Texas Basketball: Barack Obama picks Horns to go to Elite 8
It is almost the time for head coach Shaka Smart and the four-seed Texas basketball to start on their journey to the Final Four in March Madness. Texas will begin their quest in the “Big Dance” come the night of March 20, as they take on the 14-seed Abilene Christian Wildcats in the Round of 64 at Bankers Life Fieldhouse (home of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers) in Indianapolis, IN.
Smart and the Longhorns last took down the Oklahoma State Cowboys and head coach Mike Boynton in the final round of the Big 12 Tournament by a five-point margin last weekend. That led to the Longhorns securing the three-seed in the NCAA Tournament, which places them in the East Region.
With March Madness firmly upon us, some big time predictions have rolled in this week from some notable voices. One is the former United State president Barack Obama, who usually gets a large following for the release of his tournament bracket.
Barack Obama’s pick for Texas basketball in his bracket
According to a report from TMZ Sports on March 18, the Obama bracket for this year had the top-seeded Gonzaga Bulldogs and head coach Mark Few to win the National Championship. Obama went with the homer pick as he had the one-seed (from the Midwest Region) Illinois Fighting Illini out of the Big Ten facing Gonzaga in the NCAA Championship Game.
Although, Obama did have the Longhorns going pretty far in his tournament bracket. He had the Longhorns making it all the way to the Elite 8, where they fell short to the one-seed Michigan Wolverines. That means Texas would in theory beat Abilene Christian, the Michigan State Spartans, and Alabama Crimson Tide, on the way to the Elite 8.
Obama did also have the one-seed Baylor Bears making it all the way to the Final Four. He had them losing to the Fighting Illini at that point of his bracket.
Other Big 12 teams that made it pretty in Obama’s bracket included the Kansas Jayhawks, Oklahoma State, and Texas Tech Red Raiders; all making it through to the Sweet 16 before falling short.
Texas walked away with the Big 12 Tournament crown this year, but their journey is far from over. They enter the Big Dance with 19 wins on the season (20 if you include the win by COVID-19-induced qualification of Kansas from the Big 12 Tournament) following their win over Oklahoma State last weekend.
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The Longhorns and Wildcats are set to tip off in the Round of 64 on March 20 in Indy at 8:50 p.m. CT. According to the ESPN matchup predictor, Texas has more than an 80 percent chance to beat ACU this weekend. And Texas is currently favored in the betting line by a margin of nine points.