March Madness 2022: Stanford tops Texas in Elite 8

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Standing at the top of the ladder, Lexie Hull got the final snip with the scissors, drawing one of the loudest cheers of the night as she draped the net around her neck.

Hull did all she could to get defending national champion Stanford back to her hometown for the Spokane Regional. Then, she became the catalyst for getting the Cardinal back to the women's Final Four.

"I’m just super proud of our team for staying with it, sticking with each other and being gritty," Hull said. "I think it really comes down to who was the grittier team."

Hull scored 20 points, including a key three-point play inside the final three minutes, and Haley Jones hit four free throws in the closing moments to finish with 18 points in top-seeded Stanford's win over No. 2 seed Texas 59-50 on Sunday night.

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Stanford players celebrate with the regional trophy after they beat Texas 59-50 in a college basketball game in the Elite 8 round of the NCAA tournament, Sunday, March 27, 2022, in Spokane, Wash. Stanford won 59-50. (AP Photo/Young Kwak)

The Cardinal will play in the national semifinal for the 15th time in program history, facing either North Carolina State or Connecticut in Minneapolis.

"It’s crazy to say this but you’re always happy to go to the Final Four, but sometimes you’re like really happy. And I’m like really happy," coach Tara VanDerveer said.

This Elite Eight matchup was tightly contested throughout and reinforced the resolve that Stanford was missing earlier in the season when it lost to Texas at home on the night it received its rings from the 2021 championship.

Stanford (32-3) was the tougher team this