When was the last time Texas made the Final Four?

Texas basketball has been a regular in the NCAA Tournament in the last few decades. Since 1989, Texas men's hoops has made it to the Big Dance 29 times, which ranks in the top 10 among Division 1 college hoops programs for the most appearances in that span.

The Longhorns are tied for the 10th most appearances in the NCAA Tournament all-time, with 37 (per NCAA.com).

Star players, including Kevin Durant, D.J. Augustin, P.J. Tucker, and Myles Turner, among many others, have played in at least one NCAA Tournament game for the Longhorns in the last 20 years alone. Multiple talented players who eventually went on to have lengthy and prosperous NBA careers have led the Longhorns to successful seasons in the last three or four decades.

Texas basketball searching for its first Final Four appearance in almost two decades in 2024

Something that has eluded the Longhorns in the postseason for the last few decades, though, are those sustained March Madness runs to reach the promise land and finally achieve that ultimate goal of winning a title.

Texas has only made it to the Final Four once over nearly 30 NCAA Tournament appearances in the last 35 years. The last time the Longhorns made it to the Final Four was during the 2002-03 postseason, which is one of three appearances in the Final Four in program history.

In the 2003 NCAA Tournament, All-American sophomore guard T.J. Ford led the Longhorns to the Final Four as one of the one-seeds in the 64-team field. Texas was eventually knocked out by All-American and NBA star Carmelo Anthony and the three-seed Syracuse Orange in the Final Four, 95-84.

Syracuse would go on to beat the two-seed Kansas Jayhawks to win the only National Championship in program history to cap the 2003 NCAA Tournament.

The 2003 postseason was Texas's only Final Four run in modern college hoops history. Texas's other two Final Four appearances came within a span only a few years apart in the 1940s, in 1947 and 1943.

Texas reached the Elite Eight for the first time in over a decade in 2023

Texas reached the Elite Eight during a magical postseason run last year under then-interim head coach Rodney Terry. As a two-seed, the Longhorns ran through the competition in the 2023 NCAA Tournament with two double-digit wins in its first three round games, including a dozen-point victory over the five-seed Xavier Musketeers in the Sweet 16.

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