Before we get to the headlines today, let me answer an email I got yesterday.  “Why do you always put more East stories up than West stories?”

Currently, there are four East teams alive in the NCAA tournament.  So obviously there are more stories being written about East Division teams.

And with that…

1.  Charles Barkley says he’ll help Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs with his coach search.  But he added, “I don’t pull any strings at Auburn. … If I ran the program Mike Anderson would have the coach last time.”

2.  Former Arkansas safety Matt Harris is still dealing with the fact that he missed his last college football game because of a suspension.

3.  Mitch Petrus — who took part in yesterday’s Pro Day in Fayetteville — says that Bobby Petrino’s all-business demeanor has helped him prepare for the NFL.

4.  LSU held its Pro Day yesterday, too.

5.  Ole Miss AD Pete Boone doesn’t believe Andy Kennedy is losing momentum in Oxford.  (It’s not a good sign that he’s even having to answer such questions.)

6.  Despite having a better season this year than last, UM still saw attendance drop at Rebel basketball games.

7.  Troy is “very excited” to be getting a shot at Ole Miss in the NIT tonight.

8.  Arizona State was upset last night, which means if the Rebels keep winning the road to Madison Square Garden will go through Oxford.

9.  This writer believes Mississippi State is the best team in the NIT field.

10.  The Bulldogs were sluggish early in last night’s win over Jackson State.  “Considering it was our fourth game in five days, I was proud of the way our guys came out and played.”

11.  Dee Bost scored 15 of this 18 points after taking a cheap shot to the groin.

12.  Rick Stansbury says the MSU’s next opponent — North Carolina — is still NORTH CAROLINA.  “Seven McDonald’s All-Americans.  There won’t be no more talented team than what they have.”

When Monday morning rolled around, I never dreamed that I would type the words “lane violation” so often this week.  But the end of the Kentucky/Mississippi State game on Sunday has folks on both sides of the battle shouting to the heavens.

First came the emails from MSU fans regarding John Wall stepping over the three-point arc on Eric Bledsoe’s “I’m gonna miss this on purpose” free throw attempt.

Then came more MSU emails pointing out that Darnell Dodson was also over the line.  And Eric Bledsoe had jumped the gun and stepped over the free throw line, too.

Yesterday, after posting our follow-up to the story — because Rick Stansbury was talking about it — UK fans got in on the action.  I received four different emails from folks saying that it was a good “no call” because State’s players on the lane itself all jumped into the paint before the ball hit the rim.

And that’s why I think it’s time for some more clarification.  Here’s the deal on lane violations:



1.  Players lined up outside the three-point arc (and the extended lanes) cannot cross inside the three-point area (or the extended lanes) until after a free throw attempt has hit the rim.  Both Wall and Dodson appear to have done just that.  MSU’s Dee Bost might also have jumped the gun on this area.  In Stansbury’s view, the whistle should have been blown when Wall crossed the line, so it would not have mattered what Bost did after that point.

If this violation had been called against either UK player, Mississippi State would have been given the basketball with a two-point lead and 4.9 seconds remaining on the clock. 

2.  The shooter can not step across the foul line until his attempt hits the rim.  Bledsoe did.  In this case, however, he fired up a lollipop of a shot in order to force a big rebound.  He stood his ground for a second before moving forward.  I’m guessing the official watched his feet, saw that he didn’t come immediately across the line, and then eyed the ball… thus missing Bledsoe’s violation.  Still, this WAS a violation of the rule.

3.  Players along the lanes (be they Kentucky or MSU players) can’t go into the paint until the shot has been released from the shooter’s hands.  On replay, it looks like the players for both teams waited until after Bledsoe released his shot before they jumped into the paint.  So there was no violation.  Meaning that this was NOT a good “no call.”

Here’s the video one… more… time.



Hopefully that puts an end to this discussion until the SEC comments on the play… or fines Stansbury for doing so.

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ESPN’s Joe Lunardi is considered to be THE bracket expert when it comes to the NCAA tournament.  Now, he does do a good job of predicting the 65-team field, but I’ve never gone back to check his accuracy on predicting seeds.  In other words, “field” expert might be a better term than “bracket” expert, but that’s neither here nor there.

For those of you who do view Mr. Lunardi as a tourney guru, he’s now posted his tourney picks for you.  And SEC fans won’t be real happy about them.

In the Midwest, he has Tennessee losing to San Diego State in the first round.

In the West, he has Vanderbilt losing to Murray State in the first round.

Still in the West, he has Florida losing to BYU in the first round.

In the East, he does have Kentucky reaching the Sweet 16… before falling to #4 seed Wisconsin. 

That’s right, ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has the SEC out of the tourney before the round of eight.  And that includes UK.

Looking around the nation at other experts’ picks, it’s obvious that the SEC is fighting a pretty big perception problem.  Very few analysts expect Florida to win a game.  Several see Vandy as an early upset victim.  And Tennessee is perhaps the trendiest pick in the field to fail in its opener.

There’s only one way to change what folks think about SEC basketball — win. 

But if the SEC’s teams go belly-up as Mr. Lunardi and so many others expect, those of us down south shouldn’t complain about a lack of respect.  The SEC’s schools will have earned it.

It’s Wednesday and I just found yet another note in my email box from a Tennessee fan upset that I defended the NCAA (sort of) in their seeding of the Vols.

Apparently 48 hours isn’t enough time to move on from the fact that Bruce Pearl’s team was seeded sixth instead of fifth.

Well, in response to the cries of “We wuz robbed!” I thought I’d take a look at this year’s NCAA tournament seeds and see if Tennessee truly was singled out for a spanking.

A quick comparison of the selection committee’s seeds to the national rankings and RPI rankings shows that the “eyeball test” of human voters is a more accurate predictor of seeding.

Below you’ll see the Top 25 going into Sunday’s selection process.  At right, you’ll see three columns.  The first shows where each team should have been seeded IF seeding were based strictly on national rank.  The second shows their actual seed.  The third shows how much up or down they moved.

So what do we see?  First, it’s pretty obvious that the committee gave extra credit to teams from the Big East and Big 12, the perceived two best conferences all season.  Villanova, Georgetown, Pittsburgh, Baylor and Texas A&M were all seeded a bit higher than their national ranking would have indicated.

We also see that no team fell or rose more than a couple of spots from where they were expected to land.  Overall, eight teams moved up and nine teams moved down.

Tennessee dropped two slots along with Butler (who has been a fixture in the Top 12 all year), Temple, BYU and Gonzaga.  Hard to say, then, that UT was singled out.

One of the biggest risers was Vanderbilt.  The Commodores — ranked 21st — would have been expected to be a #6 seed, but instead they received a #4 seed.  That might give some Vol fans something to complain about, but Vanderbilt beat Tennessee handily in both of their contests this year, finished ahead of them in the SEC standings and went 4-2 against Kentucky, Tennessee and Florida.  As Pearl himself noted, the Vols went just 2-5 against Kentucky, Vandy and the Gators.



Now, on to the RPI comparison…

Clearly, RPI is used only as a “guide,” just as various committee members say each year.  There was much more variation in this chart than in our first one.  Temple, Northern Iowa, San Diego State, California and Ohio State all moved up or down by three or more slots.

Again we see that Tennessee moved down two lines while Vandy climbed two.

As for the school that got “most hosed” in both charts, that would be Temple.

But knowing that this is a fluid process that seems to change a bit from year to year, it’s hard for me to say, “Yes, this team’s fans should be crying.”  We’re talking about a seed line or two… not a tourney snub.

If the teams who feel snubbed are upset, they’ll have every opportunity to prove the experts wrong starting tomorrow.  And if Tennessee isn’t good enough to get by San Diego State, how much farther would they have gone as a #4 or a #5?

And for the record, I’d have had Kentucky a #1, Vandy a #4 and Tennessee a #5.  But that’s just me.  And judging from my inbox, many of you disagree.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day from Mr. SEC.com!

Nothing like Irish Serbs to kick off your morning.  Enjoy this — and an early morning black and tan — as we put together your morning news.



And as our photo clearly shows… be smart today and don’t have TOO many black and tans.

1.  Alabama’s Mal Moore is a finalist for the Athletic Director of the Year award.

2.  Cornerback Kareem Jackson is boosting his stock with pro scouts.

3.  Arkansas running back De’Anthony Curtis is moving to wide receiver.

4.  Courtney Fortson was named honorable mention on the AP’s All-SEC team.

5.  This writer thinks Arkansas is making a mistake by comparing John Pelphrey’s three-year record to that of legendary Hog coach Nolan Richardson (after his first three years in Fayetteville).

6.  LSU’s Pro Day brought in scouts from nearly every NFL team.

7.  Brandon LaFell and Chad Jones were happy with their work in front of the NFL officials.

8.  One draft analyst says former Tiger tackle Ciron Black — once a first-round prospect — has put on too much weight over the last couple of years.

9.  Andy Kennedy knows why his team is in the NIT — Ole Miss was 0-7 against the other SEC teams still playing basketball.  “We have no one to blame but ourselves.”

10.  Kennedy says he hasn’t given up on Eniel Polynice, but has the guard given up on the Rebels?

11.  Kennedy says his program is “so very close” to getting over the proverbial hump.

12.  Will Terrico White and Chris Warren leave UM early to play pro ball?

13.  Jarvis Varnado was named first-team All-SEC.

14.  Mississippi State hosts Jackson State in the NIT tonight, but Rick Stansbury is still upset that his team missed the NCAA tournament.

15.  For a team that lost five games to teams outside the RPI Top 100, it’s important for the Bulldogs to focus on their game tonight… and not the NCAAs.

16.  Will the SEC take action — or even comment on — the missed lane violation call in Sunday’s MSU-Kentucky game?  State fans want to know.

16. 

Leave it to Paul Finebaum to create a stir.  In today’s Mobile Press-Register, the controversial talkshow host/columnist opines that Tide basketball coach Anthony Grant “seemed to be going through the motions” during his first year in Tuscaloosa.

“Count me among those who were underwhelmed,” writes Mr. Finebaum.  “I realize Alabama went out and hired a basketball coach and not a late-night comedian.  Unlike football, basketball is a personalized sport.  You can reach out and touch the coach.  In Grant’s case, he seemed to be going through the motions, immune to the faceless crowd cheering him on.”

It gets better…

“Perhaps (Grant) looks miserable all the time because he realizes he took the wrong job.  Perhaps he doesn’t care about interacting with the public because he realizes this place is even more football crazy than he was led to believe.”

It seems that there’s a great deal of “reading into” going on in this piece.  Maybe the writer is correct and has picked up on facial cues that reveal the coach’s true feelings about the job he accepted.  More likely it’s someone trying to stir the pot.

Mr. Finebaum goes on to compare Grant’s demeanor to that of Tennessee’s Bruce Pearl.  “… fans love Pearl because he lives and dies every game.  He looks like he really wants to be there.  He acts like he really cares.  My concern about Grant is that he appears to be biding time, hoping to get the Tide on an uptick before immediately fleeing for a better job in a more desirable locale.”

That’s quite a statement considering Grant has coached all of 32 games in Alabama.  Had the Tide finished 20-12 with an NCAA bid, rather than 15-17 without one, would anyone be complaining about Grant’s bench persona?

I don’t know that tossing a sportcoat or screaming at an official has anything to do with building a program.  Certainly, being involved with the fanbase is a part of the job… and if Grant is neglecting that part of his job then he’s doing so at his own peril.

Still, it’s a little too early — at least in my view — to be questioning his motives and ability simply because he doesn’t smile enough.

In football, Alabama and Florida supposedly got all the calls this past fall.

In basketball, it’s Kentucky that’s been “taken care of.”

At least that’s the way many SEC fans saw things this year at least.

I don’t know who thought Kentucky was getting all the calls when Billy Gillispie was missing the NCAA tournament last year.

And I don’t remember anyone talking about Bama getting help from officials during Nick Saban’s first 7-6 season in Tuscaloosa.

But, hey, the perception is that good teams really aren’t that good… they’re just being aided by the refs.  Or so a lot of people seem to think.

So I’ve gone back through every Southeastern Conference basketball game this season (that’s 96 regular season games) and tallied up all of the fouls called in each game.  Below you’ll see which teams were whistled for the most fouls, which teams saw their opponents most often called for fouls, and which teams got the biggest boost in foul differential per game.

Keep in mind, this is purely a numbers exercise.  There’s no way to know how numbers are skewed by the fact that good teams usually lead and therefore their opponents are forced to foul more at the ends of games.

In other words, are fouls called because a team is good or is a team good because fouls are called?  Depending on your belief in conspiracy theories, that can go either way.

Also, it would stand to reason that more talented teams would force their opponents to foul more in an attempt to even the playing field.  In other words, not everyone has a guard as fast as John Wall, so it would figure that Wall might draw more slaps on the arms as he blows down the lane.

In addition, more physical teams — like Vanderbilt — probably get a foul advantage because other teams have to use multiple players to bang around inside with them.

Personally, I’m not a believer in conspiracy theories.  I believe home teams get more calls because officials get caught up in crowd noise just as players do (and we’ll show you those numbers, too).  I believe more talented teams get “benefit of the doubt” calls.  And I believe teams that have a reputation for being physical get more calls in their favor as well.

But I don’t believe officials take care of certain teams in order to protect their rankings, seedings, etc.  You might, but I don’t.

All that said, here are the numbers:

MOST FOULS CALLED AGAINST OPPONENT PER GAME

It seems that Auburn and Arkansas tend to spoil the conspiracy theory on this one.

FEWEST FOULS CALLED AGAINST PER GAME

Again, I’m not seeing any evidence of conspiracies here.  Vanderbilt saw it’s opponents whistled for more fouls than any other school.  Yet the Commodores also led the league in the number of fouls that were called against them.  That seems to suggest that style of play is a pretty big factor.

As for Kentucky, the Wildcats were actually whistled for more fouls than Florida, Mississippi State, Georgia and LSU.  That would be 2-14 LSU, by the way.

FOUL DIFFERENTIAL PER GAME

Finally.  Something for the folks in the tin foil hats.

No school sees a bigger difference between their own number of fouls and their opponents’ fouls than Kentucky.  Of course, the SEC refs are having to be awfully sneaky about this if it’s planned out… because UK doesn’t lead either of the two individual categories (above) that are used to determine this number.

But what about homecourt advantage?  Is it real?

Oh, yes.  There’s a reason 76% of BCS league games have been won by the home team in recent years.  A loud crowd influences players AND officials.

All 12 teams in the SEC this past year saw more fouls called against their opponents at home than on the road.  All 12.

And all 12 SEC teams saw fewer fouls called on themselves when playing at home, too.  Again, all 12.

But of all the official-affecting home gyms in the SEC, here are the ones that provide the best advantage for their occupants:

FOUL DIFFERENTIAL AT HOME

As you can see, only two SEC teams (Ole Miss and South Carolina) averaged more fouls called against them than their opponents at home.  Every other team had a positive foul differential in their own gym.

Of all the gyms in the SEC in 2010, the O’Connell Center in Gainesville was the most inhospitable to visitors looking to get a call or two.

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1.  Alabama will be staying at home this March after missing an NIT bid… an expressing not interest in a CBI or CIT bid.

2.  There were some bright spots during Anthony Grant’s first season in Tuscaloosa despite numerous injuries.

3.  After three years on John Pelphrey’s staff, Isaac Brown is not expected to return for Year Four.

4.  Brown isn’t commenting on the reports.  “You’ve got to call Coach Pel.  I’m not doing no talking.”

5.  Jordan Jefferson is taking ownership of LSU’s football team.

6.  Yesterday’s tight loss to Kentucky hurt Mississippi State in more ways than one.

7.  First came the loss, then came an NCAA snub.  (I’m not sure I’d call it a “snub.”)

8.  Rick Stansbury called Sunday a “double disappointment.”

9.  Though painful, MSU fans can take solace in their team’s gritty effort versus Kentucky.

10.  Athletic director Greg Byrne wants to talk to the NCAA selection committee.  (Hopefully they’ll tell him not to lose five games to teams ranked outside the Top 100.)

11.  While State and UM didn’t get the invites they wanted, their seasons will continue.

12.  The Bulldogs will host SWAC champion Jackson State on Tuesday night in the NIT.

13.  Ole Miss will host Sun Belt champ Troy on Wednesday night.

Quick note… we’ve added Ole Miss and Mississippi State to our “Who’s got a right to cry?” post from earlier today.

As you’ll find, I don’t think any of the SEC teams have many reasons to be whining today. 

Scroll down or click here to see the updated post.

Congratulations to Kentucky, Vanderbilt, Tennessee and Florida for making this year’s NCAA tournament. 

And condolences to Ole Miss and Mississippi State for missing out.

Now that the brackets have been announced, a quick check of the messageboards for each school reveals a lot of upset feelings, a lot of complaints about seeding, respect, travel, etc. 

Johnny Cash summed up the mood nicely…




So which schools/teams/fans really do have reason to cry?  We’ll tell you below:



Kentucky — RPI of 2, SOS of 31, 5-1 vs RPI Top 50
#1 seed
East Regional vs #16 ETSU
Thursday at 7:15pm ET in New Orleans

The Cats got their #1 seed but they didn’t get the #1 overall.  UK fans shouldn’t cry too much about that one.  Kansas was 12-2 against Top 50 RPI teams while Kentucky was just 5-1.

But the selection committee didn’t do the Wildcats any favors.  In the second round, they will face the winner of Texas and Wake Forest.  Those are two power programs from power conferences who won’t be intimidated to stand on the same court with the Wildcats.  They’ve been on the big stage before.  (Kansas’ 8-9 teams are UNLV and Northern Iowa, for comparison.)

Path to the Final Four (by highest seed):
16  ETSU  (121)
8  Texas  (29)
4  Wisconsin  (21)
2  West Virginia  (4)

That’s not a real easy path to Indianapolis.  You could argue pretty easily that West Virginia is the best of the #2 seeds.

VERDICT:  No crying.  You can’t cry when you get a #1 seed.  You just can’t.



Vanderbilt — RPI of 26, SOS of 25, 4-2 vs RPI Top 50
#4 seed
West Regional vs #13 Murray State
Thursday at 2:30pm ET in San Jose

Vanderbilt fans won’t be happy with being shipped so far away from Nashville.  Some are saying that that amounts to a punishment for a team that was clearly the second-strongest SEC squad all year long.  But those ‘Dore fans don’t have much of an argument to make.

The other #4 seeds were shipped off as well — Purdue to Spokane, Wisconsin to Jacksonville, and Maryland to Spokane.

Vandy’s first-round game is a good one.  Murray State’s RPI is #57, but the Racers played only one Top 50 club all year (losing to Cal in their season opener).  Of the #13 seeds, Wofford (which beat Georgia and South Carolina) and Houston would have both been more dangerous (on paper) than Murray State.  And Vandy fans would have wanted no part of another first-round battle with Siena, either.  The Saints toppled Vandy in the 2008 first round.

Path to the Final Four (by highest seed):
13  Murray State (57)
5  Butler (12)
1  Syracuse (5)
2  Kansas State (6)

Overall, that’s a mighty steep hill to climb for the Commodores.  A second-round game with Butler could be one of the best games in the tourney.  Two smart, patient, well-coached teams.  It’ll be a throwback to 1955.

VERDICT:  Maybe some grumbling about the path, but no real reason to cry.  If VU wanted a better seed, they shouldn’t have dropped two of their last three games.



Tennessee — RPI of 14, SOS of 19, 2-5 vs RPI Top 50
#6 seed
Midwest Regional vs #11 San Diego State
Friday at 9:45pm ET in Providence

Oh, boy.  The weeping/anger in East Tennessee is pretty loud this morning.  After becoming the first team since 2002 to knock off a #1 and a #2 in the same season, Vol fans expected no worse than a five seed.  Most projections listed UT as a #4 seed prior to the selection show.

Instead, they get a long trip.  A late game.  And a matchup with one of the tournament’s true sleeper teams.  In fact, San Diego State plays the deliberate, patient (ie: they won’t turn the ball over again and again) ball that has given UT trouble all season.

The SEC was not viewed as a power conference, and UT’s record against the other SEC teams to make the field (2-5) had to have worked against them.

Path to the Final Four (by highest seed):
#11  San Diego State (18)
#3  Georgetown (7)
#2  Ohio State (22)
#1  Kansas (1)

Baaaa-rutal.  That’s a real murderer’s row for the Vols.  Especially considering how limited UT is offensively.  Without turnovers and transition baskets, the Vols can’t seem to score.  For proof of that, just consider Tennessee’s 21-point first half against LSU and their 19-point first half against Kentucky in the SEC tourney.  It looks like the committee did.

VERDICT:  UT’s path is tough, but fellow #6 seed Notre Dame got a rough one, too.  No room for crying.  Aside from the Kansas and Kentucky wins, Tennessee doesn’t have a whole lot to hang its hat on.



Florida — RPI of 56, SOS of 36, 3-8 vs RPI Top 50
#10 seed
West Regional vs #7 BYU
Thursday at 12:20pm ET in Oklahoma City

I’m shocked that the Gators got in in the first place.  They were just 3-8 against top 50 opponents, they had two losses to teams outside the RPI Top 100, and they finished the season by losing four of their last five games.  Rhode Island, Memphis, Virginia Tech and Seton Hall all have to be wondering about this one.

The first-round matchup with BYU isn’t a bad one, either.  The Cougars were just 4-5 vs Top 50 squads.  However, Brigham Young does have the highest RPI (23) of all the #7 seeds.

Path to the Final Four (by highest seed):
7  BYU (23)
2  Kansas State (6)
3  Pittsburgh (15)
1  Syracuse (5)

The Gators got one of the toughest paths for a #10 seed, but seeing as how they barely got in, there’s no room for whining.  With their resume, UF could have easily landed an #11 or #12 seed.  Or not gotten in at all.

VERDICT:  Are you kidding me?  Count your blessings, Gator fans.  The NCAA drought is over.  Just enjoy being back in the Big Dance.  No tears allowed.



Mississippi State — RPI of 54, SOS of 74, 2-5 vs RPI Top 50
No NCAA bad… NIT bid instead

The Bulldogs showed a lot of heart in Nashville.  They came within a tick of the clock — and a possible John Wall lane violation — of earning a bid via the conference tourney for the second consecutive year.

(By the way, at tournament time, I’ll take Rick Stansbury over every other SEC coach.  The guy knows how to prepare his team for tournaments.)

But for those who feel bad for the Dogs, remember, this is a team that played a soft non-conference schedule, blew two chances late in the season to lock up an NCAA bid (at Auburn and at home against Tennessee), and it’s also a squad that dropped five games to teams ranked outside the RPI Top 100.

VERDICT:  No crying, State fans.  Your team had its chances long before the closing seconds of the SEC tournament.  They just couldn’t capitalize.



Ole Miss — RPI of 61, SOS of 71, 2-6 vs RPI Top 50
No NCAA bid… NIT bid instead

The Rebels were done-in by two things: an injury to Reggie Buckner midway through the SEC season and two costly losses to Mississippi State.

UM’s fortunes began to fade without Buckner in the middle and they only started to rise again once he returned to 100% late in the year.  But the two losses to State that were the nails in the coffin.  Had the Rebels won one of those games, their resume would have looked better than MSU’s (pre-conference tourney).  Had they swept State, the Rebs might be dancing today.

VERDICT:  The only thing UM fans should be crying about is a season of missed opportunities.  The Rebels didn’t earn a bid this year.

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Yesterday we posted our picks for the entire SEC tournament… and thanks to a blistering 4-for-4 start, we can simply link you to that post for our second round picks (and beyond).

Of course, the fact that we went 4-0 yesterday almost guarantees that we’ll plummet to 0-4 today. 

Nevertheless, for our take on Kentucky/Alabama, Ole Miss/Tennessee, Mississippi State/Florida and Vanderbilt/Georgia, just click right here.

1.  Rolando McClain’s Crohn’s disease isn’t expected to affect the former Alabama linebacker’s NFL draft stock.  Good.

2.  Here are five things to watch as the Crimson Tide kicks off spring practice today.

3.  Ah, heck… here are five more things to watch in Tuscaloosa this spring.

4.  This writer says Alabama has no reason to fear Kentucky in today’s second-round game.

5.  Love Paul Finebaum?  Hate Paul Finebaum?  Well, you’ll soon be able to hear him nationwide on Sirius XM radio.

6.  Arkansas AD Jeff Long continues to stand behind John Pelphrey despite yesterday’s first-round loss to Georgia.

7.  Ah, but will all of Pelphrey’s assistants be back next year?

8.  Georgia made life tough on the Hogs’ Rotnei Clarke.

9.  Marshawn Powell says he’ll use the Razorbacks’ six-game, season-ending losing streak as motivation for next year.

10.  Pelphrey remained upbeat about the program’s future after the loss.

11.  That said, nobody is crying to see UA’s season come to a close.

12.  This writer believes Arkansas is losing recruits because its “coaches are being outworked,” not because the Razorbacks lack a basketball practice facility.

13.  Receiver Terrance Toliver was back at practice for LSU yesterday… cast on his broken hand and all.

14.  It seems that Les Miles has found a starting offensive line that he likes much quicker than even he imagined.

15.  Trent Johnson admitted that his Tigers had no room for error, which is why an 8-0 Tennessee run in the second half meant curtains for LSU.

16.  In the final game of a tremendous career, Tasmin Mitchell could come up big for the purple and gold.

17.  Mitchell said his team’s zone defense caused problems for the Vols.  “They’ve never been a real good shooting team beyond the arc.”

18.  Mississippi State’s Chad Bumphis could be used as more than just a receiver this year… a la Percy Harvin.

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When Alabama and Florida square off at Bryant-Denny Stadium on October 2nd, there will be more eyeballs than usual watching.  And not just because Bama has expanded their stadium.

CBS has selected the Tide-Gator matchup — a rematch of the last two SEC title games — as its primetime special for the 2010 season.

“How do you argue with that?” said CBS executive Mike Aresco.  “It’s developed into the rivalry du jour.  It’s clearly now the biggest game, and this is almost like a rubber match, although they may end up playing again in Atlanta.”

The afternoon part of CBS’ double-header will feature Tennessee at LSU.

1.  To even reach today’s second round, Alabama had to use an 18-point comeback to knock off South Carolina 68-63.

2.  Bama’s Mikhail Torrance says he won’t be tired when the Tide faces Kentucky today.  “I’m a senior.  I’ve been waiting for this tournament my whole life.”

3.  John Calipari showed his team tape of the first five minutes of their 11-point win over Alabama in February… to prove that Bama “played harder and played more inspired that we did.”

4.  Calipari says there should be “no coolness” in his team’s attitude today.

5.  Coach Cal was asked about the “snub” he received when he wasn’t voted Coach of the Year in the SEC.  “Oh, I was so mad… wait til I see those guys,” he said sarcastically.  (Three candidates all had good resumes, no one was snubbed.)

6.  Want to know how many UK fans are in Nashville.  During yesterday’s Alabama-Carolina game, the biggest cheers came when the Wildcat players were shown on the jumbotron.

7.  Calipari didn’t watch the Crimson Tide’s win yesterday.

Wanted to update you on a few NCAA tournament projections from some of the media big boys today.  Here’s what’s out there:



The Sporting News — 5 teams in

Kentucky:  #1 seed

Tennessee:  #5 seed

Vanderbilt:  #5 seed

Florida:  #10 seed

Ole Miss:  #11 seed



ESPN — 5 teams in

Joe Lunardi still says that only three SEC teams are “locks” to make the tournament.  After yesterday’s action, Florida and Ole Miss are “in” from his bubble watch area.  Mississippi State is not.

In his opinion, those three SEC schools are competing with Virginia Tech, Georgia Tech, San Diego State, Illinois, Washington, Arizona State, Memphis, Rhode Island, Seton Hall, Dayton and Minnesota for at-large bids. 



Bracketography.com — 5 teams in

Kentucky:  #1 seed in East (Syracuse) Region vs play-in game winner

Vanderbilt:  #4 seed in South (Houston) Region vs #13 Akron

Tennessee:  #5 seed in West (Salt Lake City) Region vs #12 Siena

Florida:  #10 seed in East (Syracuse) Region vs #7 Notre Dame

Ole Miss:  #12 seed in Midwest (St. Louis) Region vs #5 Maryland



CBS Sports — 5 teams in

Kentucky:  #1 seed in East (Syracuse) Region vs play-in game winner

Tennessee:  #5 seed in Midwest (St. Louis) Region vs #12 Utah State

Vanderbilt:  #5 seed in South (Houston) Region vs #12 California

Florida:  #10 seed in West (Salt Lake City) Region vs #7 Clemson

Ole Miss:  #11 seed in East (Syracuse) Region vs #6 Xavier



Keep in mind that some of these links will be updated throughout the day… so in a few hours, my comments may no longer hold true.

Also, some of the above links may require free or paid registration.

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If you’re an SEC fan and you’ve already bought tickets (and/or hotels, flights, etc) to see your favorite team play a conference football game this season… you might want to pay attention to this:

The SEC still hasn’t officially released the league’s in-conference schedule (even though most schools have listed their tentative slates) because it is working to give Alabama some relief from a schedule quirk.

In the initial layout, the Tide was scheduled to face six teams coming off byes during their eight-game league schedule.  That is a bit excessive.  From time to time teams have faced multiple teams coming off bye weeks, but I can’t remember a school having six such games.

“This is something that’s important to the entire league,” said SEC associate commissioner Charles Bloom.  “Because nobody wants to be in that same position a year or two from now.  So we’re looking at a way to balance it out this year and for years to come.  The different is that it might be a little tweak this year with more widespread changes coming in future years.”

Alabama is currently scheduled to face South Carolina, Ole Miss, Tennessee, LSU, Mississippi State and Auburn after those teams’ open dates.

I know that this will set off screams of favoritism and cheating, but it’s a senseable move by the conference.  The trick will be to see how many games are moved to accommodate Alabama.  Because that will be used as a guideline — by fans at least — when eyeing future schedules.

For most of the game, it looked like I had missed on my Game One prediction.  I was prepared to fall on my sword and say, “See, that’s why picking tourney games is foolish.”

But then Alabama jetted back to clip South Carolina 68-63 in tip-off to the SEC’s 2010 tournament.  The Tide’s pressure defense took a toll on the Gamecocks in the second half… limiting USC to just one made field goal in the final 12 minutes of the game.

Carolina had led by as many as 15 points in the second half.

With Darrin Horn saying he would not accept an invitation to the CBI or CIT, the Cocks’ season ends at 15-16.  Devan Downey finished career with yet another 20-point performance.

Alabama (17-14) advances to face Kentucky tomorrow afternoon.

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If there’s anything sillier than trying to predict the outcome of a basketball game it’s trying to predict the outcome of a basketball game at tournament time.  And doing so publicly only makes the move even sillier.

So that’s just what we’ll do in this post.  If everyone else in the conference (seemingly) can boldly throw out crazed prognostications, so can we.

After all, just how many people correctly picked Mississippi State and Georgia as the league’s last two tourney champs?

That said, our picks:



Game One — Alabama over South Carolina.  The Cocks are dangerous and should be looking for revenge, but Bama has been playing better of late and dominated on the glass in their last get-together… even without JaMychal Green who will play today.

Game Two — Tennessee over LSU.  The Tigers are playing more zone than they were when they hung with the Vols back in February.  But Tennessee is at full-strength this time around.  And this game isn’t in Baton Rouge, either.

Game Three — Florida over Auburn.  AU could be playing for Jeff Lebo’s job.  That hasn’t helped them much this year.  The Gators are playing for an NCAA bid.  That hasn’t helped them much in the last couple of weeks.  Today it will.

Game Four — Georgia over Arkansas.  The Razorbacks have shown that if all their tumblers start to click they can win in the SEC — remember they led the West Division for a while.  But those tumblers seem to have been glued into place the last few weeks.  I’ll take Georgia in a slight upset.

Game Five — Kentucky over Alabama.  The Cats might not have the SEC tourney as their main goal, but they won’t slip up in their first game.

Game Six — Tennessee over Ole Miss.  Ole Miss is playing well and they took UT to overtime in Knoxville.  Also, Tennessee’s terrible postseason history points toward yet another flame-out.  But the East has SOOOO dominated the West this year that I’ll take the league’s clear-cut third-best team over it’s sixth-best one.  I’m 50-50 on this one.

Game Seven — Florida over Mississippi State.  Like the last game, I’m completely torn on this one.  Florida was not as clearly ahead of the West as the top three teams in the East.  Still they did knock off the Bulldogs in their first meeting.  I’ll take the Gators.  But not by much.

Game Eight — Georgia over Vanderbilt.  I had Vandy penciled in to win the whole darn tourney… until I heard yesterday’s comments from VU’s players.  They freely admitted that they’d prefer to play Arkansas in this round.  I can’t picture a team as consistent as Vanderbilt going down in the first game, but as they said, they don’t match up well with the Dawgs.  And the Dawgs appear to be in their heads a little bit.  Also, I can’t keep going with the chalk.  So I’ll take Georgia.  (Which means in my view Vandy either loses their first game, or goes all the way.)

Game Nine — Kentucky over Tennessee.  Kentucky was the class of the league by far this year.  They’ll have a homecourt advantage all week, even against Tennessee.  The Vols knocked off the Cats in Knoxville, but this one isn’t on UT’s campus.  I’ll take UK.

Game Ten — Georgia over Florida.  This side of the bracket is my “reach” side anyway.  The Gators have been a streaky team all year, so after a two-game win streak, I see another loss coming.  Georgia is a dangerous team.  Probably not as dangerous as I’m making them out to be.  But I’ll take ‘em through to Sunday nonetheless.

Game Eleven — Kentucky over Georgia.  The Wildcats might not be focused.  We have no idea how such a young team will play together in a tournament environment.  And if they have to face Vandy in the title game, I’ll go with the Commodores.  But since I’ve pushed UGA into the title game, I’ll take the Cats as tourney champs… even if John Calipari doesn’t care much about the SEC tourney.  Heck, it’s awfully hard to pick against a team that went 14-2 in the regular season with both losses being close games on the road.  Kentucky wins it all.

1.  Kendall Kelly is expected to open spring practice for Alabama at safety, not receiver.

2.  Bama’s secondary is a primary concern this spring.  (Ha ha… get it?)

3.  Former UA nose tackle Terrence Cody continues to drop pounds for NFL scouts.

4.  Rolando McClain’s Crohn’s disease forced him to cut short his Pro Day workout yesterday.

5.  ESPN’s Ivan Maisel calls Bama’s visit to the White House a trip to remember.

6.  This Louisiana writer feels it’s time for the SEC to change the way it seeds its tournament.

7.  LSU’s Trent Johnson was impressed by Tennessee’s win at Mississippi State on senior night.

8.  Here’s a notes column on the SEC tournament.

9.  This tourney preview says Kentucky has recaptured its “royal role.”

10.  After going oh-for-24 against the top four teams in the East in the regular season, the West Division’s teams need to rack up some wins against their East rivals in Nashville.

11.  That includes Ole Miss and Mississippi State who both need good runs to earn NCAA bids.

12.  Ole Miss’ team bus rolled a little too close to some demolition explosives in Nashville today… but no one was hurt.

13.  Houston Nutt will be looking to re-stock his secondary this spring.

14.  MSU’s Phil Turner likes being the “energy guy” on the Bulldogs’ basketball team.

15.  Here’s one writer’s predictions for Round One of the SEC tourney.

With many members of the SEC media brigade gathered in Nashville for the conference tournament, The Tennessean saw an opportunity.  So the newspaper surveyed 12 members of the media and asked them a series of questions about the league, its players and its coaches.

In the spirit of Richard Dawson, survey says…



Best Coach — Bruce Pearl, Tennessee

Best Player — John Wall, Kentucky

Most Underrated Player — Trey Thompkins, Georgia

After Kentucky, Which Team Will Go Furthest In The NCAAs — Vanderbilt

Best Site For An SEC Tournament – Atlanta and Nashville tied

Best Fans — Kentucky (did they really need to even ask?)

Worst Fans — Auburn (did they really need to even ask?)

Best Homecourt Advantage — Kentucky

Arena That Should Be Demolished — Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum (which HAS seen its last game action)

Coach You’d Want To Have Dinner With — Bruce Pearl, Tennessee

Coach You’d Least Like To Have Dinner With — John Calipari, Kentucky

Kentucky Or The Field — Kentucky

Next Coach To Get Fired — Jeff Lebo, Auburn

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1.  Both Alabama and South Carolina are in full-blown survival mode.

2.  The Crimson Tide seems to be finally putting things together going into the tourney…

3.  But Anthony Grant says “We’re still not where we need to be.”

4.  JaMychal Green will be in action today after missing UA’s win over Carolina last week.

5.  That win helped boost Bama’s confidence.

6.  South Carolina will have to do better on the glass against the Tide this time around.  Much better.

7.  This writer — who ranks the chances of winning the tourney for each SEC team — believes the Gamecocks can do some damage.

8.  Freshman Lakeem Jackson isn’t worried about going 15-of-55 from the free throw stripe.  (May he should be.)

9.  Sam Muldrow might be more important to USC’s tourney success than Devan Downey.

10.  Carolina will use its upset wins over Kentucky and Vanderbilt as motivation in Nashville.

11.  Darrin Horn’s focus is still on the future, still on “building a program” in Columbia.

For much of the 2009 season, many Alabama players — including Heisman winner Mark Ingram — said that their most valuable teammate was Rolando McClain.

Yesterday, the all-star linebacker revealed that he has battled Crohn’s disease since his freshman year of high school.

“I got diagnosed with Crohn’s disease my freshman year of high school.  I was in the hospital for like two weeks, lost like 60 pounds…” McClain said.  “Coach (Nick) Saban knows about it, my training staff knows about it.  I take four or five pills a day from (doctors).  I give a lot of my success to them.  They’ve done a great job of managing it and helped me get through a lot of games and a lot of tough practices.”

McClain made the announcement after a brief, but impressive Pro Day workout in front of NFL scouts.  McClain is expected to be a first-round pick in this spring’s draft.

Just a reminder that we’ve already posted our first-round breakdowns for today’s SEC tournament action.

You can get the statistical skinny on all eight teams in action today by clicking the links below:



Game One — Alabama vs South Carolina

Game Two — Tennessee vs LSU

Game Three — Florida vs Auburn

Game Four — Arkansas vs Georgia

With the SEC tournament set to tip off in just about four hours, the league currently has five teams projected into the NCAA field at SportsIllustrated.com.

Andy Glockner updated his brackets early this morning… and here’s how the SEC’s teams stand:



Kentucky — #1 seed in the East (Syracuse) Region vs #16 seed Quinnipiac (though he most likely meant Robert Morris, which topped the Q last night)

Tennessee – #4 seed in the West (Salt Lake City) Region vs #13 seed Murray State

Vanderbilt — #5 seed in the Midwest (Oklahoma City) Region vs #12 seed San Diego State (Vandy beat Tennessee twice head-to-head, finished ahead of them in the standings and still gets a lower seed?)

Florida — #11 seed in the West (Salt Lake City) Region vs #6 seed Michigan State (who the Gators beat earlier this season)

Ole Miss — #13 seed in the South (Houston) Region vs #4 seed Baylor (The Bears lost to Alabama early in the season)