March Madness is here. The NCAA tournament begins Tuesday, and perhaps with more relevance to the Texas Longhorns than usual.
The Longhorns battle the winner of the No. 10 play-in game between the Virginia Cavaliers and the Colorado State Rams.
The teams narrowly reached the tournament in a more competitive field than usual. Their contrasting styles will play a role in the matchup and could determine how likely are Texas’ chances to advance.
Virginia’s style is straightforward. The Cavaliers want to play suffocating defense. The team allows 59.6 points per game.
While its defense led the team to a national title victory over Texas Tech and former Texas head coach Chris Beard, its lack of offense has also led to some of the more memorable upsets in recent tournament history. The list includes the first ever round of 64 upset of a No. 1 seed when the No. 16 UMBC Retrievers upset the Cavaliers.
Virginia isn’t separating from teams offensively this season. Its 63.6 points per game average has lifted it to a 1-3 record vs. Top 25 opponents. The Cavaliers rank No. 254 nationally in field goal percentage (43.4%) and No. 355 in free throw percentage (63.7%).
On the opposite side is a Colorado State squad that can score in droves. The team averages 76.4 points per contest and has gone 2-0 vs. Top 25 opponents for the season. The Rams have not fared as well defensively allowing 68.4 points per game.
The teams are scheduled to play Tuesday at 8:10 p.m. CT on TruTV.