South Carolina had a nice men's basketball season, going 25-9, including 11-7 in the SEC. Many people thought the Gamecocks deserved a spot in the NCAA tournament. And, for one not-so-shining moment, South Carolina believed it had made the field of 68.

That's because the NCAA mistakenly sent word to the program that it had, in fact, made the tournament. The NCAA owned up to its mistake in a statement Thursday from Dan Gavitt, vice president of men's basketball championships:

"Unfortunately, during the selection show a junior men's basketball staff member mistakenly sent a text to a member of the University of South Carolina athletics department staff via an app we used for the first time during the 2016 tournament," the statement began. "The text was supposed to go to all teams, congratulating them for making the tournament. Regrettably, a text meant for another institution went to South Carolina instead."

Read Michael Rand's blog at startribune.com/randball. michael.rand@startribune.com.