Texas Basketball: A look at the bottom half of the Midwest Region
By Shane Black
On Saturday night in Kansas City, Texas basketball wrapped up its best regular season in over a decade with a 76-56 rout over the Kansas Jayhawks to capture their second Big 12 Tournament Title in program history.
The Longhorns’ record of 26-8 (15-6) was good enough to slot them as the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. This is the first time Texas basketball has been awarded a No. 2 seed in the Tournament since 2008.
Rodney Terry and company earned the right to be one of the top seeds in the dance, but when it comes to March Madness, stylistic matchups may be more important than the seed number next to your name.
Texas drew a dangerous Colgate squad in the first round and will have to play their best basketball to navigate through a daunting Midwest Region. Below, I took a look at the eight other teams in the bottom half of the Midwest Region.
The Longhorns will be the favorite to reach the Elite Eight for the first time since 2008. Does any of these teams have what it takes to knock them off?
NCAA Tournament Midwest Region Preview for Texas basketball
Round of 64 Matchup
No. 15 seed – Colgate Raiders (26-8, 20-1)
The Longhorns drew the 15-seeded Colgate Raiders in the opening round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. Colgate finished the season with a 26-8 record, winning the Patriot League regular season crown and conference tournament title.
Looking at the Raiders’ resume, they have played just two games this season against tournament teams. On Dec. 2, they lost a road game to No. 9 seed Auburn 93-66. A week later, they lost at home to 15-seeded Vermont 73-72. Based on the resume alone, Colgate does not look like a team that should test the Longhorns. That said, there are some intriguing numbers that Texas has to be aware of.
The Raiders led the country in three-point field goal percentage, knocking down 40.9 percent of their treys this season. Their effective field goal percentage of 58.6 is also tops in the nation. Head coach Matt Langel trots out a team where all five starters average in double-digits. Colgate sticks to an eight-man rotation featuring four seniors and three juniors. According to KenPom, they rank 41st in D-1 experience and 17th in minutes continuity.
The Colgate Raiders are an experienced, well-coached bunch that scores the basketball as well as any team in the country. Keep it locked to Hook’Em Headlines for a more in-depth preview of this Round of 64 matchup.