The Oklahoma Sooners aren’t dead yet.

The OU men’s basketball team got its best win of the season Wednesday night with a 96-84 upset against No. 15 Missouri on Senior Night at Lloyd Noble Center. The No. 15 Tigers were the highest-ranked opponent the Sooners have beaten this season during a schedule that included 13 top-25 teams.

With one week left in the regular season before March Madness starts with the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament, it looked as if the Sooners (18-12, 5-12) were surely headed to a fourth-straight ending without an NCAA Tournament appearance.

OU was the last team out in Joe Lunardi’s latest ESPN Bracketology that was released Tuesday after losing a pair of heartbreakers last week. But Porter Moser’s team might have accomplished enough Wednesday night to sneak in, or at least keep hope alive.

In a month where the country tries to predict the outcome of every college basketball game, plans are already being ruined a week ahead of schedule. It was assumed OU and Texas would both lose to top-25 opponents this week before facing Saturday in Austin for the regular-season finale. The winner of the Red River Rivalry then might have a half-court shot chance at going dancing if the right teams lost.

Now, after Texas also took down No. 25 Mississippi State on Tuesday, the Red River Rivalry could very well be a play-in game to be the 13th team representing the SEC in the NCAA Tournament. At least one win in the SEC tournament would also escalate odds even more.

The Sooners during their entire SEC slate have looked NIT bound against ranked teams. But in the rematch against Missouri, OU was an NCAA Tournament team.

Missouri (21-9, 10-7) handled the Sooners 82-58 just last month in Columbia. OU shot 31% that night, but on Wednesday, the Sooners made 57% of their field goals. The Sooners were also 96% from the free-throw line, making 25 of 26.

While OU looked like the NCAA Tournament team it was predicted to be, freshman Jeremiah Fears played like the NBA Draft lottery pick he’s destined to become. Fears led all scorers with a career-high 31 points while making 9 of his 13 shots and all 12 of his free throws. Most impressively, Fears, who should still be a senior in high school after reclassifying, had just one turnover while handling the ball.

Senior Mohamed Wague came off the bench and scored 12, while fellow senior Jalon Moore put up 12 points and seven rebounds.

The only loss the Sooners suffered Wednesday was when senior forward Sam Godwin suffered a knee injury in the first half. He had exploded out of the gates on his Senior Night with a game-high 12 points at the time.

Godwin eventually returned to the bench in the second half in street clothes with a knee brace and ice on his right knee. OU has struggled all season pulling in boards, especially in conference play, so losing its best big man would be a massive blow before an important date with Texas and the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament.

Although Selection Sunday is just over a week away, the Sooners still have a long ways to go before getting to dance, but the upset over No. 15 Missouri was the biggest step they’ve taken toward the dance floor.