After Texas A&M suffered an ugly loss to Oklahoma in the SEC Tournament, its March Madness fate looks about decided.
The Aggies have been trending down in terms of seeding, but it might benefit the Ags in the end. As the No. 8 or No. 9 seed, the Ags would have to end up playing one of the top seeds in the tournament. Not ideal, but they don't have to worry about that if they end up as the No. 10 seed.
That's where ESPN's Joe Lunardi has A&M. He predicts the Ags will play UCLA in the first round in Oklahoma City. Not a bad matchup considering College Station isn't too far from Oklahoma City.
Texas A&M got a first round gift if Lunardi's prediction ends up being right
Joe Lunardi’s latest bracketology update has Texas A&M as a No. 10 seed heading to Oklahoma City to play No. 7 UCLA.
— Luke Evangelist (@lukeevangelist_) March 14, 2026
No. 2 Houston and No. 15 Long Island are the other two teams in the pod. Fins up 👀 pic.twitter.com/wqbhyOcGL8
Oklahoma City would host a Round of 64 matchup, giving Texas A&M home-court advantage. OKC is about five-and-a-half hours from College Station, still a ways away, but it's a lot closer than UCLA. If the Ags get out of that with a win, they would likely see a familiar face
The Round of 32 would likely feature Houston, a team that Texas A&M nearly beat in the 2024 March Madness. Andersson Garcia made a game-tying three-pointer to take the game into overtime, but the Cougars ended up pulling away in OT.
The Aggies making the Sweet 16 is a long shot, but in March, anything can happen. They at least have a friendly home court in Oklahoma City. UCLA is also a tough team in a loaded Big Ten Conference. No doubt that the first game will be tough for Texas A&M to overcome.
It looks like the loss against Oklahoma may be a gift, but after laying an egg, the Aggies still have a lot to fix after a poor display of shooting in the SEC Tournament.