Four straight wins propel Texas Men's Basketball from the bubble to solid NCAA Tournament ground, solidifying their March Madness bid.
Texas is streaking, which means it's bolstering its chances to go dancing as March nears.
The Longhorns have been hovering around the NCAA Tournament bubble for a good chunk of the season, but after four straight wins, they're finally creating some breathing room for themselves.
Before its contest against Missouri, Texas was included in ESPN's Joe Lunardi's "Last Four Byes" category, meaning it had little room for a slip-up if it wanted to avoid another trip to Dayton, Ohio, for the First Four.
But after the Longhorns thrashed the Tigers 85-68, they were not included in Lunardi's bubble category on Monday morning. There's still a long way to go, but for now, it seems Texas is safely in the big dance.
Texas head coach Sean Miller has lots of experience coaching tournament-quality teams, and he's well on his way to leading this squad to an appearance as well.
"We really try to keep their focus more on what is it that we can do every day that we're in control of, to allow us to experience what we're all after," Miller said on Feb. 10. "Instead of listening to the outside part of it, and that's something we certainly can't control."
And even with their recent success, the Longhorns must continue to maintain that mindset for the rest of the regular season.
There are still lots of potential roadblocks on Texas' schedule, and one big stumble could be fatal to its March Madness hopes.
The Longhorns will run into one of those potential potholes on Tuesday when they face off against LSU at the Moody Center.
The Tigers are currently 2-10 in Southeastern Conference play, making them one of the worst teams in the SEC.
A loss to them would qualify as a Quadrant 2 loss, given LSU's NET ranking of 67. However, if the Tigers were to fall below 75 before the season's end, they would qualify as a Quadrant 3 opponent.
The same goes for Oklahoma, who sit just behind LSU with a NET ranking of 68. Texas plays the Sooners at home in its regular-season finale.
Texas already has one Quad 3 loss on its resume after losing at home to Mississippi State, and it cannot afford to add another.
The bubble is a stressful place to be in the months of February and March.
Come Selection Sunday, the Longhorns are hoping they can kick their feet up and watch their names get called with zero worries of a potential snub.