With just under three minutes to play and Texas clinging to a narrow lead, junior forward Dailyn Swain delivered the kind of moment that’s becoming all too familiar for Longhorns fans - the clutch bucket when it matters most. This time, it came in the form of a smooth jumper to stretch the lead to four against South Carolina. But Swain wasn’t done.
On the next possession, after a defensive stand and a rebound from fellow junior forward Camden Heide, Swain found himself in the corner. What followed was a textbook example of timing and chemistry.
Swain took a few steps right, then darted left on a backdoor cut. Heide saw it unfold, fired a crisp pass, and Swain hammered it home with a wide-open dunk.
Just like that, Texas was up six with 2:26 to go - a margin that proved enough to close out an 84-75 win.
“It was a two-point game … and then in two back-to-back plays, we give up a one-on-one attack for a shot at the rim, and then we give up a backdoor dunk,” South Carolina head coach Lamont Paris said postgame. “Two turns to six quickly, and six at that point just doesn’t look as appealing to young people as two does.”
Paris wasn’t wrong. That stretch was the turning point.
Coming in, South Carolina had struggled in conference play, sitting at 2-7. But Texas didn’t exactly come out firing.
The Longhorns, much like they did against Oklahoma, started slow - shooting just 8-of-26 in the first half and holding only a four-point lead at the break. It was a grind early, but Texas found its rhythm when it mattered most.
Swain finished with a double-double - 22 points and 10 boards - and while his late-game execution stood out, this win was far from a one-man show.
Heide, who set up Swain’s dunk, had his own moment in the spotlight midway through the second half. With the game tied, he drilled a corner three with just over 11 minutes left.
Then, on the next trip down, he hit another one - this time from the opposite corner - putting Texas up 56-50. Those two shots helped swing momentum back in Texas’ favor, and Heide finished with 12 points and five rebounds, shooting over 50% from both the field and beyond the arc.
“I’ve just been more aggressive (with) my shot,” Heide said. “That’s something that helps, getting a rhythm the more that I shoot it.
I’m shooting a good percentage, but I think it starts in practice. … If I can be aggressive in practice, that’s going to translate to the game.”
And it did. Heide’s confidence from deep and his awareness on the Swain cut were both critical in the second half.
Graduate guard Tramon Mark also came through in crunch time. With 38 seconds left and Texas looking to put the game on ice, Mark isolated freshman forward EJ Walker, calmly dribbling down the clock.
Then he made his move - a crossover to the right, just enough space, and a high-arching jumper that dropped cleanly through the net. That shot pushed the lead to nine and effectively sealed it.
“It was great to see (Mark) step up and find his rhythm,” head coach Sean Miller said. “We’re much more difficult to defend when he’s scoring as well.
And the other guy that’s just really playing well right now is (Heide). His ability to shoot the ball, his three-point shots when they went to the zone broke the game open.”
This was one of those games where the Longhorns didn’t dominate wire to wire, but they executed when it counted. Swain’s all-around impact, Heide’s timely threes and smart passing, and Mark’s veteran poise down the stretch - it all added up to a win that may not have been pretty for 40 minutes, but was plenty effective when it mattered most.