ESPN: Final No. 1 seed in NCAA Tournament will go to 'the SEC survivor' in SEC Tournament
Three of the four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament are seemingly settled, with Auburn, Duke and Houston already claiming their spots on the top line. That leaves the fourth and final spot up for grabs, with Tennessee still in the hunt.
ESPN’s Joe Lunardi wrote this week that he believes the fourth No. 1 seed will be determined later this week at the SEC Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Florida is currently projected as the fourth No. 1 seed, but Alabama and Tennessee are still within striking distance, according to Lunardi.
“The only race left is among three SEC teams — Florida, Alabama and Tennessee — for the last spot on the top line and a trip to the West Region,” Lunardi wrote. “If it were me, I’d pick whichever of the three advances the furthest in Nashville.”
Up Next: Tennessee in SEC Tournament, Friday, 3:30 p.m. ET
Tennessee is the No. 4 seed in the SEC Tournament and will play Friday in the quarterfinal round at approximately 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time (TV: ESPN), facing either No. 5 Texas A&M, No. 12 Vanderbilt or No. 13 Texas.
Vanderbilt and Texas play Wednesday at approximately 3:30 p.m. ET on SEC Network. The winner advances to face Texas A&M at the same time Thursday on SEC Network.
Florida is the No. 2 seed on the bottom half of the bracket and will play No. 7 Missouri, No. 10 Mississippi State or No. 15 LSU. Alabama is the No. 3 seed and will play either No. 6 Kentucky, No. 11 Georgia or No. 14 Oklahoma.
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Tennessee would face Auburn on Saturday in the semifinal and Florida would face Alabama, should all four teams advance on Friday.
“(The committee is) going to pick the SEC survivor,” Lunardi added.
Vols ranked behind Florida, ahead of Alabama in NET, KenPom
The NET rankings have Florida at No. 4, Tennessee at No. 5 and Alabama at No. 6, which also reflects the ranking of the three teams in the KenPom.com ratings.
Florida is 9-4 in Quad 1 games, 8-0 in Quad 2, 4-0 in Quad 3 and 6-0 in Quad 4. Tennessee is 10-6 in Quad 1, 4-0 in Quad 2, 5-0 in Quad 3 and 6-0 in Quad 4. Alabama is 11-7 in Quad 1, 7-0 in Quad 2, 4-0 in Quad 3 and 2-0 in Quad 4.
Lunardi also wrote Tuesday that if he had to pick a team other than Auburn to win the SEC Tournament, it would be Tennessee.
“I’m going with Tennessee in its home state, with an upset of Auburn in the semifinals,” Lunardi said. “I like the Vols’ defense to power them through the grind of three games in three days. What will that mean for the NCAA tournament? Absolutely nothing.”
