Oklahoma isn't supposed to beat Texas A&M, but the Sooners also weren't supposed to be here at all.
The 11-seed Sooners late Wednesday night handled No. 14 South Carolina 86-74 in the first round of the SEC Men's Basketball Tournament in Nashville. The win advanced OU to a second-round matchup Thursday night with No. 6 Texas A&M, which has already narrowly beaten the Sooners twice this season. And Vegas oddsmakers expect the same outcome for the third time, which would pop the Sooners' already deflated NCAA Tournament bubble.
Sooners considered underdogs vs Texas A&M in SEC Tournament
Just moments after OU took care of business against South Carolina, FanDuel had already released odds for the Sooners' next matchup that was set for less than 24 hours later. As of Thursday morning, OU was a close 2.5-point underdog to Texas A&M, and most other Vegas oddsmakers agreed with that spread.
Texas A&M beat OU 83-76 in January in College Station in their first meeting, then slid by again in Norman just over a month later, 75-71.
If Vegas is correct about Round 3, the Sooners' NCAA Tournament chances would basically be zero. Many, including ESPN's Joe Lunardi, believe OU needs to get to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament to seriously be considered for a spot in the NCAA Tournament. That would mean beating Texas A&M, then No. 3 Arkansas on Friday, which would extend the Sooners' winning streak to seven games and give them 20 wins at 20-14.
The Sooners would also be underdogs against Arkansas, no matter how good they look Thursday night, so the odds are obviously against OU to make the NCAA Tournament. However, to even have any odds at all at this point proves the Sooners have done nothing but defy them down the stretch of the season.
After a miserable nine-game losing streak in January and into February, OU upset then-No. 15 Vanderbilt on the road and has been one of the hottest teams in the SEC ever since. The Sooners are 7-2 since that skid, which is better than all but two SEC teams during that time. And the odds were not in OU's favor in almost any of those games.