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Zach Freemantle’s dunk ices Xavier’s First Four win over Texas (0:18)
Xavier plays keepaway from Texas before Zach Freemantle’s dunk wraps up the Musketeers’ win. (0:18)
Mar 19, 2025, 11:54 PM ET
DAYTON, Ohio — Marcus Foster scored 22 points and Zach Freemantle added 15 while overcoming foul trouble as Xavier rallied past Texas 86-80 in the First Four on Wednesday night.
The Musketeers (22-11) erased a 13-point deficit in their biggest comeback win this season and advanced to play No. 6 seed Illinois on Friday night in a Midwest Region game at Milwaukee.
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“I thought we were dead in the water two different times,” Xavier coach Sean Miller told truTV after the game. “And I’ll tell you, that’s the one thing about our team — the resiliency of the the group has always won out for us. Just when you thought we’re not going to make the tournament, we kept winning. And even in this game, just when you’re like it’s not going to work out, we have a funny way of staying with it.”
Tre Johnson led the Longhorns with 23 points in an NCAA tournament matchup of No. 11 seeds.
Freemantle made two free throws to give Xavier an 82-79 lead with 1:09 left. Johnson missed a fadeaway jumper, and Dailyn Swain‘s putback of Freemantle’s missed 3-pointer extended the margin to five. Freemantle’s dunk sealed the win.
The Longhorns (19-16) took advantage of early foul trouble for Xavier and got to the rim at will in the first half, scoring 26 of 47 points in the paint.
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Freemantle, who averaged 19.8 points during the Musketeers’ seven-game winning streak to close the regular season, had two points and two fouls in the first half. He picked up his fourth foul with 7:10 left.
Texas led 47-39 at halftime. It was the first time Xavier trailed at halftime since a loss at Creighton on Jan. 29.
Jerome Hunter‘s 3-pointer tied the score at 65 with eight minutes left.
A 3-pointer by Oklahoma transfer John Hugley put the Musketeers ahead 75-74 with 5:07 remaining.
It was the fourth time since 1990 the teams met in the NCAA tournament, with each school winning twice.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
