SEC March Madness Update: Tennessee vs Alabama to Shift Odds?
There are six teams within two games of the lead in the SEC with three games remaining in the regular season and all of them are showing up in the odds of winning March Madness. No SEC game this weekend will attract as much information than the clash between co-leaders Alabama and Tennessee.
With three SEC teams in the top 10 in the NCAAB NET rankings and Kentucky back in the top 20, the SEC will have plenty of March Madness representation.
Six of the seven SEC teams with winning conference records are also ranked in the Top 25 in the latest Associated Press poll. Those are the teams to keep an eye on when it comes to the March Madness projections.
When looking at the odds of winning March Madness, Tennessee leads the SEC with +1400 championship odds followed by Auburn at +1800, Kentucky at +2200 and Alabama at +2500.
Here’s a look at the NCAA Tournament hopes for the SEC teams with just three weeks to go in the regular season.
Big Dance-Bound
Tennessee is fifth, Alabama is sixth and Auburn is seventh in the NCAAB NET rankings so all three of those teams will be a part of the March Madness field. Tennessee is the SEC team with the best chance of earning a No. 1 seed with a 5-5 record in Quad 1 games. Alabama and Auburn are a combined 4-14 in Quad 1 games.
Tennessee helped its cause with a win over Auburn thanks to 39 points from Dalton Knecht.
𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭:@Vol_Hoops Dalton Knecht dropped 39 points vs. No. 11 Auburn
𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐦 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐍𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭:@StJohnsBBall beat Butler and keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive pic.twitter.com/E6jqWBZdh5
— The Field of 68 (@TheFieldOf68) February 29, 2024
Auburn has played 13 Quad 3 and Quad 4 games, the most of any team in the top 12 in the NCAAB NET rankings. Alabama can certainly make a move with a win over Tennessee this weekend.
Kentucky might be on the verge of playing its way into a top-16 seed in the March Madness bracket. A non-conference win over North Carolina will be rather helpful.
South Carolina is sitting third in the SEC standings but the Gamecocks are just 47th in the NCAAB NET rankings. The two Quad 3 losses and nine Quad 4 games are not going to benefit the Gamecocks when the NCAAB Selection Committee examines their body of work.
Florida took a step back, going from 28th to 33rd in the NCAAB NET rankings. The next two games are against ranked opponents so there is a chance for the Gators to start trending in the right direction again.
On the Bubble
Mississippi State has gone from 38th to 31st in the NCAAB NET rankings. If the Bulldogs hadn’t squandered a 13-point lead to Kentucky, they likely would be in the top 30.
There are two more games left in the regular season against ranked opponents and those matchups with Auburn and South Carolina could determine the fate for a Mississippi State team currently in seventh place in the SEC standings.
Texas A&M has lost five games in a row to fall to No. 59 in the NCAAB NET rankings. Five Quad 3 losses is not going to help the Aggies earn a spot in the March Madness bracket.
The final two games of the regular season are against Mississippi State and Ole Miss and those are feeling like must-win affairs.
A three-game losing streak has Ole Miss on the verge of falling out of the “on the bubble” category. An 0-7 record in Quad 1 games isn’t going to get the job done.
Wait ‘Til Next Year
LSU does have a pair of wins over top 25 teams but a 15-13 overall record and 7-8 record in the SEC puts the Tigers in the position of needing to win the SEC tournament to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Twelve of Georgia’s 15 wins have come against Quad 3 and Quad 4 teams so the good news is that spring football practice is fast approaching.
With the top three scorers from last year’s Arkansas team in the NBA, it is not too surprising to see the Razorbacks sinking in the March Madness odds. Arkansas is now at No. 127 in the NCAA NET rankings
Vanderbilt is 0-10 in Quad 1 games while Missouri has yet to win a conference game so the end of the season is quickly approaching for both teams.
Questions Of The Day
Which SEC teams have the best record against the spread against ranked teams this season?
Kentucky is 5-1 against the spread when facing teams in the Top 25 in the national polls this season while South Carolina has covered in three of its four games versus ranked teams.
Which SEC team has the best odds to win March Madness?
Tennessee leads the way at +1400 in the college basketball championship odds. Auburn (+1800), Kentucky (+2200) and Alabama (+2500) aren’t far behind.
The odds and predictions in the article are based on the time of writing and publication. They may differ as to when the actual event takes place.
