The University of Texas Men’s Basketball team has secured the No. 19 spot in the preseason USA TODAY Sports coaches poll, announced Wednesday. They join eight other Southeastern Conference teams in the Top 25: Alabama (2), Auburn (11), Tennessee (12), Texas A&M (15), Arkansas (16), Florida (21), Kentucky (23), and Ole Miss (25). Earlier this month, Texas also ranked No. 19 in the preseason AP poll.
The Longhorns have reached at least the NCAA Round of 32 in the past three seasons, including a run to the NCAA Elite Eight in Rodney Terry’s first year as head coach in 2022-23. This streak of winning their NCAA First Round game in three consecutive seasons is their first since winning four straight from 2006-09. Texas is one of only eight programs nationally to advance to the NCAA Tournament Round of 32 in each of the last three years, alongside Baylor, Creighton, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas, Michigan State, and Tennessee.
The 2024-25 season opens for Texas with a neutral-site game against Ohio State on Monday, November 4, as part of the Hall of Fame Series Las Vegas Opening Night event. The game tips off at 9 p.m. Central (7 p.m. Pacific) at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas and will be nationally televised by TNT and truTV and streamed on Max. The Longhorns’ home opener against Houston Christian, presented by Truist, is set for Friday, November 8, at 7 p.m. Central in Moody Center and will be streamed on SEC Network+.
