Texas Longhorns earn the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region

For the 37th time in program history, the Longhorns are in the Big Dance. Texas received an automatic invitation to the NCAA Tournament as the Phillips 66 Big 12 Champion.

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Texas is the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region of the 2023 NCAA Tournament. The Longhorns will play in the Des Moines pod with the first round game set for Thursday, March 16.

The first round opponent for Texas (26-8) will be No. 15 seed Colgate.

With a round of 64 victory, Texas would face either No. 7 seed Texas A&M or No. 10 seed Penn State in the Round of 32 on Saturday.

The No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region is Houston. The Cougars have advanced to the Elite Eight and Final four the last two seasons under Kelvin Sampson.

The Midwest Region

1.Houston (31-3)
2. Texas (26-8)
3. Xavier (25-9)
4. Indiana (22-11)
5. Miami (Fla.) (25-7)
6. Iowa State (19-13)
7. Texas A&M (25-9)
8. Iowa (19-13)
9. Auburn (20-12)
10. Penn State (22-13)
11. Mississippi State (21-12 )/Pittsburgh (22-11 )
12. Drake (27-7)
13. Kent State (28-6)
14. Kennesaw State (26-8)
15. Colgate (26-8)
16. Northern Kentucky (22-12)

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Texas in the Big Dance

The Longhorns are making their 37th appearance in the NCAA Tournament, and are a No. 2 seed for the third time since the 1999 season. The last two times Texas has been a No. 2 seed they have advanced to the Elite 8. Texas advanced to the Elite Eight in the 2005-06 season led by LaMarcus Aldridge and P.J. Tucker. The Longhorns also advanced to the Elite Eight in 2007-08 led by D.J. Augustin and Damion James.

Texas won its first NCAA Tournament game in eight years last year beating Virginia Tech in the Round of 64 as a No. 6 seed. Now, Rodney Terry and staff will be looking to lead the Longhorns to its first second weekend appearance since the 2007-08 season.

Texas’ 23 regular season wins are the most since the 2010-11 season. The 26 wins entering the NCAA Tournament are also the most since the 2010-11 season.

Texas in the NCAA Tournament since 1999

Rick Barnes era:
1999 No. 7 seed:
Lost to No. 10 Purdue 58-54

2000 No. 5 seed (Round of 32):
Beat 12 seed Indiana State 77-61
Lost to 10 seed LSU 72-67

2001 No. 6 seed:
Lost to 11 seed Temple 79-65

2002 No. 5 seed (Sweet 16):
Beat No. 11 seed Boston College 70-57
Beat No. 3 seed Mississippi State 68-63
Lost to No. 2 seed Oregon 72-70

2003 No. 1 seed (Final Four):
Beat 16 seed UNC Asheville 82-61
Beat No. 9 seed Purdue 77-67
Beat No. 5 seed UConn 82-78
Beat No. 7 seed Michigan State 85-76
Lost to No. 3 seed Syracuse 95-84

2004 No. 3 seed (Sweet 16):
Beat 14 seed Princeton 66-49
Beat No. 6 seed North Carolina 78-75
Lost to 7 seed Xavier 79-71

2005 No. 8 seed:
Lost to 9 seed Nevada 61-57

2006 No. 2 seed (Elite Eight):
Beat 15 seed Penn 60-52
Beat 10 seed NC State 75-54
Beat 6 seed West Virginia 74-71
Lost to 4 seed LSU 70-60 in OT

2007 No. 4 Seed (Round of 32):
Beat 13 seed New Mexico State 79-67
Lost to 5 seed USC 87-68

2008 No. 2 seed (Elite Eight):
Beat 15 seed Austin Peay 75-54
Beat 7 seed Miami (FL) 75-72
Beat 3 seed Stanford 82-62
Lost to 1 seed Memphis 85-67

2009 No. 7 seed (Round of 32):
Beat 10 seed Minnesota 76-62
Lost to 2 seed Duke 74-69

2010 No. 8 seed:
Lost to 9 seed Wake Forest 81-80 in overtime

2011 No. 4 seed (Round of 32):
Beat 13 seed Oakland 85-81
Lost to 5 seed Arizona 70-69

2012 No. 11 seed:
Lost to 6 seed Cincinnati 65-59

2014 No. 7 seed (Round of 32):
Beat 10 seed Arizona State 87-85
Lost to 2 seed Michigan 79-65

2015 No. 11 seed:
Lost to 6 seed Butler 56-48

Shaka Smart era:
2016 No. 6 seed:
Lost to 11 seed Northern Iowa 75-72

2018 No. 10 seed:
Lost to 7 seed Nevada 87-83 in overtime

2021 No. 3 seed:
Lost to 14 seed Abilene Christian 53-52

Chris Beard era:
2022 No. 6 seed (Round of 32):
Beat 11 seed Virginia Tech 81-73
Lost to 3 seed Purdue 81-71