SMU basketball faced long odds to enter March Madness. The Mustangs earned bubble status two days before Selection Sunday, with Auburn called to make it over them. Well, SMU snuck in over the Tigers and then took a dig at Bruce Pearl.

The former Auburn men’s basketball coach was one of the studio analysts for CBS Sports’ bracket reveal Sunday. After it was revealed that SMU had gotten into the tournament as a Dayton-bound squad, Pearl said he felt two other schools deserved to get in.

Did SMU make the NCAA Tournament? Mustangs learn their fate on Selection Sunday originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here. SMU's NCAA tournament drought has come to an end. The Mustangs will begin their March Madness journey by going through Dayton first.

Seed, Will Face SMU In First Four

SMU has lost five of its last six games since the injury to Edwards, one of its starting guards. He averaged 12.7 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.9 assists and a conference-leading 2.3 assists this season and earned All-ACC honorable mention and All-Defensive team honors.

Oklahoma continues to make a compelling case, but remains out of the field currently. NC State and UCF are largely safe.

Regardless of the outcome, Duke will be slotted in the East, Michigan in the Midwest, Arizona in the West and Florida in the South. Purdue will remain a No. 2 seed in CBS Sports Bracketology, regardless of the outcome of the Big Ten Tournament title game.

If it weren’t for a lack of conference tourney upheaval, the Mustangs and Longhorns would be studying NIT opponents.