Cliffs Notes: NC State dominated the Longhorns in the first half to such a degree that not even playing better in the second half matter, as the Wolfpack won 76-66 to advance to the Final Four.
The Participants: No.1 Texas (33-5) and No.3 NC State (31-6)
Game MVP: Freshman Madison Booker led the Longhorns with 17 points, grabbed 5 rebounds and dished out 5 assists, but shot only 8 of 21 from the floor, which says a lot about the kind of game it was for the Longhorns.
Key Stretch: The Wolfpack went on a 17-2 run in the second quarter that turned a 3-point game into an 18-point game.
First Half Failure: It's pretty simple... just take a look at the Texas triple slash shooting splits: 34.1/33.3/50.0. Now take a look at NC State's line: 48.3/66.7/69.2. It doesn't take a smart person to figure out why the Longhorns lost the first half by 12 points.
Three-Point Disadvantage: Texas made only 1 of 5 from downtown, while NC State hit 9 of 18 shots behind the arc, which means the Longhorns were beaten 27-3 on points off of 3-point shots.
One more ugly stat: NC State had a 16-3 edge in fast-break points.
Next Up: No one. The season ends here.
