Bevo’s Daily Roundup: Texas men’s basketball could still qualify for the NCAA Tournament

Texas Longhorns men’s basketball is still in it. Kind of.

According to a recent report in the Austin American-Statesman, Texas, after the team’s wins over the Kansas State Wildcats and TCU Horned Frogs last week, in which they finally snapped a four-game losing streak, still has chance to make the 2020 NCAA Tournament.

Currently, the Longhorns are one of three teams tied for fifth place in the league standings. If they’re to get out of the mediocre middle-man pack, they’ll have to beat the No. 17 West Virginia Mountaineers tonight at 6 p.m. Central on the Frank Erwin Center’s home court.

The good news: West Virginia, despite their ranking, has lost five straight road games.

The bad news: When the two teams met last month, Texas lost by 38 points.

WHAT THE WISE MEN ARE SAYING ABOUT THE LONGHORNS

Austin American-Statesman: Golden: Texas’ switch to 4-3 will help Ossai get more quarterbacks

Austin American-Statesman: Texas regents set to approve guaranteed deals for coordinators Mike Yurich, Chris Ash

Austin American-Statesman: The Dotted Line: Texas’ recruiting offensive wish list for the 2021 cycle

Austin American-Statesman: Bohls: Cam comes through to keep Texas unbeaten

Dallas Morning News: Texas’ WR/TE outlook for 2020: Can Longhorns replace Devin Duvernay and Collin Johnson?

Dallas Morning News: Texas running back outlook for 2020: Who will emerge from the Longhorns’ stacked RB room?

Sports Illustrated: Brandon Jones’ film study ahead of the NFL Combine goes above and beyond

Sports Illustrated: What’s next for Colt McCoy?

247Sports: Tom Herman’s staff reboot: Overpriced or money well spent?

247Sports: Texas baseball embracing historically diverse team in 2020

USA Today: Could DeMarvion Overshown be the next Isaiah Simmons?

USA Today: Three reasons Texas can still make the NCAA Tournament

USA Today: Texas has top 10 recruiting class averages over the past five years

NEWS FROM ELSEWHERE IN LONGHORN LAND AND THE BIG 12

• No. 5 Texas men’s tennis clinched two wins over the weekend at the Texas Tennis Center against the Nebraska Cornhuskers and the UTSA Roadrunners, improving to 9-2 overall.

• To say the least, Texas softball had an eventful weekend. The Longhorns kicked off the weekend on Friday morning with a win in five innings over the Lipscomb Bison at the Texas Invitational. They then followed that up with a win over North Dakota State Bison that evening and another win over the Lipscomb, and then a loss to the Duke Blue Devils, before finishing off the weekend with a win over the Weber State Wildcats to end the tournament.

• Texas regents are nearing a decision to approve new basketball and rowing practice facilities that will cost a shiny $60 million. From the Austin American-Statesman: “The UT System Board of Regents is set to approve construction of a three-story facility costing $60 million financed through long-term bonds. The project measures 75,200 square feet and will sit adjacent to the new Moody Center currently under construction. The details were posted Friday in the UT regents’ agenda book. The regents are scheduled to meet Wednesday and Thursday. Athletic director Chris Del Conte declined to comment on Friday. He typically does not comment on athletic issues going before the UT regents.”

• No. 3 Texas women’s tennis couldn’t hold on against the No. 12 Stanford Cardinal over the weekend at the Texas Tennis Center. After the Longhorns dropped the doubles point, the Cardinal rolled on to win three of the four singles matches, sealing Stanford’s win.

• Texas women’s basketball stumbled against Kansas State over the weekend. That was mostly due to the fourth quarter comeback staged by the Wildcats, in which Kansas State clinched their third consecutive road win and third win of their last four matchups.

• Texas baseball remains undefeated (8-0) after they swept the Boise State Broncos at UFCU Bisch-Falk Field over the weekend. The Longhorns’ next test will come in the form of the Sam Houston State Bearcats on Tuesday night. Catch the game on the Longhorn Network or tune in on the radio at 104.9 The Horn at 7 p.m. Central tomorrow evening.

• Sports Illustrated is ranking the best of the best the Longhorns have produced on the gridiron. Coming in at No. 5 is former Texas safety Earl Thomas, now of the Baltimore Ravens. From SI: “Over the past decade, there hasn’t been another safety as dominant and as consistent as Earl Thomas. He was drafted in 2012 by the Seattle Seahawks and, in the following years, helped produce one of the best defenses in the history of the NFL. The ‘Legion of Boom,’ a common reference to the Seattle Seahawks defense during the 2011-2018 seasons, featured icons in the names of Richard Sherman, Kam Chancellor, Bobby Wagner, and their leader in the secondary, Earl Thomas. Seattle’s defense propelled the northwestern franchise to its first Super Bowl victory in SB XLVIII against the Denver Broncos. Along with his Super Bowl ring, Thomas has earned himself seven Pro Bowl appearances and three First-Team All-Pro honors. Earl Thomas played 11 or more games in nine out of 10 seasons in the NFL, further proving his consistency of playing at an elite level throughout his career. As the decade came to an end, many considered him the “Safety of the Decade,” as his performance year in and year out has always been the best in the league. On March 13, 2019, Earl Thomas signed a four-year, $55 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens, making him the fourth highest-paid safety in the league. Coming off a great year with the Ravens, Thomas is looking to make another run at the Super Bowl with the newly-crowned MVP, Lamar Jackson, on his side.” They’re not alone in that opinion.

• Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger made Rivals’ list of top 10 returning quarterbacks.