Texas basketball earned a “dangerous” label by head coach Sean Miller after eliminating BYU. Now the Longhorns toppled their highest seeded foe yet in Gonzaga Saturday. All thanks to Camden Heide burying the Bulldogs with a soul-snatching 3-pointer.
"HOW SWEET IT IS TO BE A LONGHORN" 🤘@TexasMBB DANCES ON TO THE SWEET 16 🕺#MarchMadness pic.twitter.com/Arb6sfDgRe
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 22, 2026
The West Coast Conference power left Heide all alone and buried the Bulldogs' national title hopes. It even became the only points of the night from him.
He described the “catch-and-shoot” moment inside the locker room while flashing a smile.
Here’s Texas forward Cam Heide on his three to send the Longhorns to the Sweet 16. pic.twitter.com/QgFTfEaBd9
— Eric C. Henry (@EricCHenry_) March 22, 2026
But was there ever a thought about Miller subbing out Heide before that basket went off?
Texas HC Sean Miller explains Cam Heide approach
Miller needed his best shooters on the floor. His own players acknowledged postgame that the head coach deserves credit for keeping the sharp-shooting forward in the game.
“The way I saw it was, on the last possession of the game, just to have that other guy out there who's capable and in Cam's case, he's the best 3-point shooter…to not have him in there, I just didn't think it made any sense,” Miller said.
The decision paid off as Heide stuck the dagger into the No. 3 seed.
“I don't think anybody deserves to make that shot more than him,” Miller added.
Heide, again, settled for just three points through 13 minutes on the floor. But four Longhorns scaled the double-digit mark for points: Matas Vokietaitis (17 points), Jordan Pope (also 17), Nic Codie (12) and Dailyn Swain (11).
The Southeastern Conference representative entered the 68-team field as a play-in. Now they've toppled a Big 12 power and a favorite to play in the Final Four. The “dangerous” label grows for the ‘Horns. Miller becomes the first coach in Austin to take the ‘Horns past the second round in his debut season since Harold Bradley in 1959-60. Heide staying in became a wise decision on the head coach's end.
