In the long journey that is March Madness, the conference tournament is the first postseason stop the Longhorns will have to make on a journey they hope ends in Phoenix for the Final Four. The Longhorns (28-3, 13-3) split their games when they traveled to play Vanderbilt and Tennessee last month, but they recovered for a five-game win streak.

Texas is tied for second in the SEC standings with Vanderbilt, and will be seeded third in the conference tournament because it lost  86-70 to the Commodores. Even with the loss, the Longhorns are projected to be a high seed in the NCAA Tournament. 

Here is where Texas could be seeded based on bracketologists: 

ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme predicts Monday the SEC Tournament’s outcome will determine if the Longhorns hold onto their projected No. 1 seeding. The Longhorns are the fourth No. 1 seed in the Sacramento region of the bracket; the other three are South Carolina, UCLA and UConn. If Texas loses, the last No. 1 seed will go to either Vanderbilt or LSU. 

But as it stands now, Texas would host the first round of games in Austin and play No. 16 High Point first. If Texas wins, it would play the winner of No. 8 USC and No. 9 Villanova at Moody Center. 

How can Texas keep the No. 1 seed? 

Simply put, Texas needs to win out. 

The Longhorns are resting until Friday where they take the court against either Missouri, Alabama and Tennessee. 

In this hypothetical, if the rest of the bracket holds true, Texas will have a rematch Saturday against Vanderbilt. In the postgame conference to the 16-point loss in Nashville, Tenn. head coach Vic Schaefer said, “we have no heart. We’re not tough. It’s probably the softest team I’ve had in years.”

If Texas wins twice in the tournament, it will face either South Carolina or LSU in the finals; Texas has gone 1-1 this season against both teams. 

The first opponent Texas will play in the SEC tournament is to be determined, but it will take the court at 7:30 p.m. Friday, March 6 in Bon Secours Wellness Arena. Â