Two top-15 teams are on their way to the Moody Center, starting with No. 2 Alabama on Tuesday

It ain’t getting any easier.

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Days after completing an 0-2 week with losses to Arkansas and Vanderbilt, the Texas Longhorns will seek to improve their 4-7 Southeastern Conference record in matchups versus No. 2 Alabama and No. 15 Kentucky in Austin.

The Crimson Tide, who were No. 2 in the AP poll and No. 1 in the Coaches Poll, head to Austin on Tuesday for an 8 p.m. battle in the Moody Center on ESPN.

“We’re competing in the best league in the country,” Texas head coach Rodney Terry said Monday. “We’re excited about it. Every night we’ve got a great opportunity. We’ve got an incredible challenge coming in here tomorrow night against maybe the No. 1 team in the country.”

Under head coach Nate Oats, Alabama is known for putting points on the board. The Crimson Tide is No. 1 in KenPom’s adjusted tempo and also in points per game at 90.0. Six different Alabama players average more than 10 points per game, a big reason why the Tide head to Austin with a 20-3 record, a 9-1 SEC mark, and a six-game winning streak.

“In this league every night, it’s a physical battle coming to you,” Terry said. “You have to be willing to bring the contact to your opponent because the opponent is going to bring the contact to you in terms of trying to keep guys off the glass. Another team with a lot of height and a lot of size, they do a great job crashing. But they’re probably the fastest team we’ve played to this point right now. Transition defense is going to be really big for us.”

Alabama is lead by senior guard Mark Sears, who started his career at Ohio but has been a critical part of Bama’s rise to the top of the college basketball. This season, he’s averaging 17.8 points on 40 percent shooting along with a 36 percent mark from three and an 83 percent average from the charity stripe.

“Final Four guy,” Terry said. “He’s really the guy that’s the head of the snake. He’s the guy that makes everything go.”

Sears will be battling with Texas’ Tre Johnson, who recorded a 15 point outing on 5-for-14 shooting against Vanderbilt. Johnson only had three free throw attempts despite his efforts in Nashville to be a three-level scorer. Terry was asked on Monday if officiating has hampered Johnson’s ability to get opportunities at the stripe.

“I think he does put pressure on the basket at times, and I do think there are times he’s not protected as much as he needs to be because he’s one of the premier players in this league,” Terry said. “That’s just my opinion.”

Texas was without a 9.1 points per game scorer and a do-it-all 6.7 points and 5.1 rebounds per contest player versus Vanderbilt. Tramon Mark missed the game with the Commodores due to a right shoulder injury. Terry was more optimistic about Mark…

“We expect him to play tomorrow and be a guy that’s ready to go,” Terry said.

…than he was about Chendall Weaver, who hasn’t played since January 7 versus Auburn.

“We still don’t have a timetable for him to return just yet as well,” Terry said Monday.

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No matter who is available, the Longhorns will need a full strength effort against one of the best teams in the country in the Moody Center on Tuesday.

AP Top 25

1. Auburn Tigers (34)
2. Alabama Crimson Tide (23)
3. Florida Gators (3)
4. Duke Blue Devils
5. Tennessee Volunteers (1)
6. Houston Cougars
7. Purdue Boilermakers
8. Texas A&M Aggies
9. St. John’s Red Storm
10. Iowa State Cyclones
11. Michigan State Spartans
12. Texas Tech Red Raiders
13. Arizona Wildcats
14. Memphis Tigers
15. Kentucky Wildcats
16. Wisconsins Badgers
17. Kansas Jayahwks
18. Marquette Golden Eagles
19. Ole Miss Rebels
20. Michigan Wolverines
21. Missouri Tigers
22. Mississippi State Bulldogs
23. Clemson Tigers
24. Creighton Bluejays
25. Maryland Terrapins