The first full SEC slate brought some of everything. Undefeated teams fell, supposed bottomfeeders tested the top teams, and some teams made statement wins. Wins appear as hard to come by in the SEC as anywhere.
Key Takeaways From the First Full SEC Slate
Mississippi State @ South Carolina
When I predicted the SEC standings, I implied that I thought South Carolina had under a 50% chance of making the tournament. It’s early, but today was a great start to proving otherwise.
It’s time for Mississippi State to realize Josh Hubbard should be the starting point guard. The offense is at its best when it runs through him. Pair that with Tolu Smith, and you have a very capable squad.
For South Carolina, Meechie Johnson Jr. is the best player they’ve had since Sindarius Thornwell won SEC Player of The Year. He is a legit All-Conference caliber player who can score with the best of them. What sets South Carolina apart is other guys like Ta’Lon Cooper, who can create and open up the offense too. I love what I’m seeing from South Carolina.
Kentucky @ Florida
Florida’s home court environment needs a lot more respect among the masses. Winning there is always a battle, and this young Kentucky team was tested early. It was hostile; Florida was playing great and was forcing Kentucky to be uncharacteristic. Both the seven first-half turnovers and poor first-half shooting were very unlike this team. Then Kentucky turned it around in front of everyone’s eyes. Veteran Tre Mitchell carried the first half, but in the second, it was true freshman and high school teammates D.J. Wagner and Aaron Bradshaw. That’s growth. That first road win is a huge milestone for any young team, and Kentucky should be proud of how they battled.
For Florida, you can’t help but feel a little letdown. For 38 of 40 minutes, Florida controlled this game. Zyon Pullin and Walter Clayton Jr. poured in 23 a piece and the bigs were more physical; this was the recipe to win. Beating the number six team in the country is hard; it’s almost impossible when you miss 11 free throws. This has been a problem all year. As talented as Florida is, they have to fix it.
Georgia @ Missouri
These are two teams that I feel are on a very similar level. A shorthanded Missouri squad fell to a gutsy Georgia team yesterday. Sean East II again did all he could for Mizzou, leading the Tigers with 18 points, as well as having eight assists and six rebounds. Overall, he is having an amazing year. I’m not sure there’s a player in the SEC more valuable to their team than he is. He scores so efficiently and facilitates at such a high level. East is the offense, and I’m not sure where Missouri is without him.
For Georgia, head coach Mike White is doing a great job with this program. Tom Crean absolutely destroyed Georgia basketball. White has made them watchable and then some, and that’s an accomplishment given where it was. Russel Tchewa finally put it all together for a game, resulting in a dominant double-double. If he can give Georgia a consistent inside presence, I like this team to pull a few upsets.
Auburn @ Arkansas
I think it’s time to hit the panic button in Fayetteville. The 32-point margin was the worst loss for the home team in the history of Bud Walton Arena. Auburn is a great basketball team. They just impose their will no matter the opponent because they’re so physical. Auburn had four guys score double figures, and this team has so many capable scorers who play so well off each other. They again dominated the paint, and that strong interior presence will be there no matter what. The inconsistent shooting may limit the ceiling in the long term, but this team is a problem.
For Arkansas, yet again, they went down quietly into the night. Blowouts like this don’t happen by accident; to lose like this to a conference foe, usually multiple issues are at play. Arkansas does not fight, and this team has no leadership. Until someone looks in the mirror and becomes a leader, Arkansas will struggle.
Alabama @ Vanderbilt
This was a game Vanderbilt never really had. Alabama never felt in danger because you know how talented they are, but they would’ve lost if they came out flat. Alabama looked better on the defensive end. They looked more active, and while I know they weren’t playing the best offense in the SEC, playing at Vanderbilt is always weird for top teams. Mark Sears played great again, and I liked what I saw from the Tide overall.
For Vanderbilt, this is nothing to hang your head on. Especially with Ezra Manjon getting hurt, the Commodores still put up a fight. It’s good to see the team hasn’t quit on Stackhouse yet. Teams playing in Memorial Gym should be on high alert, and Alabama should be glad they got this one out of the way.
Ole Miss @ Tennessee
Tennessee is a different team with a healthy Zakai Zeigler. He is so dynamic on both sides of the ball that his impact goes far beyond the stat sheet. I had figured Chris Beard was immune to defensive outings like this, but that building was rocking, and Tennessee fed into it. Tennessee’s offense looked the best it has all year against a Beard defense with hardly any contribution from Dalton Knecht. Tennessee just flashing that ability is enough to scare anyone.
For Ole Miss, you really wanted to see them play this game close. I’m under the impression that no one was winning that night in that building, but I do think someone is coming within 26. The lack of scorers and spacing for Ole Miss finally reared its ugly head. I still feel Ole Miss is a tournament-caliber team, but they have to buy into winning ugly with defense. We haven’t seen a collision course like the one Ole Miss and Tennessee are on in the SEC in quite some time.
LSU @ Texas A&M
When I said if Alabama came out flat, they would have lost, this is what I was referencing. There is zero reason for Texas A&M to lose this game at home. If Texas A&M doesn’t start hitting threes, they could be in danger of underperforming in SEC play. As talented as he is, even Wade Taylor isn’t knocking down threes. I get that shooting 30 threes a game has never been Buzz Williams’ style, and that’s okay, but you can’t miss all the ones you take. I believe the waters will level eventually, but you really want that to be sooner rather than later.
For LSU, Jordan Wright showed what he can do when he’s on: he can drag you to a win. Head coach Matt McMahon was put in a very tough spot taking this LSU job, and it’s been very rocky sailing. This may be the win that gets LSU going. Winning on the road in the SEC is hard, but this was a massive win.
