What does Texas basketball need to do at the Big 12 Tournament to help its NCAA case?
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Based on Tuesday’s NCAA Tournament projections from national prognosticators, Texas basketball has nowhere to go but up at this week’s Big 12 Tournament .
The Longhorns (20-11, 9-9 Big 12) have been locked in as either a No. 8 or No. 9 seed over the past few weeks. Considering Texas’ lofty NET rating, not even a loss to Kansas State in the second round of the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday will likely knock the Longhorns down to a No. 10 seed. However, if the team gets hot in Kansas City and makes a run to the Big 12 semifinals, it’ll make the case to move up a spot or two in the NCAA bracket.
Here is where Texas stands in the latest NCAA Tournament predictions:
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Texas basketball: Horns stay the same in projections
ESPN's Joe Lunardi still has Texas as a No. 8 seed, and he projects the Longhorns playing ninth-seeded Florida Atlantic in the Midwest Regional, which runs through Detroit. If Texas won its first-round game in this scenario, it would meet top-seed Purdue in the second round of the opening weekend in Indianapolis.
CBS Sports' Jerry Palm has consistently projected Texas lower than Lunardi, and he currently sees the Longhorns as a No. 9 seed in the West Regional, which runs through Los Angeles. Palm has Texas playing eighth-seeded Gonzaga in the first round in Charlotte before a potential meeting with Tennessee and former Texas coach Rick Barnes.
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Texas basketball's NCAA Tournament résumé
The Longhorns have strengthened their position in the NET rankings, which is a primary metric used by the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee as it wades through the 362 Division I college basketball programs to determine the 68-team field in March. Texas rose up to No. 25 in the latest NET ratings Tuesday.
The NET ratings lean heavily on a quadrant system to determine quality wins and losses, with “Quad 1” wins especially valued. Texas has a 5-9 record against Quad 1 teams, including road wins at TCU, Oklahoma, Texas Tech and Cincinnati as well as a home victory over Baylor.
Seven of Texas’ 11 losses have been to teams projected as top-three seeds by Lunardi: Houston (twice), Connecticut, Marquette, Kansas, Baylor and Iowa State.
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How many times has Texas made the NCAA Tournament?
At this point, Texas seems like a lock to qualify for the NCAA Tournament for a fourth consecutive season. Between 1948 and 1988, Texas only competed in five NCAA Tournaments before former coach Tom Penders made the Longhorns a March Madness regular with eight appearances in his 10 years from 1989 to 1998.
Barnes led Texas to 14 consecutive NCAA Tournaments from 1998-2012 before former coach Shaka Smart missed the tournament three times in his six seasons from 2016-21.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas basketball hopes to strengthen NCAA case at Big 12 Tournament.
