How Matt Painter reacted to Purdue Sweet 16 finish: 'Holy (expletive)'
Was Purdue's last-second bucket vs. Texas in the Sweet 16 a March Madness miracle? It might have been, based on Matt Painter's postgame reaction.
March Madness is routinely a home for buzzer-beaters, prayers, Hail Mary lobs and miracles. The 2026 Men's NCAA Tournament saw another addition to the madness Thursday, March 27: No. 2 seed Purdue eked out a 79-77 win vs.
No. 11 Texas in the West Region after Trey Kaufman-Renn had a last-second putback following a Braden Smith miss. As Boilermakers coach Matt Painter exited the court at the SAP Center in San Jose, he perfectly captured the sentiment of many college basketball fans around the country: "Holy s---," Painter said in a video captured by Eli Gehn of WTHR-TV in Indianapolis ( editor's note: explicit language used ).
REQUIRED READING: Inside the game-winning play that advanced Purdue to Elite 8 Painter was slightly more composed when speaking about the play in Purdue's postgame news conference. "We got a good shot there at the end," Painter said. "Braden, I thought he executed well, made the right read, and took the right shot.
And perfect timing. That's what you want. You want a chance to get a stick back.