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Texas Basketball Bubble Watch: Longhorns One Of SI.com's Last Four Out

Rick Barnes' streak of 13 consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances in Austin will be on the line in Texas' next two games against Oklahoma State and Baylor.

After a four-game winning streak highlighted by a 75-64 home win over fellow Big 12 bubble team Kansas State, the Texas Longhorns are back in the discussion for an NCAA Tournament berth.

However, their resume, which includes nine losses and no signature win over an opponent currently ranked in the Top 25, is still a little lacking:

Texas (16-9, 6-6; RPI: 49, SOS: 16)

The Longhorns got a crucial home win over Kansas State on Saturday and now are back at .500 and inside the RPI top 50, for whatever that's worth. Not that much is easy in this league, but the Horns' remaining schedule is quite favorable, albeit with four out of six on the road. This week's two-game trip to Oklahoma will be a big factor in whether Texas' at-large hopes are OK.
GW: Temple, Iowa State?
BL: Oregon State (N)

In the latest bracket projection from SI.com, Texas is one of the last four teams out. However, none of their last four teams in -- NC State, Seton Hall, Northwestern and Xavier -- have resumes significantly better than the Longhorns.

And with Texas teetering on the edge of the bubble, their next two games will go a long way towards determining their fate this season: a tough road game against an improving Oklahoma State team on Saturday and a home game against the struggling Baylor Bears next Monday, the Longhorns' best chance at grabbing the type of Top 10 win that would push them over the top and into March.

Photographs by jamesbrandon, jdtornow, phlezk, flygraphix, mcdlttx, tomasland, and literalbarrage used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.