run in the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament with an emphatic 83-71 victory over the No. 3 Xavier Musketeers on Friday in the Sweet Sixteen.

Texas stormed to a 42-25 halftime lead and never looked back thanks in part to guard Marcus Carr, who scored 15 of his 18 points in the first half. Backcourt mate Tyrese Hunter led all Texas scorers with 19 points.

Longhorn reserves Christian Bishop and Sir'Jabari Rice came off the bench to score 18 and 16 points, respectively.

It was a remarkable performance from a team missing big man Dylan Disu, who came into the game with a reported bone bruise in his left foot and played just one minute.

In a tournament rife with massive upsets, Texas is the highest seed remaining with all four No. 1 seeds and the other three No. 2 seeds out of March Madness.

The Longhorns have won their three games against Colgate, Penn State and Xavier by an average of 12.33 points under the tutelage of interim head coach Rodney Terry, who led Texas to a Big 12 championship after a 76-56 blowout win over Kansas.

Terry took over for former head coach Chris Beard, who was suspended in December and fired in January after being arrested on a felony domestic violence charge, which was dismissed in February.

Terry still carries the interim title, but it's clear that he deserves to be named Texas' full-time head coach after leading the Longhorns deep into this tournament.

The Longhorns could very well win the national championship, and that's something that's never been done before in team history.

Numerous analysts praised Terry and stated that he's earned the job full time.

Texas will now face No. 5 Miami on Sunday in the Elite Eight. A win there would put Texas back into the Final Four for just the first time since 2003 and the second time since 1947.

Watch March Madness Live to stream every tournament game through the Final Four.

Markquis Nowell's historic performance against Michigan State in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament almost didn't happen after the senior guard went down with an ankle injury early in the second half.

He rolled his ankle while driving to the rim and was on the floor for several minutes before getting taped up on the end of the bench and returning to the game.

"It was a scare," Nowell said. "I tweaked it a little bit, but it feels good now. Just been icing it, elevating it, stuff you do with a rolled ankle."

The first-team All-Big 12 guard ended up dropping 20 points and an NCAA tournament-record 19 assists as he drove the Wildcats to the win and an appearance in the Elite Eight.

Now, ahead of Kansas State's matchup against Florida Atlantic on Saturday with a trip to the Final Four in Houston on the line, Nowell said he is feeling about as healthy as he can, with his ankle at about 85 to 90 percent.

Nowell has arguably been the best player in the tournament, as he is averaging 21.3 points, 14.0 assists and 3.7 steals in three tournament games. As a New York native, he'll have one more opportunity to impress in front of his hometown crowd at Madison Square Garden against the Owls.

"You don't shut him down," FAU head coach Dusty May said of Nowell. "You try to make him score inefficiently. You try to challenge every pass, every passing lane with anticipation, with our athleticism. But you don't stop a guy like that. You just hope to make him inefficient on that particular night."

It'll be a tough matchup for the ninth-seeded Owls, who have yet to face a guard as dynamic as Nowell in the tournament. They are not to be underestimated, however, as they just eliminated a talented fourth-seeded Tennessee team for the program's first-ever trip to the Elite Eight.

March Madness is not meant for familiar results. College basketball fans don't flock to their screens to watch the men's NCAA tournament because it diligently follows the script of the regular season.

We want chaos. We want upsets and buzzer-beaters and roller-coaster games. More than anything, we want stories.

And the Kansas State Wildcats are an extraordinary one.

Thanks to a wild, breathtaking 98-93 overtime win over the Michigan State Spartans, their adventure isn't done yet. Markquis Nowell stole the evening with 20 points, an NCAA tournament-record 19 assists and five steals. Keyontae Johnson scored a team-high 22 points, and four other 'Cats netted at least 11 points.

The victory pushed Kansas State into the Elite Eight, one step closer to an improbable national title.

Improbable, as of November, that is.

Kansas State opened the campaign with something close to zero external expectations. In the preseason poll, Big 12 coaches voted the 'Cats to finish last in the league. Based on what happened during the offseason, that forecast certainly wasn't an outlandish view.

In three previous years, K-State finished 11-21, 9-20 and 14-17 with a combined 21-33 record in conference play. The program ended no better than ninth in the 10-team Big 12 in any of those seasons. The long stretch of losing prompted 10-year coach Bruce Weber to resign, although a change of leadership may have happened anyway.

Jerome Tang, a first-time head coach, took over. He assumed control of a flailing program that returned key guard Markquis Nowell, part-time starter Ismael Massoud and nobody else.

Why would that suggest, you know, this?

Sure, the 'Cats leapt into the transfer portal. They brought in Johnson (Florida), Desi Sills (Arkansas State), David N'Guessan (Virginia Tech), Cam Carter (Mississippi State) and Tykei Green (Stony Brook). They also added Nae'Qwan Tomlin from Chipola College.

With the benefit of hindsight, we see the staff's stellar talent identification. But in the moment, the Wildcats—who had nine outgoing transfers and two seniors—were simply filling out a dismantled roster.

Johnson had immense upside, but he collapsed on the court in December 2020, went into a medically induced coma and effectively hadn't played since then. Sills offered some experience, but Green and Tomlin both jumped from a mid-major/lower level. N'Guessan and Carter had simply been role players at their previous stops.

Move ahead to March, and there is nothing surprising.

Kansas State notched a 23-9 record with a third-place finish in a highly competitive league. The team ascended as high as fifth in the AP poll and secured a No. 3 seed for the Big Dance. Knowing their actual performance, the 'Cats aren't a Cinderella and—even as MSU was a slight favorite at many sportsbooks Thursday night—are hardly an underdog.

But they are unexpected.

No program enduring that much turnover in one offseason is supposed to be here. First-year, first-time head coaches so rarely make the Elite Eight. Nowell, a 5'8" guard, isn't close to prototypical size for an All-American playmaker. Johnson quite literally is fortunate to be alive, let alone playing at this level.

Only a stage as beloved as March Madness can magnify Kansas State's journey in an appropriate light. Only a victory as thrilling as a back-and-forth overtime win could properly amplify its impact.

And perhaps it was only fitting that Kansas State's triumph happened in Madison Square Garden—merely the most iconic basketball arena on the planet—against Tom Izzo, a Hall of Fame coach.

What a game. What a story.

And the Wildcats might not be finished yet.

New York City native Markquis Nowell set an NCAA men's tournament record with 19 assists during Kansas State's Sweet 16 overtime win Thursday night at Madison Square Garden.

Nowell fought through a mid-game ankle injury to rack up 20 points, including a buzzer-beating layup that sealed the 98-93 victory over Michigan State and sent Kansas State to the Elite 8 for the first time since 2018.

"This is one was special, in front of my hometown, in front of the city that loves me," Nowell told reporters after the game. "I can't even put into words how blessed and grateful I am."

At 5-foot-8, Harlem native Nowell says he lives by a "heart over height" motto, where passion matters more than stature.

He seemed to prove that on Thursday, when he had to be helped to the sideline after rolling his ankle during the second half of the game. Trainers quickly wrapped the ankle, and Nowell spent minutes limping on the sideline.

Then Nowell returned to the court and, to his hometown crowd's applause, almost immediately hit a three-pointer.

In fact, the most memorable highlights of this career performance came after the injury. During overtime, with the game tied and less than a minute left, Nowell fed Keyontae Johnson with his 18th assist of the night for a reverse alley-oop that brought Kansas State ahead, 94-92.

After Michigan State climbed to within one point of tying the game, Nowell fed Ismael Massoud for a baseline jumper to bring the Wildcats ahead, 96-93, with only 17 seconds remaining. This assist, Nowell's 19th of the game, beat out Mark Wade's 18 assists for UNLV during the 1987 Final Four, for the NCAA tournament record since assists became official in 1984.

To top off his historic evening, Nowell made his fifth steal of the night and scored on a layup to clinch the Wildcats' 98-93 win and complete a performance which will go down in NCAA tournament history.

Markquis Nowell is a baller.

The Kansas State point guard battled through an ankle injury and just so happened to be the best player on the court while doing it, putting up 20 points and setting an NCAA tournament record with 19 assists as 3-seed Kansas State beat 7-seed Michigan State in overtime, 98-93, during Sweet 16 action on Thursday.

Oh, and he had five steals and just two turnovers, too. Tip your cap, America—Nowell just offered one of the most impressive showings you'll ever see.

Watch March Madness Live to stream every tournament game through the Final Four.

This game had a bit of everything—drama, a constant pendulum of lead changes, heroic performances and an overtime session that it absolutely deserved and that more than lived up to the standard set by the first 40 minutes.

Nowell was a huge reason for that, as he continued to dish out brilliant dimes and come up with key buckets while leading Kansas State to its first Elite Eight appearance since 2018.

And college basketball Twitter was absolutely loving the gritty performance:

Nowell wasn't alone, with Keyontae Johnson chipping in 22 points and six boards. That spoiled excellent efforts from Michigan State's Joey Hauser (18 points, six boards) and A.J. Hoggard (25 points, six assists).

Regardless of the outcome, Nowell was going to be the story. When the smallest player on the court has the biggest impact—while battling through injury, no less—he's naturally going to draw the focus. It was the sort of performance that March legends are made of, and the sort of showing that makes the NCAA tournament one of the truly special events in all of sports.

As for Kansas State's, fending off the March magic of Tom Izzo means they'll be waiting on either Tennessee or FAU in the Elite Eight, with a berth in the Final Four at stake. The Wildcats haven't reached a Final Four since 1964.

If Nowell has more brilliance in him, that streak is going to come to an end. Don't bet against him.

The Baylor Bears have joined a growing list of top-seeded teams to be eliminated before the Sweet 16.

No. 3 Baylor was upset by the No. 6 Creighton Bluejays 85-76 on Sunday in the second round of the NCAA tournament, marking the team's second successive second-round exit.

Creighton was impressive from start to finish, but a 39-29 halftime lead helped power the Bluejays to victory.

Sophomore guard Ryan Nembhard led the team with 30 points, two rebounds, two assists and two steals. Creighton also had three other players in its starting five score 10-plus points.

The Bears were impressive offensively, led by junior guard LJ Cryer, who finished with 30 points, two rebounds and one assist. However, it wasn't enough as the team continued its poor defensive play and showed a lack of desire against the Bluejays.

Following Baylor's loss, college basketball fans on Twitter blasted the Bears for their lack of effort on Sunday night:

Considering this year's Baylor squad struggled mightily on defense, that's arguably the biggest area the team needs improve during the offseason.

Creighton, meanwhile, will move on to face No. 15 Princeton in the Sweet 16. The Tigers have had an impressive run, beating No. 2 Arizona and No. 7 Missouri.

Watch March Madness Live to stream every tournament game through the Final Four.

The second-seeded Texas Longhorns faced a stiff test in the second round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament against the 10th-seeded Penn State Nittany Lions, but an unlikely hero stepped up in Dylan Disu to power the team to a 71-66 win.

Disu scored 28 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to spearhead the victory, which pushed the Longhorns to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2008. He shot 14-of-20 from the field and broke Kevin Durant's program record for most field goals in an NCAA tournament game.

The senior forward entered Saturday's matchup averaging just 8.5 points per game this season. He's upped his play as of late, as this was his fifth straight game scoring in double figures.

Fans on Twitter were blown away by Disu's performance as he put Texas on his back on Saturday:

During the NCAA tournament, teams need significant contributions from not only their star players but also their role players if they hope to make a deep run.

Disu gave Texas just that, and he could be the key to powering the team to a potential national title if he continues playing like this.

The Longhorns will face No. 3 Xavier or No. 11 Pitt in the Sweet 16.

Watch March Madness Live to stream every tournament game through the Final Four.