in NCAA B Props
College Basketball Futures - Odds to Win the SEC East
by Charles Jay
Here's our capsule preview of SEC East Division basketball action, but before we do that, we will look at the odds at BetUS Sportsbook on each of the teams, keeping in mind that the team that is the highest seed for the conference tourney will be the one that wins for the purposes of payoff.
BetUS Sportsbook Basketball Futures Odds
To Win SEC East Championship
- Florida +800
- Georgia +3000
- Kentucky -800
- South Carolina +1000
- Tennessee +500
- Vanderbilt +1500
FLORIDA (+800 at BetUS) may have to go through its second straight year of rebuilding under coach Billy Donovan. Hey, that's what happens when you're on the heels of two straight national titles where practically your entire team came back. The team has to now overcome the departure of Nick Calathes, a guard who could dish, shoot, and rebound, but who left to play pro ball overseas. Donovan will try replace some of what he brought to the table with a heralded freshman, Kenny Boynton. Up front they are okay, with double-digit scorer Alex Tyus and defensive ace Dan Werner, as well as a Georgetown transfer, 6'10" Vernon Macklin. Since Boynton is not a point guard, this team will be looking for some on-court leadership.
GEORGIA (+3000 at BetUS) gets a new head man, as Mark Fox moves up the coaching ladder, having been successful at Nevada. It might not be completely accurate to say he starts behind the eight-ball, but his roster is not talent-laden. The guy who will be relied upon heavily is point guard Dustin Ware, who should get better as a sophomore. Is there anybody to help shoulder the scoring load alongside Trey Thompkins? Big losses on this team are the departures of Terrance Woodbury and Zac Swansey.
KENTUCKY (-800 at BetUS) has greatly disappointed the last two seasons, but there is a lot of excitement with the arrival of John Calipari, who brings his winning ways (not to mention some "creative" recruiting) to the Lexington campus. Calipari, whose Memphis team has had its runner-up status in the 2008 NCAA tournament vacated, inherits one of the best players in the SEC in forward Patrick Patterson, who got great news when he discovered that the five-star class of recruits is going to let him stay out of the paint and create a little.
Two of the nation's best big men have been brought on board by Calipari - freshmen DeMarcus Cousins and Daniel Orton - who could create something of a "Twin Towers" effect at times. And that's not even the half of it - Kentucky scored what might be the best freshman of all in John Wall, a 6'4" point guard who is generally considered to be one of the top five prospects for next year's NBA Draft. He's backed up by another freshman star, Eric Bledsoe. This team should be able to adapt to Calipari's version of the dribble-drive offense, which drives up the tempo in both the open court and in half-court sets. The Wildcats should find themselves going at least a couple of rounds in the NCAA Tournament, although I don't know how much value there is in this particular price.
SOUTH CAROLINA (+1000 at BetUS) is going to miss Zam Frederick, but hey, these things happen in college basketball. The Gamecocks bring back 5'9" guard Devan Downey (19.8 ppg last year), who is regarded by many as one of the best at his position in the country. They've got potential on the front line, as Dominique Archie and Mike Holmes return. Unbelievably, this team had a minus-7 rebounding deficit in SEC games. That has to improve, obviously. This is one of those teams that isn't really a threat to challenge Kentucky in this division, but could make a run at one of the last SEC slots for the national tournament.
TENNESSEE (+500 at BetUS) plays at a very swift pace, and for that to happen they have to have a certain amount of discipline, but they turned the ball over a little too much last year and are hoping that freshman guard Melvin Goins might be of some help in that area. Scotty Hopson is a key player in the backcourt, because he has the capability of being one of the best scorers in the conference and is ready to make that big leap as a sophomore. There is some very legitimate bulk up front with Wayne Chism and Brian Williams, another pretty strong scorer in the backcourt in JP Prince, and of course, their best all-around player, and one of the best in the entire SEC, Tyler Smith, who averaged a team-high 17.4 points last season and bypassed the NBA Draft in order to give himself another shot at getting to the NCAA Tournament, He and the Vols will get there, and could make some noise. If anyone can challenge Kentucky, this is the team.
VANDERBILT (+1500 at BetUS) has some guys who can play. Let's put it this way - John Jenkins is one of the most prized recruits in the history of this program and a guard who averaged 42 points a game as a high school senior, but the best he'll probably do is be the third guard, behind Jermaine Beal and Brad Tinsley, who are both dead-eye shooters from the arc. Jeffery Taylor, another double-digit scorer, is also one of the better defensive players in the conference and he will be the wingman. Then there is AJ Ogilvy, a legitimate scorer and rebounder in the center spot. There is enough balance here to make things interesting in a lot of conference games, as well as the SEC Tournament, and Vandy will make the 65-team field at the end.
