Oklahoma fans have more reason to be livid about Sooners being snubbed from NCAA Tournament

As if Texas getting in over the Oklahoma Sooners wasn't already infuriating enough, OU fans now have even more reason to be fuming at the selection committee for leaving the Sooners out of the NCAA Tournament.

The Sooners on Selection Sunday were the first team left out of the 68-team field despite an impressive late run that got them on the bubble. Instead of OU, SMU was the last team to sneak into the Big Dance and was paired with Miami (OH) in a First Four matchup, but before the first round of the NCAA Tournament even tipped off on Thursday, it was already made clear the Mustangs had no business being in that game over OU thanks to a lie from SMU and an absolute blunder by the committee.

B.J. Edwards injury fiasco proves committee picked wrong team between OU and SMU

When selection committee chair Keith Gill, who's also the commissioner of the Sun Belt, detailed during the CBS broadcast on Sunday what some deciding factors were in the Mustangs getting in over other bubble teams, he specifically mentioned quality of wins and the availability of SMU star player B.J. Edwards.

Edwards was key in SMU notching some its biggest wins of the season that bolstered its resume, including upsets over North Carolina and Louisville. However, Edwards suffered an injury late in the season, and it was proven SMU was a completely different team without him as the Mustangs lost five of six games down the stretch with Edwards sidelined.

Gill admitted on Selection Sunday that SMU was not a tournament-worthy team without Edwards, but then he asserted that Edwards would be back for the NCAA Tournament, which was a deciding factor in the Mustangs getting the nod over the Sooners. However, fast forward only three days later, and Edwards was still sidelined when the Mustangs took the court on Wednesday night. And it obviously mattered as SMU lost to Miami (OH) 89-79 with no business being there.

Had the committee not used Edwards' incorrect injury status, it instead would have been the Sooners playing Miami on Wednesday night.

Injuries have unfortunately made headlines for this NCAA Tournament, especially among top national contenders. It seemed the big names like North Carolina's Caleb Wilson and Duke being without two starters would make the most impact this March Madness, but SMU not having Edwards ended up being the most consequential injury when it shouldn't have even mattered at all toward a real NCAA Tournament result considering the Mustangs should have been at home or hosting an NIT game.

Betting odds and bracket predictions will always waiver on injuries, but those are interchangeable and don't have as large of an impact as an entire program getting left out of the NCAA Tournament. Injury statuses can change by the moment, and of course a program like SMU is going to say what the committee wants to hear so it can go dancing, but Gill and his selection committee just took the Mustangs for their word to decide entire seasons for multiple programs.

Porter Moser and his OU players and the fans should feel completely wronged. Even college basketball fans of rival programs and unbiased media pointed out the blunder. Actions on the court didn't matter when making the biggest decision of the college basketball season, but only hearsay.