NCAA hopes hang in the balance as Texas faces Ole Miss in a high-stakes SEC Tournament opener. Defensive woes meet a motivated opponent.
The regular season is over, which means there's no more room for mishaps for a Texas squad that sits firmly on the NCAA Tournament bubble.
Due to their poor final week of Southeastern Conference play, losing their final two games, the Longhorns earned themselves the 10-seed in the bracket and a first-round date against Ole Miss at 6 p.m. Central Time on Wednesday night in Nashville.
The Rebels, who hold the 15-seed during this tournament, have had a torrid 12-19 season, including a 4-14 record in the SEC.
They lost their only battle with Texas this season, 79-68 at the Moody Center, but they may have a chip on their shoulder this time around due to some alleged comments from one of the Longhorns assistant coaches towards Rebels guard Eduardo Klafke.
"If the basketball gods put us against Texas again in Nashville, I'm sure we'll use that," Ole Miss head coach Chris Beard said after their matchup in early February.
The basketball gods obliged.
While some analysts like ESPN's Joe Lunardi believe the Longhorns are safely in the March Madness field regardless of Wednesday's result, the committee may have different ideas.
The uncertainty surrounding Texas's tournament status, combined with Ole Miss' nothing to lose outlook, is a perfect recipe for an early-round upset. The Longhorns cannot afford that.
Texas' Achilles heel this season has been defense, defense and more defense.
The Longhorns' defense ranks as one of the worst units in college basketball, allowing almost 77 points per game.
However, one of their best defensive games in conference play came against the Rebels, holding them to under 70 points. But even that game showed off Texas' defensive instability, as 43 of Ole Miss' points were scored in the second half.
The Longhorns struggle to pull away from teams due to their defense, but perhaps they can assert their dominance in another aspect of the game.
The Rebels lack lots of size in their rotation, leading to a 34.1 rebound rate per game that ranks second-worst in the SEC.
Texas hasn't exactly dominated the boards this season (eighth in the SEC in rebounds per game), but it has height and tenacity on the boards from Matas Vokietaitis and Dailyn Swain, who can cause Ole Miss some major issues.
That's one of the key battles to watch for as the two teams duke it out.
We're at the point of the season where it doesn't matter how teams win, only if they do so. That has to be the Longhorns' mindset against the Rebels, and if they win, the rest of the SEC Tournament.