3 teams Texas basketball doesn't want in their NCAA Tournament region
An up and down regular season for Texas basketball and head coach Rodney Terry will still likely result in an NCAA Tournament appearance for the fourth consecutive season.
The latest ESPN Bracketology projects the Longhorns to be an eight seed in the Midwest Region of the NCAA Tournament. This pits the Longhorns against the nine-seed Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Round of 64.
Who Rodney Terry and Texas basketball wouldn't want to play early in the Big Dance
But with one game remaining in the regular season and the Big 12 Tournament still ahead in the next couple of weeks, the Longhorns still have a wide variety of possibilities entering Selection Sunday. Texas could realistically get any seed between six and 10, depending on if it can beat the Oklahoma Sooners in the regular season finale at home on March 9.
Texas's postseason fortunes also hinge on the injury status of senior big man Dylan Disu. Disu suffered a left knee injury in Texas's loss to the No. 11 Baylor Bears on March 4 in Waco. His status for the remainder of the season is still uncertain.
Terry and the Longhorns need the best from Disu and senior guard Max Abmas to have a shot at making another deep postseason run this year.
Texas also probably needs some good fortune regarding the matchups and seeding for the NCAA Tournament to have a decent shot to make it back to the Sweet 16 again in 2024.
Here are three teams the Longhorns want to avoid in their region of the NCAA Tournament this postseason.
UConn
I know this might sound obvious, but Texas would be best off avoiding the reigning National Champion and likely one-seed UConn Huskies in their region of the NCAA Tournament bracket.
Given that many outlets are currently projecting the Longhorns to be an eight-seed in the tourney, facing a one seed is very likely in the Round of 32. There aren't any easy matchups against a one seed.
But if the Longhorns could pick one to avoid facing, UConn would probably be it for a couple of reasons. First, UConn is an experienced and deep team that is built for postseason success. They have two proven All-Big East caliber guards in seniors Cam Spencer and Tristen Newton who can lead the Huskies on another deep postseason run.
UConn's lengthy and deep backcourt unit could exploit the lack of proven scoring guard options on the Longhorns roster.
Second, UConn is able to exploit many of Texas's weaknesses on both ends of the floor. Beyond Texas's lack of backcourt scoring options, the Longhorns have also struggled against many top teams regarding the battle on the glass this season.
UConn ranks seventh in the NCAA in rebounding percentage (56.5). When UConn defeated Texas 81-71 in the final of the Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden early in the regular season, the Huskies outrebounded the Longhorns by a margin of 11.
The discrepancies between UConn and Texas would be further magnified if Disu is set to miss any extended amount of time due to the knee injury.