Cliffs Notes: No.5 Texas held off a frisky No.16 Kansas State 71-64 in the final minute to advance to the Big 12 Tournament title game, where the Longhorns will face an Iowa State team that destroyed Oklahoma on Monday in the other semi-final in Kansas City.
The Participants: No.3 Texas (29-4, 14-4 Big 12) and No.16 Kansas State (25-7, 13-5 Big 12)
Pre-Game NET Rankings: Texas (No.3) and Kansas State (No. 15)
Pre-Game RPI Rankings: Texas (No.7) and Kansas State (No.18)
Game MVP: There wasn't a true star performance over four quarters, but Shay Holle was a star in the final 75 seconds, making a three-pointer with 1:13 left to break a 61-61 tie and then following that up with a lay-up with 36 left to give the Longhorns a 66-61 lead that it never relinquished. Holle finished with 11 points on 4 of 7 shooting.
Hot Start: The Longhorns went on a 7-0 run to close at the first quarter that allowed them to take a double-digit lead (24-14) into the second quarter. The Wildcats were able to close the gap to 5 or 6 at various points throughout the next two quarters, but the Longhorns were able to keep them at arm's reach with a lead throughout until the middle of the fourth quarter.
Madison Booker Watch: The star freshman led the Longhorns with 17 points and 3 assists, while navigating the final moments of the game with four fouls.
Tough Day at the Office: Taylor Jones finished with more fouls (3) than she did rebounds (0), shots attempted (2), blocks (0) or steals (0). She only scored her 3rd and 4th points of the game on free throws in the final seconds of the game.
Worth Mentioning: Five players finished in double-figures scoring: Booker (17), Aaliyah Moore (14), Holle (11), Shayleee Gonzales (10 and Deyona Gaston (10).
ESPN Bracketology: The Longhorns probably lost its chance to be a No.1 seed this weekend when USC beat likely No.1 seed Stanford in the final of the Pac-12 Tournament Championship. It means that there's a very, very good chance that Texas and USC will be the No.1 and No.2 seeds in the same region, no matter what happens in the Big 12 Tournament Championship game.
