NCAA-South

Longhorns prove they are best No.1 seed

Texas, the only top team to advance, returns to Final Four after 56 seasons with a 85-76 win over Spartans.

©Associated Press
March 31, 2003

SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- As the final seconds ticked off, Texas' T.J. Ford dribbled to halfcourt, flashed the Hook 'em Horns sign to the crowd and hugged his grinning coach.

The star guard and the rest of the Longhorns can celebrate all the way to the Final Four, the school's first trip in 56 seasons.

Ford scored 19 and had 10 assists in an 85-76 victory over Michigan State in the South Region final Sunday, leaving Texas as the only top-seeded team in the NCAA Tournament.

The Longhorns did it 80 miles from their campus, and in front of a crowd that filled the Alamodome with chants of "Texas Fight" and "Final Four." Texas plays Syracuse on Saturday.

"Watching everyone drop off as one seeds that last couple days, it was just a great moment to know we're going to New Orleans," Ford said about hugging coach Rick Barnes. "I love Coach. It was very important for his career, and our career as players."

The last time the Longhorns played in the Final Four was 1947, when the NCAA Tournament field was eight teams.

Texas' victory means the Big 12 will have two teams in the Final Four for the second season. Kansas, the league's regular-season champion, won the West Region on Saturday.

The loss kept Michigan State from its fourth Final Four in five seasons.

The last time only one No.1 seed made the Final Four was 2000, when top-seeded Michigan State won the title.

"My hat's off to Texas," Spartans coach Tom Izzo said. "I think this (Longhorns) team definitely has a shot."

Texas (26-6) had five players score in double figures. Brandon Mouton had 16, Brian Boddicker 15, Sydmill Harris 12 and Brad Buckman 11. The Longhorns also tied the school record for wins in a season.

Paul Davis led Michigan State (22-13) with 15 points, and Erazem Lorbek had 14 and nine rebounds.

The Spartans had a 38-28 rebounding advantage but couldn't match Texas' 49 percent shooting and 29-for-38 effort from the free-throw line. The Longhorns never trailed after leading 18-16 in the first half, and Michigan State didn't get closer than five in the second.

Texas dictated the fast pace it wanted in the first, shooting 53 percent. Boddicker and Harris combined to hit five 3-pointers to counter the Spartans' 23-11 rebounding advantage.

Izzo had predicted that the game would look like an "old-fashioned fistfight," and it took on the expected physical tone right away.

The Spartans tried to frustrate Ford by closing down the lane on defense and bumping him with larger bodies, especially 6-foot-5, 215-pound guard Kelvin Torbert, who has five inches and 50 pounds on Ford.

The tactic seemed to work. Ford appeared frustrated when he twice tumbled to the floor.

"They were tough," Ford said "They made me work for everything."

Instead of slashing, Ford started looking outside for Boddicker and Harris. Texas twice built 11-point leads, the last at 41-30 on Boddicker's 3-pointer with 3:01 left in the half.

"With T.J.'s penetration, sometimes I get lost in transition," Boddicker said. "I just got some open looks."

The Longhorns led 43-38 at halftime. It was the second-most points Michigan State had given up in the first all season.

The Spartans cut a 10-point Texas lead to 59-54 in the second when Torbert hit his second 3-pointer.

Frequent whistles slowed the pace in the second. The Longhorns were in the shooting bonus with more than 13 minutes to play but couldn't build on it because of the frequent stops. Paul Davis converted a three-point play with 7:59 left, getting Michigan State within five at 66-61.

But the Spartans couldn't pull any closer, and Texas kept getting to the line.

After a timeout, Mouton hit a short jumper and Buckman hit a pair of free throws and converted a three-point play on a strong layup over Lorbek.

Ford took over from there. With Torbert moved off him because of foul trouble, Ford started cutting to the basket again, hitting a driving layup and making two free throws that made it 79-69 with 3:46 to play.

That's when the "Texas Fight" cheers got the loudest. Chris Hill quieted the crowd for a moment when his 3-pointer from the right wing made it 79-74 with 2:21 left.

Ford's pass to James Thomas under the basket for a layup helped Texas pull away for good.

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