Paul Finebaum analyzes SEC's 2023 season

The Southeastern Conference had a banner year for its college basketball teams, with Alabama leading the charge and earning a No. 1 seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament. The SEC’s 2023 season had many twists and turns.

But the sheer number of teams in the league who made runs and were ranked at various points in the season was astounding.

“It was a really strong year,” said Paul Finebaum, making an appearance on the McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning program on Monday. “It was bizarre, Cole, as you know, because there were so many, it started with, I think Kentucky was the highest-ranked team in the preseason and there was no doubt at the end the two best teams were playing yesterday in Nashville.”

Those two best teams being, of course, Alabama and Texas A&M.

That duo finished one-two in the regular season standings and traded blows late, with Texas A&M winning the regular-season finale on its home court and Alabama winning the SEC Tournament title on Sunday at a neutral venue.

The Crimson Tide will go into this week’s NCAA Tournament looking to carry the banner for the league.

At 29-5, Alabama is just one win away from a 30-win season, a remarkable achievement in just about any year in college basketball.

But that the Crimson Tide have managed to do it under the cloud of a capital murder charge for former player Darius Miles and the ever-present questions surrounding that case is arguably more impressive.

In fact, Finebaum alluded to some of the doubts that some may have had around the program, in part because of that case.

“I think a lot of the doubts about Alabama over these past seven or eight weeks were put to rest over the weekend in Nashville when Alabama started playing at one of its highest levels of the year at just the right time,” Finebaum said. “I think that’s why they are the No. 1 seed in the tournament, and quite frankly that’s why a lot of people think they are going to win the tournament.”

With the SEC’s 2023 season ongoing, Alabama will begin the NCAA Tournament with an opening-round game against Texas A&M Corpus Christi, which knocked off Southeast Missouri State in a play-in game on Tuesday night.

Those two programs will tip off at 2:45 p.m. ET on Thursday on CBS.