UT women host NCAA opener

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The Texas women's basketball team doesn't have to travel far for their NCAA Tournament opener.  The Longhorns are a 6-seed in the Memphis region but will host their four-team bracket for the first two rounds.

No. 6 Texas will face No. 11 San Diego State on Sunday at the Erwin Center.  Tip-off will be just after 6pm.  The Aztecs won the Mountain West Conference and handed UT a loss in the 2008-09 regular season.

The Longhorns did not appear satisfied with their seeding at their selection show watch party Monday, but they hope home court will give them an edge.

"It's so nice to play at home," said Texas head coach Gail Goestenkors.  "You get to sleep in your own beds, and if we were playing away, right now we'd be thinking about everything that we need to pack, where are we going.  And, when you're in the tournament you want to be as comfortable as possible because it is a stressful time because you know it's one and done."

Texas finished 5th in the Big-12 and is one of seven teams from the conference in the tournament.  Nebraska is a 1-seed in the Kansas City region.  Joining them in that bracket is Oklahoma as a 3-seed.  In the Sacramento region, Big-12 champion Texas A&M is a 2-seed and Oklahoma State is a 4-seed.  In the Dayton region, Iowa State is a 4-seed.

Tennessee (Memphis), Connecticut (Dayton), and Stanford (Sacramento) are the other top seeds.