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SEC basketball rolls right along this weekend with another incredible slate of games. Of course, nothing can top Auburn visiting rival Alabama (spoiler alert for my 5-star rankings). But there’s plenty of meat on the bone around the rest of the league.
This will be each team’s 12th or 13th conference game. That means that, after Saturday, we’ll officially be two-thirds of the way through league play. Currently, Auburn, Alabama, Florida and Texas A&M hold the all-important top-4 spots in the SEC standings, which means that if the season ended today, they’d get double-byes in what’s sure to be an incredibly deep SEC Tournament field.
Will they be able to hold onto those spots? We’ll find out starting this weekend.
Without further ado, here’s a look at my ranking of Saturday’s 8 SEC games on a scale of 1-5 stars:
5-Star Games
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
No. 1 Auburn at No. 2 Alabama — 4 p.m. ET on ESPN
Can I go up to 6 stars? No? OK, well I’m going to put Auburn-Alabama on the 5-star line by itself then. Putting another game on this level would be disrespectful to the Iron Bowl of Basketball. Since the start of the 2021-22 season, Alabama and Auburn are 3-3 against one another. Auburn won the final game last season. Who will get the victory in the first of 2 meetings between these likely No. 1 seeds on Saturday? Saturday Down South’s David Wasson previewed what is sure to be an incredible game.
4-Star Games
⭐⭐⭐⭐
No. 22 Mississippi State at No. 19 Ole Miss — 6 p.m. ET on ESPN2
The Iron Bowl of Basketball isn’t the only major rivalry game this weekend. The Egg Bowl of Basketball is also on the menu. And both the Bulldogs and Rebels are ranked. Mississippi State claimed an 84-81 overtime victory back in January. Can Ole Miss get its revenge in Oxford? This will be a nice dessert after Alabama-Auburn on ESPN.
3-Star Games
⭐⭐⭐
Arkansas at No. 8 Texas A&M — 12 p.m. ET on ESPN
Arkansas has won 3 of its last 4 games, including some nice road wins over Kentucky and Texas. The 1 loss was at home against Alabama, but the Razorbacks made it interesting, closing the gap to 4. Going to College Station to take on a top-10 Texas A&M squad is a different task, though. The Aggies are 11-1 at Reed Arena this season.
Vanderbilt at No. 5 Tennessee — 1 p.m. ET on SEC Network
This game is elevated from a 2-star to a 3-star showdown because the Commodores beat the Vols already this year. And as Kentucky has shown, Tennessee is not invincible at home. Vanderbilt has been a great home team this year, but it remains to be seen if Mark Byington’s crew can take its show on the road.
No. 21 Mizzou at Georgia — 3:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network
This is a tricky game for the Tigers, who are coming off a midweek blowout win over Oklahoma. Playing on the road at Georgia has been tough this year. The Bulldogs are an impressive 13-2 at home this season behind star freshman Asa Newell. It’ll be a good test for a Mizzou squad that Oklahoma coach Porter Moser said looks like a Final Four team.
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2-Star Games
⭐⭐
No. 15 Kentucky at Texas — 8 p.m. ET on ESPN
The Wildcats have owned Tennessee this year, picking up strong wins over the Vols both in Lexington and Knoxville. Can Kentucky avoid losing to a team it should beat on the road? Texas would love to get this win for its NCAA Tournament résumé, so expect Tre Johnson and the Longhorns to come out strong and give their A+ effort.
1-Star Games
⭐
LSU at Oklahoma — 6 p.m. ET on SEC Network
Oklahoma should win this game, but the Sooners are coming off of a blowout loss at Mizzou on Wednesday night. They can’t afford a bad loss on their résumé, as their NCAA Tournament hopes are not exactly on life support, but are getting close to that point. LSU, meanwhile, is looking to salvage a bit of momentum and respectability before the end of the SEC season.
South Carolina at No. 3 Florida — 8:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network
Any chance to see Florida play is worthwhile, if you ask me. But this game could (and should) get ugly for the Gamecocks, who are still in search of their first SEC victory. South Carolina has been competitive, including earlier this year against the Gators in Columbia. But heading into a hostile road environment isn’t something the Gamecocks have had much success doing.
Players to Watch
This week’s Players to Watch are:
Zvonimir Ivisic, Arkansas
The 7-2 center from Croatia is heating up down the stretch for John Calipari’s team. He posted 27 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks, 3 steals and 2 assists as the Hogs put a scare into Alabama last weekend, then followed it up with 25 points, 4 blocks and 3 rebounds against LSU midweek:
Don’t look now, but the lengthy sophomore is starting to rise up NBA Draft boards.
Thomas Haugh, Florida
Did anyone have a better week than Haugh? I doubt it. (Maybe the Philadelphia Eagles, but let’s stick to college basketball.) In Florida’s win over No. 1 Auburn, Haugh had 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 3 blocks and 1 steal in 29 minutes off the bench. At Mississippi State during midweek action, Haugh did even more, scoring 16 points, grabbing 9 rebounds, dishing out 8 assists and posting 2 steals and 2 blocks in 37 minutes off the bench. When you’re doing things that haven’t been done since John Wall, you’re doing something right:
He’s stepping up in a huge way and might just win the SEC’s Sixth Man of the Year award for his efforts.
Coach of the Week
Todd Golden, Florida
In the past week, the Gators have taken down No. 1 Auburn on the road and also beat a ranked Mississippi State team on the road. Alijah Martin, one of the team’s best defenders, was injured for both games. Against the Bulldogs, big man Alex Condon left in the first minute with an injury. Didn’t matter. Golden’s squad kept rolling. He’s built a deep, talented roster in Gainesville. This team has real Final Four potential and should be a beast in the SEC Tournament.
Relevant Quote from “The Office”
“I consider myself a good person… but I’m gonna try to make him cry.” — Oscar Martinez
That’s an appropriate mantra for the Alabama-Auburn and Mississippi State-Ole Miss rivalry games this weekend. Enjoy the 8-game SEC slate, y’all!
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 14 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
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