The Big 12 lost its Big 12/SEC Challenge series, but that was to be expected. The Southeastern Conference won five of the nine games, but the matchups fell against the Big 12 -- the SEC had the higher-ranked team, using the NCAA’s NET rankings, in six of the nine games. And when the Texas-Kentucky game was canceled by COVID-19, a prime Big 12 opportunity was gone.
But the challenge still proved advantageous for the Big 12. OU’s 66-61 upset of Alabama, with the Sooners void of star point guard Austin Reaves, was the nation’s statement game of the weekend.