Texas Longhorns Get Hot From Deep in Win vs. No. 23 NC State at Maui Invitational

Texas Longhorns men's basketball has picked up its biggest win of the season in the first year under head coach Sean Miller.

Jordan Pope finished with 28 points on 7 of 13 from 3-point range and Texas beat No. 23 NC State 102-97 in the final game of the Maui Invitational on Wednesday night at the Lahaina Civic Center.

Pope got hot from distance in the first half and the rest of the team followed suit in the final 20 minutes, as the Longhorns finished 16 of 32 from 3-point range. A 10-0 run by Texas that featured three triples after the eight-minute mark helped the Longhorns close the game out despite 28 points from NC State guard Quadir Copeland.

Multiple Texas Longhorns in Double Figures

Texas Longhorns guard Dailyn Swain rebounds against Rider Broncs guard Caleb Smith during the second half at Moody Center. | Dustin Safranek-Imagn Images

Including Pope, Texas had six players finish in double figures, as Matas Vokietaitis (13 points), Chendall Weaver (17 points, eight rebounds) Camden Heide (11 points) and Simeon Wilcher (12 points) all had productive nights.

Dailyn Swain had another all-around game for Texas, posting 14 points, six rebounds and seven assists. He averaged 18.6 points in the three games in Maui.

NC State showed off its offensive prowess with big games from Ven-Allen Lubin (23 points, nine rebounds) and Paul McNeil Jr. (20 points) while former Texas Tech forward Darrion Williams, who was playing in his third-career game against Texas, had 10 points and four rebounds.

Texas led by as many as 15 in the first half before the Wolfpack battled back to take the lead at 71-70 at the 7:51 mark. This was the last surge NC State had, as the Longhorns followed it up with the aforementioned 10-0 run.

Weaver and Heide came up big during this run for Texas and were crucial to the win down the stretch, as the pair combined for 18 points in the final 10 minutes.

The Longhorns fell down 6-0 early before building a 10-point lead at 35-25 after a two-handed slam from Swain at the 4:48 mark. Pope did most of the work before that, hitting four 3s in the 15 minutes prior.

4/4 from deep to reach double figures for @jpope0 🤘#HookEm pic.twitter.com/XG0h3eteop
— Texas Men’s Basketball (@TexasMBB) November 27, 2025

Another Swain dunk gave Texas its biggest lead of 15 at 1:33 before halftime but a triple from McNeil Jr. in the final seconds cut the lead to 10 at the break.

The Wolfpack battled back to begin the second half thanks to Lubin, who had nine of NC State's first 13 points coming out of the locker room. NC State guard Alyn Breed then hit a running layup to give the Wolfpack its first lead of the second half at 71-70 with 7:51 to play.

The two sides fought back and forth from this point, though multiple missed free throws from NC State during this stretch proved crucial toward halting the Wolfpack's momentum. However, Texas took advantage and followed this up with the 10-0 run and never looked back.

The Longhorns will look for another quality win once they return to Austin to face Virginia on Dec. 3 at the Moody Center.