February 18, 2026; College Station, Texas, USA; Texas A&M Aggies coach Bucky McMillan reacts during the second half against the Ole Miss Rebels at Reed Arena. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Image Texas A&M coach Bucky McMillan insisted his team receive an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament if they don’t win the SEC Tournament.
The Aggies (20-10, 10-7) could add to their already strong postseason restart when they face LSU in the regular season finale Saturday in Baton Rouge, LA.
“You should want us to be in the tournament,” McMillan said. “It’s an exciting and tough matchup to watch. We’ve won 20 games and have a winning record in the SEC.”
McMillan is pleased his team has regained its identity, ending a two-game losing streak with a 96-85 win over Kentucky on Tuesday night. He said he would like to see the team shoot ’30-40′ 3-pointers.
The Aggies made just 28 attempts from beyond the arc, but that was their most attempts in five games, and their 13 makes were the most in six games, giving them an accuracy of 46.4 percent.
“We are who we are. We are a shooting team,” McMillan said. “We’ve got to keep it going through the ups and downs and the ups and downs of the season. If we make our shots, we can probably beat anyone.”
LSU (15-15, 3-14) has lost seven of its last eight games and its most recent outing, an 88-74 loss at Auburn on Tuesday, was similar to many of its previous losses. LSU had some good moments but had an imperfect performance overall.
The score was tied with less than four minutes left in the first half, but Auburn finished with a 12-5 run, expanding the lead to as many as 19 points in the second half.
“I thought we were really effective when we moved the ball and shared it offensively,” Tigers coach Matt McMahon said.
LSU shot 54.6% from the floor and 46.7% from 3-point range. “You hope that’s enough to win,” McMahon said.
But the Tigers allowed 11 turnovers and four offensive rebounds in the first half, resulting in seven second-chance points in five minutes in the second half, which helped give Auburn some breathing room.
–Field level media
