The College Basketball season now takes centerstage as the NFL Season came to a close on Super Bowl Sunday. The fans who haven't been in tune with the College Basketball season are going to quickly find out that the SEC has become the most dominant conference in College Basketball this season.
As the SEC Basketball season approaches the end of the season, the NCAA Tournament picture is becoming very clear for the teams in the SEC. The Alabama Basketball team and Auburn are in a heated race for the regular season crown while a few teams are trending toward missing the NCAA Tournament.
This week was another chance for South Carolina to pick up their first win of SEC Play and yet, another loss for the Gamecocks. The Gamecocks offense doesn't have the firepower to give them a chance in most games in SEC Play and the remaining schedule won't give the team many chances to pick up a win.
The LSU Basketball team got blown out on the road against Georgia but, the Tigers looked poised to pick up a Top 25 win against the Ole Miss Rebels with a commanding 11 point lead with 3 minutes to go. Instead, LSU allowed Ole Miss to go on a 13-0 run extending LSU's losing streak to six. The Tigers can put a scare into a ton of teams but, they lack the overall top end talent to keep pace with the elite of the elite in the SEC.
Every time the Oklahoma Sooners start to build momentum, it's quickly killed as the Sooners get dominated. This week saw Oklahoma get demolished by Auburn and Tennessee which plumeted the Sooners down the SEC standings. The Sooners are still in the NCAA Tournament picture thanks to their Non-Conference schedule but, they'll need to win some games down the stretch.
This week saw the Arkansas Razorbacks split their two SEC matchups beating a surging Texas Longhorns team before falling short against Alabama. John Calipari's team has a massive week this week as they'll face a reeling LSU team before facing a Top 25 opponent in Texas A&M. Winning both games this week would be massive for the Razorbacks as they look to secure their place in the NCAA Tournament.
Mike White's Georgia team continues to be incredibly frustrating for Georgia fans as the team kicked off the week blowing out LSU before losing a nailbiter to Mississippi State. This week is going to be a true test for the Bulldogs as they take on Top 25 teams in Texas A&M and Missouri. The concern for Georgia is that they've beaten the three worst teams in the SEC and Kentucky which isn't the most promising.
This week encapsulated the frustrations with Texas the entire SEC season as the Longhorns lost two games they easily should've won against Arkansas and Vanderbilt. Everytime the Longhorns seem to build momentum they take a step back. This week won't be easy as the Longhorns face Alabama and Kentucky and it'll take massive efforts to win either game. Rodney Terry's team needs to find a way to win a game this week but, they have four easy games before the end of the regular season.
Vanderbilt split this week losing to the Florida Gators while knocking off a solid Texas Longhorns team. Heading into the week the hope was that Vanderbilt could win a game and they come out of the week with a key win as they continue to build momentum. This week for Vandy will be a gauntlet as they face Auburn and Florida two Top 5 teams but, if Vanderbilt could come out of the week with a win it would prove once again this team can knock off the top teams in the Conference.
The Bulldogs handled business this week winning their only game picking up a nail biting win over the Georgia Bulldogs. The win gets Mississippi State back on track before a crucial week with two games against Florida and Ole Miss. A win this week would go a long week for the Bulldogs as they look to prove they can go on a deep run in March.
The Kentucky Wildcats continue to be one of the most confusing teams in the Country on a weekly basis. This week started with Kentucky losing to the Ole Miss Rebels by 14 before dominating the South Carolina Gamecocks. Down this final stretch of SEC play, Mark Pope's team needs to find some consistency especially as they can't lose every other game during Tournament play.
This week was a disappointing week for the Missouri Tigers as they dropped two incredibly tough games to Top 25 opponents in Tennessee and Texas A&M by a combined 7 points. The Tigers however, still look the part of a team that can go on deep runs in both the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament. This week Missouri faces Oklahoma and Georgia which are two games the Tigers should win to get back on track.
The Ole Miss Rebels started off the week with a dominant win over Kentucky but, as the clock ran down against LSU it appeared that the Rebels may end the week with a tough loss. Instead, Ole Miss was able to go on a 13-0 run beating the buzzer to pick up two wins this week in SEC play. Chris Beard has done an incredible job turning Ole Miss around and the Rebels are set to be one of the toughest teams this March.
This week the Texas A&M Aggies only had one test and they handled it going on the road to knock off the 15th ranked Missouri Tigers. The Aggies continue to put up dominant performances on defense while Wade Taylor IV is getting complimented by Pharrel Payne and Zhuric Williams making the offense deadly when paired with their defense.
The Tennessee Volunteers continue to dismantle their opponents adding two SEC wins this week over Missouri and Oklahoma. The Volunteers are finally getting healthy and its right in time with the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament right around the corner. This week Tennessee will have a massive test against Kentucky and a win would go a long way for the Vols as they push for a top seed in the SEC Tournament.
The Florida Gators may own the two best wins in College Basketball after beating Auburn this weekend paired with a win over Tennessee. This week saw Florida add wins over Auburn and Vanderbilt which are two incredible resume pieces. The Gators are right in the mix for the SEC Regular season crown especially with Auburn and Alabama still set to face each other twice.
The Crimson Tide only played once this week taking down the Arkansas Razorbacks in Fayetteville to move to 9-1 in SEC play. Alabama continues to stack wins and they'll face Texas this week before the matchup everyone has been waiting for between Alabama and Auburn. The Iron Bowl will have a massive effect on the SEC race and Alabama will need to hold serve winning the first matchup which is in Tuscaloosa.
The Auburn Tigers push for an undefeated season in SEC Play came to an end as the Florida Gators were able to knock off the Tigers in the Jungle. While the Tigers may drop in the AP Poll, they're still the best team in the SEC until they face off against the Alabama Crimson Tide. The Tigers still have the best resume in the SEC but, the Iron Bowl will decide the SEC Regular Season Championship.