ESPN analyst says the Bucky McMillan experiment is already paying dividends

Bucky McMillan has already exceeded expectations in year one as the Texas A&M basketball head coach.

There should be no doubt at this point that his team will make the NCAA Tournament. One ESPN analyst is putting McMillan in elite company with Todd Golden, the head coach of the defending national champion Florida Gators.

Daymeon Fishback, a former basketball player, now an analyst for ESPN and the SEC Network, just put McMillan in elite company in his first season. While he was selecting his players and coaches of the year, Texas A&M fans were stunned but proud to hear that McMillan's name was right next to Golden's on one of the SEC's most prestigious awards.

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It makes sense simply because of how surprising A&M has been performing this season. They've had a tough stretch of losses, but going through the SEC gauntlet in the first season is tough for anybody. John Calipari of Arkansas has found a way to make it work, while Mark Pope of Kentucky has fallen apart.

Getting that final Quad 1 win against Kentucky was badly needed, and it almost assures them a spot in the tournament. The SEC tournament will be a dog fight too, but the Gators are riding their own hot hand with hopes of getting back to a national title game.

The Aggies now have 20 overall wins this season. That alone wasn't expected, much less going into March Madness, as Joe Lunardi continuously predicted that A&M would be just shy of making the tournament.

Come on, Aggies, it's time to join the bandwagon while it's still early and become basketball fans, too. We have a ton of support on the gridiron, but McMillan is making a 110 percent effort to put this Aggie team on the map. Time to give credit where it's due.

Even though the Aggies will be in the middle of the pack of the NCAA Tournament, nobody thought they would be at 20 overall wins this season.