This week in SEC hoops: Alabama wins title, Arkansas makes statement
With just a week left in the SEC regular season, we know who will be the top-seeded team for the conference tournament in Nashville. Alabama suffered its second league loss last week, falling at Arkansas on Wednesday, but the Crimson Tide bounced back to beat Mississippi State on Saturday. The win improved them to 14-2 in conference play and clinched the regular-season title.
Behind the Crimson Tide, however, the standings remain jumbled. With two marquee victories, Arkansas stayed hot and has positioned itself well to get the second seed. The Razorbacks not only throttled Alabama but beat LSU by eight, extending their winning streak to six consecutive games overall and nine straight in SEC play. But Arkansas can still be caught for second place, and behind it, five teams sit within two games of one another: Florida, LSU, Tennessee, Missouri and Ole Miss.
Those standings will remain in flux through Saturday, when the league will play six makeup games that were postponed earlier this season. If all games this week get played. as scheduled (a big if seeing as Texas A&M still has not taken the court since late January), five teams will have played all 18 conference games this season, and all but the Aggies will have played at least 16. Here's a breakdown of the standings as well as the week ahead.
| Team | Overall record | League record | Last week | NET Ranking |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Alabama |
19-6 |
14-2 |
lost at Arkansas, won at Mississippi State |
7 |
|
Arkansas |
19-5 |
11-4 |
won vs. Alabama, won vs. LSU |
18 |
|
Florida |
13-6 |
9-5 |
won at Auburn, won at Kentucky |
26 |
|
LSU |
14-8 |
9-6 |
lost at Georgia, lost at Arkansas |
29 |
|
Tennessee |
16-7 |
9-7 |
won at Vanderbilt, lost at Auburn |
21 |
|
Missouri |
14-7 |
7-7 |
lost vs. Ole Miss |
46 |
|
Ole Miss |
13-10 |
8-8 |
won at Missouri, lost at Vanderbilt |
60 |
|
Kentucky |
8-14 |
7-8 |
lost vs. Florida |
65 |
|
Mississippi State |
13-12 |
7-9 |
won vs. South Carolina, lost vs. Alabama |
80 |
|
Georgia |
14-10 |
7-10 |
won vs. LSU, lost vs. South Carolina |
92 |
|
Auburn |
12-13 |
6-10 |
lost vs. Florida, won vs. Tennessee |
69 |
|
South Carolina |
6-12 |
4-10 |
lost at Mississippi State, won at Georgia |
112 |
|
Texas A&M |
8-7 |
2-6 |
Did not play |
141 |
|
Vanderbilt |
7-13 |
3-11 |
lost vs. Tennessee, won vs. Ole Miss |
118 |
Risers and Fallers
The only two SEC teams to avoid a loss last week were Arkansas and Florida, which now sit second and third, respectively, in the league standings. Arkansas' two wins last week were the two most impressive in its current hot streak. Star freshman Moses Moody led the way, averaging 21 points, 6.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists across the two wins. The Razorbacks have rocketed from a bubble team to a potential four-seed in the NCAA Tournament by winning nine straight league games.
Florida has now won three straight games after suffering a pair of ugly losses with a COVID-19 pause in between. The Gators suffocated Auburn then avenged a loss to Kentucky from earlier this season, both on the road. Sophomore guard Tre Mann followed up a 19-point, 13-rebound double-double against Auburn with 21 points and eight boards against Kentucky, which earned him SEC Player of the Week honors. Florida has been getting it done on the defensive end, as well, holding each of its past three opponents under 40 percent shooting and under 23 percent from three-point range.
At the other end of the spectrum, LSU saw its grip on a top-four seed loosen quite a bit with an 0-2 week. The Tigers gave up 91 points in a loss at Georgia, allowing the Bulldogs to shoot better than 60 percent from the field, and then fell victim to the Arkansas buzzsaw on Saturday. Missouri, too, went without a win, allowing a close game against Ole Miss to slip from its grasp late and having its Saturday matchup against Texas A&M canceled. After beating Missouri on the road to breathe further life into their NCAA Tournament chances, the Rebels turned around and lost to Vanderbilt over the weekend, which all but erases their at-large hopes.
Mizzou opponent tracker
After getting an eight-day break from competition, Missouri will have two opportunities for resume-boosting wins in its final two regular-season contests. First, the Tigers will travel to Florida on Wednesday. As mentioned above, the Gators have won three games in a row, with Mann, fellow guard Tyree Appleby and center Colin Castleton carrying the scoring load. It will be a tall ask, but if Missouri were able to upset the Gators on the road, it would give the Tigers a seventh Quadrant I win this season.
Missouri will close out the regular season by hosting LSU. The game will serve as Senior Day for five players. LSU has been wildly inconsistent this season, but the good news for the visiting Tigers is they will have a good chance to end their two-game losing streak with a home game against Vanderbilt before traveling to Mizzou Arena.
This week's schedule
Tuesday, March 2
Arkansas at South Carolina: 5:30 p.m., SEC Network
Auburn at Alabama: 6:00 p.m., ESPN 2
Vanderbilt at LSU: 7:30 p.m., SEC Network
Kentucky at Ole Miss: 8:00 p.m., ESPN
Wednesday, March 3
Missouri at Florida: 5:30 p.m., SEC Network
Mississippi State at Texas A&M: 7:30 p.m., SEC Network
Saturday, March 6
South Carolina at Kentucky: 11 a.m., ESPN
Mississippi State at Auburn: 12 p.m., SEC Network
Alabama at Georgia: 1 p.m., CBS
LSU at Missouri: 2 p.m., SEC Network
Texas A&M at Arkansas: 4 p.m., SEC Network
Vanderbilt at Ole Miss: 6 p.m., SEC Network
Get 25% off your first year and a $75 Nike or adidas gift card with our holiday specials
Talk about this story and more in The Tigers' Lair
Make sure you're caught up on all the Tiger news and headlines
Subscribe to our YouTube Channel for video and live streaming coverage