Charlie Partheymuller
Senior guard Tramon Mark hits the game winning layup against the Texas A&M Aggies on Jan. 25, 2025. Mark ended the game with 11-points and completed a 22-point comeback for the Longhorns.
With three seconds left on the clock, graduate guard Tramon Mark took a layup to the basket and put the Longhorns ahead for the first time in the Texas-Texas A&M game.
The crowd erupted.
“Defense!” was the clamor of the burnt orange in the stands just an hour before as the maroon cheered for every Aggie layup. It was a quiet first half for the Longhorns, who struggled to encroach upon No. 13 Texas A&M’s sturdy defense and spent most of the first 20 minutes attempting threes and blocking relentless Aggie balls.
“They challenged (us) from a physical standpoint,” Texas head coach Rodney Terry said. “They’re older, a pre-connected team (that’s) been playing pretty well together.”
Apart from a few drives from freshman guard Tre Johnson and graduate guard Julian Larry, Texas could not make any headway into Aggie territory. The score was 25–43 as the Longhorns walked back into the locker room.
“Going in at halftime, we knew we couldn’t go out like that, so that was a focal point of coming out in the second half,” Johnson said. “Just being aggressive. Don’t let the fans down. Don’t let each other down.”
When they walked back out, it was as if a new team had taken their places on the court. Somewhere in the 20 minutes between, a fire had been lit underneath Texas, and determination had sprung in the nearly 20-point deficit.
“You take a punch, you get knocked down on the back,” Terry said. “We got knocked down at the half, and we got up. You’ve got to get up the rest of your life.”
An early dunk from sophomore forward Devon Pryor brought the team and the crowd back to life. The noise in the Moody Center was deafening as back-and-forth play between the Longhorns and Aggies ensued until another dunk from graduate forward Kadin Shedrick, assisted by Johnson, pushed A&M into a timeout.
Several second-half fouls from the Aggies, two technical, gave Texas a chance to take control of the game. Johnson made all 10 of his free points, marking a season-high of 30 points during the game.
The physicality of the game made it almost entirely defensive. After giving the Aggies control throughout the first half, Texas took the reins in the second and aimed to play scrappier.
“Guys were just dialed in on defense,” Mark said. “We came out real physical, bumping, scrapping, scratching, just doing anything we could to get a defensive stop.”
Slowly but surely, Texas crept back up to match A&M while keeping key players, like graduate guard Wade Taylor IV, from the ball. Taylor only scored 15 points, his average per game for this current season, which is down from an average of 36 points per game in 2023-24.
The score sat at 63–67 in the final two minutes. The arena vibrated with the stomping feet of fans, Aggies and Longhorns alike, cheering louder with each turnover and shot taken.
Rebounding a missed Aggie layup, Mark assisted Johnson for a three to bring the score to 67–63. A second rebound brought the ball back to the Longhorns, who promptly took a time-out with 22 seconds left on the clock.
The noise in the arena was deafening through the whole 30-second timeout.
Back on the court, the five traded and dribbled the ball down the sides as every person stood still with bated breath. With just three seconds to spare, Mark sank the double, simultaneously sending the Longhorns to a 70–69 victory — a huge step for a team that suffered four conference losses within the last three weeks.
“We’re figuring out ways to win games,” Johnson said. “Just sticking together, keep defending and trying to rebound, and (having) the will to want to win. I feel like that’s what we needed and we’re starting to get that.”
Missing two key players, junior guard Chendall Weaver and senior forward Arthur Kaluma, the Longhorns were not slated as favorites in the rematch against A&M. In their last meeting, Texas was beaten with a huge loss of 60–80.
“(We) were playing with two of my better players out of the top six rotations out. But you know what? You still gotta find a way,” Terry said. “All you want in life is an opportunity. Are you prepared for an opportunity to present itself?”
Texas next plays Ole Miss on Jan. 29 in Oxford, Mississippi, at 8 p.m.