NCAA Women's Tournament Bracket: Texas Longhorns preview

Who? The Longhorns of Texas. I have heard the Lady appendage used, but not all the time.

When do they play in the first round? Texas will play Western Kentucky on Friday, March 20 at about 5 p.m. ET

What? Bevo is a Texas longhorn steer, the official large animal of Texas. Hook 'em is his costumed counterpart, because there are many places where a full-grown steer is impractical.

Where? Austin, Texas, host of the largest urban bat colony in the world.

Why? I like the metrics.

How? They were an at-large selection.

Surprise? Predicted to finish first in the conference, they tied three other teams for third, seven games back of Baylor.

RPI: 20

SOS: 8

Record: 22-10 (9-9 Big XII)

Good wins: Tennessee.

Bad losses: At Kansas State.

Who's running this show? Karen Aston, since 2012. She got her start coaching high school in Arkansas.

Extra, Extra! The American-Statesman.

The injury bug has bitten Texas hard. Only one player, freshman guard Brooke McCarty, has played in every contest this year for the Longhorns. They sorely miss injured senior star Nneka Enemkpali's team-highs of 12.4 points and 10.4 rebounds. Sophomore center Kelsey Lang has been big in Enemkpali's absence, at 11.0 points and 6.3 rebounds. Having towering junior center Imani McGee-Stafford back bolsters the front line as well. Freshman guard Ariel Atkins also scores in double figures to provide an alternative to the giants.

(You may now insert an "everything is bigger in Texas" joke here.)