NCAA Tournament Projections: Texas Longhorns Stay Put After Loss to No. 4 Houston
AUSTIN -- The Texas Longhorns head into February coming off of back-to-back ranked losses to No. 21 BYU on Saturday and No. 4 Houston on Monday, but found a much-needed spark in the two games prior by taking down then-No. 9 Baylor and then-No. 11 Oklahoma.
As a result of this 2-2 stretch against four quality opponents after a dismal start to Big 12 play, the Longhorns are staying put in ESPN Bracketology's latest NCAA Tournament projections.
© Aaron E. Martinez, Austin American-Statesman
In last week's projections, ESPN's bracket expert Joe Lunardi had the Longhorns as one of four teams in the LAST FOUR BYES category. This projection didn't change after Texas' 76-72 overtime loss to Houston on Monday, as the Longhorns are viewed as a No. 9 seed in the current Bracketology.
The other teams in the LAST FOUR BYES category are Texas A&M, Providence and Memphis while Nebraska, Colorado, Seton Hall and Boise State are currently in the LAST FOUR IN section. The FIRST FOUR OUT are Villanova, Washington State, Cincinnati and Gonzaga.
Of course, these projections aren't factoring in a season's worth of results. The Longhorns, unlike many other teams, don't have the luxury of knowing that their spot in March Madness is a guarantee even if they suffer a few more losses down the stretch.
If the Longhorns miss out on the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years, they'll likely look at the back-to-back losses against UCF and West Virginia as major reasons why. With that said, Texas can't afford to drop any more home games in conference play against teams like Oklahoma State, WVU and Kansas State. Potential road losses to Houston, Texas Tech and Kansas would not have a severe impact on the Longhorns' tourney chances, but they may not have any real chances to begin with if they let anymore homes games slip away.
The Big 12 is talent-heavy from top to bottom, but Texas will need to separate itself from the bottom feeders to clinch a spot in the Big Dance.
