Joe Lunardi finalizes prediction for SEC bubble teams at 2026 NCAA Tournament
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We’re nearly there. Just five games — and roughly six hours — stand between college basketball fans and the 2026 NCAA Tournament bracket.
The winners of each contest today guarantee their placement in the 68-team field. Others, including many SEC schools, are less fortunate. Their resumes are complete, and they’re now at the mercy of the NCAA Tournament committee. If the committee is gracious, they’ll be dancing next week. If it’s not, their season, for all intents and purposes, is finished.
Late Sunday morning, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi released what may be his final Bracketology update of the season. He has the SEC sending a NCAA-high 10 teams to this year’s tournament. Included in that group are Texas A&M — “last four byes” — Missouri and Texas, the latter two of whom are among his “last four in.”
Conversely, both Auburn and Oklahoma, in his estimation, will be part of the committee’s “first four out.”
While Mizzou and Texas are presumably on the right side of the cut line at the moment, that could change around 3:00 p.m. E.T. If Dayton were to defeat VCU in the A-10 Championship game, the Flyers would earn an automatic bid to the tournament and send the Rams back into at-large contention. Lunardi says VCU would be battling the Longhorns and SMU Mustangs for the final play-in spot — where the First Four is held — if it lost to Dayton.
If Lunardi is correct in his assessment, Missouri will punch its ticket regardless of A-10 Championship’s result. But if you’re a fan of the Tigers, you should root hard for the Rams, just in case. Selection Sunday begins at 6:00 p.m. ET.
