Texas Longhorns Collapse vs. Xavier in First Four, Eliminated from NCAA Tournament

The Texas Longhorns 2024-25 season has officially come to an end.

Zach Dimmitt | Mar 20, 2025

Mar 19, 2025; Dayton, OH, USA; The Texas Longhorns huddle together before the game against the Xavier Musketeers at UD Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images / Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

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The Texas Longhorns men's basketball program's NCAA Tournament dreams have ended as quickly as they began.

Marcus Foster had a career-high 22 points as Xavier overcame a second-half deficit No. 11 Texas blew a second-half lead at the First Four in Dayton on Wednesday, bowing out to the Xavier Musketeers in an 86-80 loss. Both the Tre Johnson and Rodney Terry era at Texas officially come to an end with the defeat, as a coaching search could begin in Austin this offseason.

The Longhorns had control of the game throughout but were at the mercy it was a late flurry from Xavier and a clutch bucket from forward Zach Freemantle (15 points) with 1:48 to play put the Musketeers up 80-78, a lead they didn't relinquish.

Johnson had a game-high 23 points along with six rebounds while Tramon Mark had 16 points and five assists. Texas had a 13-point lead in the first half and led by as many as 10 with 13 minutes to play.

Mar 19, 2025; Dayton, OH, USA; Texas Longhorns forward Devon Pryor (22) plays the ball defended by Xavier Musketeers guard Dayvion McKnight (20) in the first half at UD Arena. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images / Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images

Kadin Shedrick added 11 points and seven rebounds while Chendall Weaver had seven points, three rebounds and three steals.

Xavier also got 11 points from both Ryan Conwell and Dailyn Swain while Dante Maddox Jr. added 10 points off the bench. Rallying from 13 down marked the team's largest overcome deficit of the season.

The Musketeers got open for a few early triples from Conwell and Maddox Jr. to take an 8-5 lead but Texas quickly started to take control of the first half thanks in large part to the hustle of Weaver. He dove on multiple loose balls and got the rim with little hesitation.

After subbing in at the 15:58 mark before returning to the bench at 11:59, Weaver had two driving layups, two steals, a rebound and a assist. His play combined with triples from Johnson, Mark and Shedrick gave the Longhorns a 23-13 lead after the under-12 timeout.

A 7-0 run a few minutes later put Texas up 30-17 but the Musketeers didn't let things get out of hand and continued to deliver a few blows of their own. Conwell picked up his third foul at the 5:25 mark but two triples from Hunter in the final minutes kept the deficit within range. Mark hit a tough turnaround jumper at the buzzer before halftime as Texas led 47-39. He had 11 points at the half while Johnson had 10.

For Xavier, Freemantle did a solid job of avoiding his third foul with Conwell on the bench. The Muskeeteers traded enough baskets with the Longhorns to stay in reach despite a half that couldn't have gone much better for Texas.

With the crowd at its back, Xavier came out of halftime with a momentum swing thanks to Freemantle. He had a powerful dunk and a catch-and-shoot 3-pointer along with finding Dailyn Swain for a cutting bucket at the rim.

Xavier came out with a few more swings from Freemantle but Texas answered with a triple from Johnson at the 13:14 mark to put the Longhorns up 62-52.

With a chance the put the game away down the stretch, the Longhorns instead slowly started to crumble. Foster got hot from behind the arc and Hunter finally made it a tied game at 65 with 8:10 left. Foster and Johnson traded back-to-back triples but it was a risky 3-pointer from John Hugley IV with 5:07 to play that gave Xavier a 75-74 advantage, its first lead since early in the first half.

A layup from Jayson Kent tied things up at 78 with 2:53, but the Longhorns were unable to snatch back the lead. Freemantle's go-ahead shot from the block gave the Musketeers an 80-78 lead. Johnson had a chance to tie the game with a pair of free throws but missed the second.

Trailing 82-79 with 23 seconds left, Texas' fate was sealed when a triple from Freemantle bounced off the backboard and into the hands of Swain, who put in the layup for a five-point lead.

Texas heads into the offseason expected to look for a new head coach.