Are the Texas Longhorns Being Overlooked?

The Texas Longhorns Men's Basketball team is 21-4, ranked 7^th in the polls, and is tied for first place in the Big 12 Conference with Kansas. And yet somehow, I think they are being overlooked.

While there are many reasons to knock Texas out of the discussion for the Final Four- like their short bench, lack of dominance in the paint, and dependence on the two smallest people on the court- there are also plenty of reasons that suggest that they are set-up for a national championship run as much as any other team in the nation. But people aren't realizing what these factors are.

First of all, the Longhorns are ranked 6^th in RPI, and yet the pollsters want to put UCLA ahead of the Longhorns, despite the facts that UCLA ranks 7^th in RPI and that the Longhorns beat UCLA in Los Angeles earlier this season.

Then there is the fact that there are two other teams that the Longhorns beat earlier this season that rank ahead of them in the polls right now. Those teams include Kansas and Tennessee. Kansas was a close game, so I can maybe understand the disparity there, but the Longhorns blew out Tennessee by 19 points, and even that isn't indicative of how bad a beating it actually was.

Thirdly, the Longhorns just avenged an earlier Texas A&M road loss with a 77-50 drumming of the Aggies on February 18^th. The Aggies are no joke either and are ranked 22^nd in the polls and are 38^th in RPI, giving Texas credit in both their loss and victory to Texas A&M.

However, I know that the polls mean nothing in Men's Basketball, because it will all be determined on the court in March. However, a lot of people are discrediting Texas's chances their because of their lack of size. Yet, I would point out that they beat a UCLA team that is probably the biggest team in the nation, and they did it on the road.

And what about the belief that guards win NCAA tournaments? We all know that big men are needed to go through the tournament, but most basketball analysts are just as aware that a guard who catches fire during the tournament has a much bigger impact on the field of 65 than a big man who does all of his work from the block. That said, the Longhorns have what is arguably the best point guard in the nation with DJ Augustine, who can shoot it (19.2 ppg) and pass it (6.1 apg) equally effectively. And to go alongside him, you have AJ Abrams who averages 17 points per game and may be the best pure shooter in the nation.

So for the pollsters, and some of the analysts, who may be counting Texas out, I suggest they stop overlooking this team and start staring at the facts, because the facts indicate much more than a 7^th ranked team not considered a contender to cut down the nets in April.