The consensus was that all the Oklahoma Sooners had left to do to get into the NCAA Tournament was beat Georgia in the first round of the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament. The Sooners did what they had to do Wednesday night, and it seems the predictions were correct.
The 14 seed OU men's basketball team took out 14 seed Georgia 81-75 in its first-ever SEC tournament game. The victory put the Sooners on a three-game winning streak that also includes a top-15 upset and a win over rival Texas on the road.
A bubble team nearly all season, the Sooners' NCAA Tournament chances have escalated in just the last week because of their incredible three-game run. Just last week, OU was on the outside looking in of the field of 68.
After upsetting No. 15 Missouri, then Boise State later slipping up, OU snuck in as one of the last four in before its trip to Austin to play Texas on Saturday. ESPN's Joe Lunardi said during halftime that the winner of the rivalry game would need to win just one more game in the SEC tournament to solidify a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
After beating Texas, the Sooners were still one of the last four teams in before they tipped off against Georgia on Wednesday night.
The day after beating Georgia, the Sooners are comfotably in, according to most bracketologists.
Lunardi's projections back up his statement from this past weekend. He moved the Sooners from a last four in to a last four getting a bye in his latest ESPN Bracketology on Thursday. Lunardi now has OU as the 10 seed in the East Region and playing 7 seed Gonzaga in the first round in Cleveland.
Jerry Palm of CBS Sports has the Sooners sitting even more comfortably in the field of 68. According to Palm's Thursday projections, OU is the 9 seed in the Midwest Region playing 8 seed Saint Mary's in the first round in Wichita.
These projections will now change by the day until Selection Sunday. Now surely in, the Sooners can continue to improve their footing with some huge possible opportunities ahead.
First, OU will play 6 seed Kentucky on Thursday night. The No. 15 Wildcats just barely beat OU 83-82 just a few weeks ago at Lloyd Noble Center. The winner of Round 2 between OU and Kentucky will get a rematch with 3 seed Alabama, which hammered both teams during the regular season.
Next up ➡️ Second Round
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