NCAA Tournament preview: Four things to know about BYU’s opponent, Texas
Mar 18, 2026, 2:25 AM | Updated: 2:26 am
PORTLAND, Ore. – BYU basketball will take on the Texas Longhorns in the First Round of the 2026 NCAA Tournament.
Texas defeated NC State to reach the Round of 64 against AJ Dybantsa and the 6-seed BYU.
Here are four things to know about 19-14 Texas.
#1 First season for Sean Miller on the Forty Acres
After being fired at Arizona following the 2021 season, Miller spent three seasons at Xavier, guiding the Musketeers to two NCAA Tournament appearances.
That led to Miller landing with Texas, where the season has been up and down. Miller started his first year in the SEC at 0-2, then closed out the season dropping five of the last six, before the First Four win on Tuesday night in Dayton.
Miller has appeared in the NCAA Tournament 13 times as a head coach, and in those appearances, he’s reached the second weekend of the Big Dance eight times.
In 2007, during Miller’s first stint at Xavier, he coached against BYU in the NCAA Tournament, defeating the Cougars in a first round matchup at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky.
#2 NBA prospect: Dailyn Swain
The star player to watch for Texas is Xavier transfer Dailyn Swain, who followed Sean Miller to Texas this season. The 6-foot-8 wing is viewed as a potential pick in the 2026 NBA draft.
Swain was selected as a Second Team All-SEC performer this season. He also earned SEC Newcomer of the Year.
This season, Swain has averaged 17.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 3.4 assists per game.
#3 Defense has been optional this season for Texas, until the NCAA First Four
Texas has seven losses this season in which they have scored more than 80 points. The Longhorns are 250th nationally in scoring defense this season, allowing 76.5 points per game.
They are 95th nationally in adjusted efficiency defense on KenPom.
Despite the struggles on the defensive end, March Madness is a different ball game. The Longhorns held NC State to 6-of-16 shooting from 3-point range, and were +12 in rebound margin (45-33) in the First Four victory.
“I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but I think I’m going to be accurate and I’m right. This might be the first game that I can really look at and say we won because our defense,” said Texas head coach Sean Miller after the win over NC State on Tuesday. “We’ve been able to score at a very high level; tonight we didn’t.”
Texas generated seven steals and five blocks in the win over the Wolfpack. Do they come back down to earth against a high-powered offense like BYU?
#4 One of the most experienced teams in college basketball
Texas ranks fourth nationally in D-1 experience, averaging 2.75 years. That will counter a BYU team led by true freshman AJ Dybantsa, who is preparing for his first NCAA Tournament experience.
Only two players in Texas’s eight-man rotation against NC State are sophomores. The rest are juniors and seniors.
Also of note in the Longhorns rotation, four of the eight players were carryovers from last year’s Texas roster.
(6) BYU vs. (11) Texas
2026 NCAA Tournament – First Round
Date: Thursday, March 19, 2026
Location: Moda Center (Portland, Oregon)
Tip-off: 5:25 p.m. (MDT)/4:25 p.m. (PDT)
TV: TBS
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM only) — Pregame begins at 4:30 p.m. (MT)
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for KSL and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast daily on KSL Sports YouTube and KSL NewsRadio (SUBSCRIBE). Harper also co-hosts Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL NewsRadio.
Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYUathletics in the Big 12 Conference on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram: @Mitch_Harper.
