A brutal mistake led South Carolina to believe it made the NCAA Tournament

The South Carolina Gamecocks nearly made the NCAA Tournament this year after finishing the season with a 24-8 record, however it wasn't enough to get them into the big dance. Instead, they saw their SEC rivals, the Vanderbilt Commodores, make it, which many believed to be a mistake by the committee.

As brutal as it was for South Carolina to miss out on the excitement of March Madness, what happened on Selection Sunday made it even worse. Athletic director Ray Tanner confirmed on Thursday that the team was incorrectly notified that it made the tournament, only to have the invitation revoked.

According to Tanner, head coach Frank Martin and the Gamecocks were told at 6:30 p.m. ET on Selection Sunday that they were in the 68-team field. Just 10 minutes later, NCAA officials called back to tell them that it was a mistake and Vanderbilt was the committee's choice, instead. Talk about a tough pill to swallow.

The NCAA issued a statement regarding the issue on Thursday, saying it was a mistakenly sent text by a junior men's basketball staff member. The statement can be seen below, via FOX Sports' Stewart Mandel.

The NCAA said South Carolina was never voted into the field and instead was one of the final four teams left out of the tournament -- though that doesn't make it any better. Just a terrible sequence events for all parties involved.

The Gamecocks were consequently invited to the NIT, where they lost in the second round.