The wait until Sunday will feel like forever for the Texas Longhorns who left their home court just last week to Oklahoma fans chanting “NIT! NIT!.” Now here they sit a legitimate NCAA hopeful because of what they did in the SEC tournament.

Michael Shapiro is a sports reporter for Chron, covering the Astros, Rockets, Texans and every team in town. Michael is a Denver native and graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, and a noted fan of pull-up threes, wide-receiver passes and a good hot fudge sundae.

Texas’ first SEC Tournament appearance had its moments, with wins over Texas A&M and Oklahoma marking a successful debut. But the Longhorns’ run ended Friday in an 83-72 loss to No. 8 Tennessee in the quarterfinals.