SEC Tournament Schedule… And Bad Predictions

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The SEC Tournament bracket has been set and the schedule for this week’s games are as follows (all times EST):


First Round – Thursday

Game 1 — Kentucky (East 4th) vs Ole Miss (West 5th) — 1:00pm
Game 2 — Miss. State (West 3rd) vs Georgia (East 6th) — 3:15pm
Game 3 — Alabama (West 4th) vs Vanderbilt (East 5th) — 7:30pm
Game 4 — Florida (East 3rd) vs Arkansas (West 6th) — 9:45pm


Second Round – Friday

Game 5 — LSU (West 1st) vs Game 1 Winner — 1:00pm
Game 6 — South Carolina (East 2nd) vs Game 2 Winner — 3:15pm
Game 7 — Tennessee (East 1st) vs Game 3 Winner — 7:30pm
Game 8 — Auburn (West 2nd) vs Game 4 Winner — 9:45pm


Semi-Finals – Saturday

Game 9 — Game 5 Winner vs Game 6 Winner — 1:00pm
Game 10 — Game 7 Winner vs Game 8 Winner — 3:15pm


Finals – Sunday

Game 11 — Game 9 Winner vs Game 10 Winner — 1:00pm



The first 10 games of the tournament will be carried by Raycom.  Sunday’s championship game, as always, will air on CBS.

(Sidenote — Raycom’s coverage of the tournament semi-finals will mark the final SEC games carried by the syndicated network.  Next year, the SEC’s football and basketball packages will move to ESPN regional syndication.)



At first glance, here’s how we see things unfolding in Tampa.  And if you’re smart, the last thing you will do is bank on these first-blush predictions.

Game 1 — Kentucky has lost eight of their last 11 games.  Ole Miss was one of the Wildcats’ losses.  I think they’ll have enough spirit to get some revenge in this one, though.  Jodie Meeks and Patrick Patterson are too dangerous to not win at least one tournament game.

Game 2 — Georgia has been playing better of late, but if MSU hits their threes, I don’t think UGA has the firepower to keep up.

Game 3 — Both of these teams are playing their best basketball right now.  Vandy has been the hotter of the two.  I’ll take the Commodores, but the inside matchup between AJ Ogilvy and the Tide’s big men should be fun to watch.

Game 4 — Arkansas’ sad season comes to a merciful close.  Florida wins.

Game 5 — Kentucky vs LSU.  LSU has lost two in a row since clinching the SEC championship.  I still think they’re a more complete team than Kentucky as they proved at Rupp Arena a week ago.  LSU is the pick.

Game 6 — Mississippi State vs South Carolina.  State is a very dangerous team because of their three-point shooting.  Carolina should be able to defend them better than Georgia, however.  The Gamecocks will survive.

Game 7 — Vanderbilt vs Tennessee.  Tennessee has handled Vandy twice already this season.  But Ogilvy is healthier now.  It’s hard to beat a team three times in one season.  And the Vols never perform well in the SEC Tournament.  Vandy in an upset… more because of history than the matchup.

Game 8 — Florida vs Auburn.  I don’t believe Florida is a mentally tough team.  Auburn has won seven of their last eight and are the hottest team in the league.  Both teams need to win the tournament to lock up an NCAA bid.  That makes this a defacto play-in game.  And I’ll give Billy Donovan the edge over Jeff Lebo in that kind of set-up.  Florida advances.

Game 9 — LSU vs South Carolina.  LSU presents a matchup problem for Carolina inside.  LSU wins.

Game 10 — Vanderbilt vs Florida.  Both teams have been way too up and down for me to feel comfortable with any pick.  That said, I’ll take Nick Calathes and Florida to survive.

Finals — LSU vs Florida.  LSU has been the class of the league all season long.  Florida has been spotty.  They’re defense hasn’t been strong.  Mentally, they’re not tough enough to win close games.  LSU wins the game and the tournament.