Texas basketball is on a NCAA Tournament collision course with Rick Barnes' Tennessee Vols

Texas basketball received a bit of a surprise on Selection Sunday, being selected as a No. 7 seed in the 2024 March Madness tournament despite being anticipated in the No. 8 or No. 9 range.

It sets the Longhorns up with a matchup vs. either Colorado State or Virginia on Thursday. A win, however, will pit Texas against No. 2 seed Tennessee and former Longhorns coach Rick Barnes. The Volunteers also will first have to defeat No. 15 Saint Peter's, the darlings of the 2022 NCAA Tournament.

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Barnes, the winningest coach in Longhorns history, was released prior to the 2016-17 season after 17 years with the program. He could've kept his job, but couldn’t bring himself to fire some assistants after former Texas Men’s Athletics Director Steve Patterson asked him to make changes or risk losing his position. He was replaced by Shaka Smart, Marquette's current coach.

Rick Barnes' NCAA Tournament record

Barnes compiled a 402-180 record in his 17 seasons in Austin. He put Texas men’s basketball on the map, taking the program to its only Final Four in 2003. He has a 27-26 record in the NCAA Tournament.

This season, Tennessee has compiled a 24-8 overall record, led by the play of fifth-year senior Dalton Knecht, who's averaging 21.7 points, 4.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists. However, the Volunteers shockingly lost 73-56 to Mississippi State in the first round of the SEC Tournament.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: When Texas basketball could face Rick Barnes in March Madness bracket