NCAA Tournament: Selection Sunday Winners and Losers

See which March Madness bubble teams won and lost on Selection Sunday

The full 68-team NCAA Tournament field has been released, which means that several teams on the bubble learned their postseason fates. Here are the March Madness bubble winners and losers from Selection Sunday: 

Loser: Texas A&M

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Before the Aggies lost to Tennessee in the SEC Championship Game, they rattled off seven consecutive wins, including a great three-win stretch in the SEC Tournament, knocking off No. 4 Auburn and No. 15 Arkansas in the process. The  impressive run at the SEC Tournament was apparently not enough earn an at-large bid for the Aggies, who were the fourth team out of the NCAA Tournament. 

Winner: Virginia Tech

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No one had a better Championship week than the Hokies, who entered the week outside of the NCAA Tournament field in most bracketology projections. After escaping Clemson in the second round on a Darius Maddox buzzer-beater, Virginia Tech went on to take down No. 2 seed Notre Dame, No. 3 North Carolina, and No. 1 Duke in convincing fashion to win the program's first ACC Tournament title. The Hokies secured an automatic berth and were rewarded with a No. 11 seed in the NCAA Tournament and a matchup with No. 6 Texas in the first round. Virginia Tech enters March Madness as one of the field's hottest teams. 

Loser: Wake Forest

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The Demon Deacons entered the week safely in the NCAA Tournament field according to most bracketologists with a record of 23-8 overall. However, a 1-4 Quad 1 record and an upset loss to Boston College in the second round of the ACC Tournament, combined with a couple of bid-stealers and strong weeks from other teams on the bubble moved Wake Forest from in the NCAA Tournament to not even in the first four out when the bracket was revealed on Selection Sunday. A very disappointing end to the season for the Demon Deacons, who miss March Madness despite having both the ACC Coach of the Year in Steve Forbes and the ACC Player of the Year in Alondes Williams. 

Loser: Dayton

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The Flyers came up short as the No. 2 seed in the Atlantic 10 tournament, falling to Richmond in the semifinals. With a NET ranking of 58 and an overall record of 23-10, the NCAA Tournament selection committee deemed Dayton the ill-fated recipient of the "First Team Out" designation. On the bright side, if an NCAA Tournament team is unable to play for whatever reason, the Flyers will be the first team off the bench to replace them. 

Winner: Michigan

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Despite a lackluster overall record of 17-14 and an early exit in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament, the Wolverines received an at-large selection to the NCAA Tournament. Carried by five Quad 1 wins and a 12-4 record against non-Quad 1 teams, Michigan goes dancing as a No. 11 seed and has a very winnable first-round game against No. 6 seed Colorado State. 

Loser: Oklahoma

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The Sooners upset No. 2 seed Baylor in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament and then lost to No. 3 seed Texas Tech by just one point in the semifinals. That one-point loss to the Red Raiders ended up costing Oklahoma a spot in the NCAA Tournament. Despite a NET ranking of 40 and four Quad 1 wins, the Sooners were listed as the second team out of the bracket on Selection Sunday. It is difficult to imagine Oklahoma not making it if the Sooners had been able to defeat Texas Tech and advance to the Big 12 title game. 

See the complete 2022 NCAA men's basketball tournament bracket here: Complete 2022 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Bracket | March Madness