2023 SEC Basketball Tournament: Updated projected seeds, schedule, magic numbers

With the first half of another conference week done, seven matchups have changed a few things in how the SEC looked to start the week. With more games ahead Saturday, several teams will be looking to clinch seeds or make up ground to better position themselves for the SEC Tournament in Nashville.

Current SEC Standings

1. Alabama Crimson Tide – 23-4 (14-1)
2. Texas A&M Aggies – 21-7 (13-2)
3. Kentucky Wildcats – 19-9 (10-5)
4. Tennessee Volunteers – 20-8 (9-6)
5. Auburn Tigers – 19-9 (9-6)
6. Missouri Tigers – 20-8 (8-7)
7. Vanderbilt Commodores – 15-13 (8-7)
8. Arkansas Razorbacks – 19-9 (8-7)
9. Florida Gators – 14-14 (7-8)
10. Georgia Bulldogs – 16-12 (6-9)
11. Mississippi State Bulldogs – 18-10 (6-9)
12. South Carolina Gamecocks – 10-18 (3-12)
13. Ole Miss Rebels – 10-18 (2-13)
14. LSU Tigers – 13-15 (2-13)

Alabama had a lot going on with their team against South Carolina. Still, they managed to find a way to knock off the Gamecocks in overtime. From there, Kentucky went down to Gainesville and survived several rallies from Florida while Auburn, albeit in narrow fashion, defeated Ole Miss. Finally, in the ‘upset’ of the night, LSU beat Vanderbilt in the Tigers first win since January 28th. That moved them into a tie with the Rebels for last place while it pushed the Commodores down from fifth to seventh in the standings.

The Crimson Tide are still in a race with Texas A&M for the SEC’s top overall seed. However, Alabama is the favorite to still clinch it at 74%. Kentucky’s win and Tennessee’s loss all but locked the Wildcats into the third seed. Even so, Auburn is also still in that race from the outside and could manage to make a final push for it, especially considering they have a head-to-head matchup with Kentucky this weekend.

The bottom five teams in the league remained the same as all but LSU lost their this week. Those results have sandwiched South Carolina in between a pair of races. Georgia and Mississippi State will both be looking to clinch the 10th seed. Meanwhile, Ole Miss and LSU will be in a three-game battle down the stretch, including a game against one another, for last place.

SEC Schedule (Saturday, February 25th)

• Missouri @ Georgia – 1 p.m. EST on SECN
• Arkansas @ No. 2 Alabama – 2 p.m. EST on ESPN2
• Texas A&M @ Mississippi State – 3:30 p.m. EST on SECN
• Auburn @ Kentucky – 4 p.m. EST on CBS
• South Carolina @ No. 11 Tennessee – 6 p.m. EST on SECN
• Florida @ Vanderbilt – 6 p.m. EST on ESPN2
• LSU @ Ole Miss – 8:30 p.m. EST on SECN

Several matchups are games to watch during Saturday’s slate of SEC games. As far as entertainment goes, Arkansas at Alabama will be must-see TV. With that said, Auburn at Kentucky, Florida at Vanderbilt, and LSU at Ole Miss will have a direct effect on races between the two teams. Missouri at Georgia and A&M at Mississippi State will have high stakes as well.

Tournament Schedule

First Round: Wed., March 8
Game 1: No. 12 seed vs. No. 13 seed | 7 p.m. on SECN
Game 2: No. 11 seed vs. Game 14 | 9 p.m. on SECN

Second Round: Thurs., March 9
Game 3: No. 9 seed vs. No. 8 seed | 1 p.m. on SECN
Game 4: Game 1 winner vs. No. 5 seed | 3 p.m. on SECN
Game 5: No. 10 seed vs. No. 7 seed | 7 p.m. on SECN
Game 6: Game 2 winner vs. No. 6 seed | 9 p.m. on SECN

Quarterfinals: Fri., March 10
Game 7: Game 3 winner vs. No. 1 seed | 1 p.m. on ESPN
Game 8: Game 4 winner vs. No. 4 seed | 3 p.m. on ESPN
Game 9: Game 5 winner vs. No. 2 seed | 7 p.m. on SECN
Game 10: Game 6 winner vs. No. 3 seed | 9 p.m. on SECN

Semifinals: Sat., March 11
Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner | 1 p.m. on ESPN
Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner | 3 p.m. on ESPN

Championship: Sun., March 12
Championship: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner | 1 p.m. on ESPN

(All Times Eastern)