3 Takeaways From Texas Longhorns' Thrilling March Madness Win vs. NC State

The Texas Longhorns will keep on dancing for a little bit longer in the NCAA Tournament.

Taking on the NC State Wolfpack in the First Four on Tuesday night, it was a close matchup throughout the night in Dayton, and the Longhorns survived, winning 68-66 to continue their participation in the NCAA Tournament.

The Longhorns now have a ticket punched to the West Region, as the No. 11 seed taking on the No. 6-seeded BYU Cougars, with the Round of 64 battle set for Thursday. Taking a look at the Longhorns' win in the First Four, here are three takeaways from Texas extending its season.

Tramon Mark Has the Clutch Gene

Texas Longhorns guard Tramon Mark shoots the ball over NC State Wolfpack forward Darrion Williams. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

The Longhorns were going to have to be all hands on deck if they wanted to extend their season past the First Four round, especially needing big performances from the veteran backcourt duo of Tramon Mark and Jordan Pope.

And Mark delivered exactly what the Longhorns needed, finishing the night as the team's leading scorer with 17 points, shooting 50 percent from the field and two of five from beyond the arc, along with five rebounds, two assists, two steals and two blocks.

Mark’s biggest bucket of the game was obviously the game-winning shot he made with less than two seconds left on the game clock. It’s not the first time Mark comes up big in crunch time for the burnt orange with big shots against the Texas A&M Aggies down the stretch in the Lone Star Showdown this season and a game-winning shot last year against the Aggies.

NC State Didn’t get Hot from Three

The Wolfpack were one of the best three-point shooting teams in the nation, heading into the Tuesday night matchup, shooting 38.8 percent from beyond the arc, which ranked No. 11 in the country.

Also, NC State had averaged 10.4 three-pointers per game heading into the night, which ranked tied for second most per game in the ACC.

Against the Longhorns, however, those shots largely weren’t falling as the Wolfpack shot 37.5 percent from the field, just a bit below its season average, and made just six shots from beyond the arc in 16 attempts, falling very short of its season averages.

Chendall Weaver Puts in a Shift

Texas Longhorns guard Chendall Weaver shoots the ball in the second half against the NC State Wolfpack. | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Chendall Weaver has been the heart and soul of the Longhorns team throughout the season for the effort and energy he puts in when he is on the floor, and that showed out against the Wolfpack in the Longhorns' win.

Coming off the bench and in 27 minutes, Weaver put together a double-double with 11 points while shooting three of five from the field, along with 10 rebounds, four of which were on the offensive side of the court, as well as two steals and an assist.