SEC Power Rankings Week 11

For pretty much the entirety of this SEC Conference Season, #SECBASKETBALLFEVER had been dormant, almost as if in hibernation. The good teams were beating the bad, the middle of the pack teams were winning at home and then losing on the road to competition that was on their level, and the crap team was getting destroyed and embarrassed in new and more interesting ways. Things were good and normal. Then this week happened. On Saturday, Vanderbilt went into the O Dome and won…they beat the Gators on the road…patient zero has yet to be identified, but the smart money is on Mathew Fischer-Davis. Then, this past Tuesday, Kentucky lost at Tennessee with Robert Hubbs the Third leading the way. What. Is. Going. On. People?! It’s almost as if the SEC knew that the challenge with the Big 12 was starting later today and they really wanted to make sure they were good and SEC’ed up before they took the big stage. Come on SEC, get it together.

Tier 1

Tier 1 still is the land of Big Blue, but the bloom’s off the rose with the loss in Knoxville. Maybe these freshman are not your average Kentucky set of marvelous five stars. Either way, the Wildcats have a big chance to get back to good with a home tilt with the buckle shoe bird wearing troglodytes from Kansas tonight in what is the biggest game on the SEC Big 12 challenge schedule. Side not, I literally ran into Ashley Judd last Saturday and she is shorter than you’d think.

Tier 2

In our second tier, nothing has changed. South Carolina is still receiving every second place vote and Florida is still receiving every third place vote. SC took a loss to Kentucky over the weekend and didn’t look that great in the process. The gap between the Gamecocks and the Wildcats, really is a chasm, HUGE. Florida, lost to Vandy over the weekend but because everyone else below these three teams is suspect, there you go. Both teams took care of business this week with SC handling Auburn and Florida taking care of business against LSU…really nothing to get excited about. I still think both teams dance come March but the margin for error is slipping a wee bit.

Tier 3

Arkansas is riding high on a four game winning streak though of those four games, none are particularly impressive. But hey a four game winning streak is still something. In the SEC half the work is not falling on your face to a random directional college no one has ever heard of, so job done Hogs. Alabama joins Arkansas, sitting with only two losses in conference, though one of them was to a not great Auburn team last week. This week they handled Georgia, potentially killing Mark Fox’s NCAA chances in the process. But Avery Johnson has his guys playing good solid D and that’s more than most in the conference.

Tier 4

Well look who leads Tier 4 rocketing all the way up to 6^th place, the giant killers themselves, the Volunteers of Tennessee. The Vols have played well all season and Rick Barnes (the emperor himself) has acquitted himself quite well in year two. The man loves orange people. Following the Vols are the Bulldogs of Georgia and Mississippi State. Georgia is in a bit of a free fall and gets a date with Texas who is playing similarly if not worse, so if the Bulldogs want to get back to good they’re going to have to start you know, winning games and not get killed by Auburn. Mississippi State on the other hand has things going well in Ben Howland year two, though this week all they did was beat Missouri and what does that really mean anyway?

Tier 5

Welcome to the sadness! The teams populating Tier 5 all really want to be better but just can’t get out of their own way. The Aggies of A&M are on a bit of winning streak with wins over Ole Miss and Georgia but have to go to West Virginia today and that’s never pleasant for visitors. Ole Miss, reliably winning and losing and well, again, a win at Mizzou is still just that. Auburn and Vanderbilt are tied in the standings, both showing flashes of competence and then not. Vandy was riding high off Saturday’s upset of Florida and then promptly gave up a 15 point lead to Arkansas (including fouling a three point shot, TWICE), and lost by a point. Poor little Bryce Drew… Auburn for their part lost this week to SC after having beaten LSU and Alabama in their previous two games continuing to show that yout’ is still an issue in the great state of Alabama.

Tier 6

Do these teams even basketball? LSU and Mizzou continue to lose and had they not already played head to head, there could be a debate as to who is most embarrassing the conference. At this point both teams are playing out the season and have the following to look forward to: a trip to Nashville in March, a quick return from Nashville, hoping to show up as a bad loss for a bubble team on Selection Sunday and then a coaching search…at least that’s what both fanbases of these programs hope…

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Points were distributed as follows: 1st = 14, 2nd = 13, 3rd = 12, 4th = 11, 5th = 10, 6th = 9, 7th = 8, 8th = 7, 9th = 6, 10th = 5, 11th = 4, 12th = 3, 13th = 2, and 14th = 1

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Lose to Auburn by 20, beat UGA by 20 -- on the road! -- in the same week? (Anchor of Gold)

Got blown out at Auburn in the final five minutes but came back to blow out Georgia. Still a chance to get on the bubble. With Miss State, Arkansas and Auburn coming up, the Tide have a chance to build a lead for 4th place in the SEC. (Garnet and Black Attack)

We'll get 3 teams in the NCAAs. And maybe 3 get to lose in the first or second round of the NIT, too. ‘Bama could be one of that group of three. (Dawg Sports)

Four wins in a row gets you a top seven vote in this SEC Basketball desert. If we don't stick to our rules, we have nothing. (Good Bull Hunting)

Added to Mike Anderson’s Christmas card list, SEC refs who made their win at Vandy possible. (Rock M Nation)

They've won four in a row, which is good, but they needed Vanderbilt to vomit all over themselves to extend that streak, which is bad. (Anchor of Gold)

They may be coming back around. (Dawg Sports)

Auburn has a blowout win against Bama at home; blowout loss to South Carolina on the road. Turns out, freshman are inconsistent. (College and Magnolia)

Beat Alabama to get to 13-6 before running into Duane Notice's night of the season. Lost by 29 in Columbia but it was the Gamecocks best shooting night in a long time. (Garnet and Black Attack)

Florida is still in their rightful spot: top three in the league. (Red Cup Rebellion)

If you asked Florida fans, they'd probably agree to take 5-7 of those unnecessary LSU threes and use 'em against Vandy. (Good Bull Hunting)

Before Billy Donovan there was Lon Kruger, who will welcome you to Oklahoma, arena only full ‘cause you can’t get tickets to football without buying basketball tickets...nice little scheme going on there...(Rock M Nation)

Georgia's lost 3 of 4. Their great starting 5 is wearing down and their bench isn't that good. (College and Magnolia)

Texas A&M reminded me why SEC teams should have been pressing us every game for the last five years. And then they lay an egg in a horrific home performance vs. Alabama. The rest of my thoughts are censored, for the children. (Dawg Sports)

That loss to Alabama was very Mark Richt-esque. (Anchor of Gold)

Good news: Kentucky is human. Bad news: It's only January. (Red Cup Rebellion)

Rather proud of calling the Kentucky upset this week. They need to wake up because Kansas/UGA/Florida is a dangerous stretch ahead. (College and Magnolia)

I think at the end of the season, we’ll be saying that Kentucky may have been a product of their schedule. (Rock M Nation)

Johnny Jones descends a dark, ancient, stone-hewn stair case, candle in hand. At the bottom is a large, oak door hung on steel hinges. He hesitates, then knocks. The sound reverberates through the damp, empty cellar. The door slowly creaks revealing Truman the Tiger at the top of another staircase leading down. "Excuse me, Truman, but is there room for one more?" (College and Magnolia)

My money is after they lose to Arkansas. In the locker room. With a candlestick. (Dawg Sports)

Coach Jones has incriminating evidence on someone with power. It's the only plausible explanation. (Good Bull Hunting)

Mississippi State shows some life in an impressive win over Arkansas on the road, but then they lose to Tennessee. Tis life in the SEC. (Red Cup Rebellion)

Bulldogs are 6th in the standings after the win over Mizzou. Have a chance to avenge a loss to Alabama this weekend. (Garnet and Black Attack)

They aren't the worst. (Dawg Sports)

Eleven straight L's... but hey, y'all wrecked South Carolina's season last year. Maybe you can do it again. (Good Bull Hunting)

Mizzou not being invited to the SEC Big 12 challenge is like not being invited to your birthday...(Rock M Nation)

You know, going winless against these SEC foes is actually a pretty impressive accomplishment. It's not easy to be that screwed up. (Dawg Sports)

Sometimes, you just have one of those years when half your team is hurt or suspended or kicked off the team. (Anchor of Gold)

Ole Miss beat Tennessee who beat Kentucky so, yeah, technically you can hang a banner iyam. (Red Cup Rebellion)

3-5 right now, and right on course for the Andy Kennedy Equilibrium. (Dawg Sports)

They're still undefeated at full strength, and they can thank PJ Dozier's back spasms for keeping that record alive against Kentucky. (Anchor of Gold)

Bounced back from the Kentucky loss with a blowout of Auburn. Play the bottom two this week. (Garnet and Black Attack)

South Carolina might have gotten blown out by Kentucky but, hey, that happens. They're still second best in the conference by a long shot. (Red Cup Rebellion)

That's a nice week for Rick Barnes. And I'm bound by my Big XII roots to hate Rick Barnes. (Good Bull Hunting)

According to at least one voter Kentucky lost to the worst team in the SEC. (Anchor of Gold)

It’s unfortunate this is Robert Hubbs’ senior year, would love to see what another year under Rick Barnes could do for him. (Rock M Nation)

Aggies won two straight over Georgia and at Ole Miss. Would be nice for the league if they could upset West Virginia. (Garnet and Black Attack)

At 1-5, we submitted two gutsy performances to keep the season alive. What do we say to the god of SEC Basketball death? Not today. (Good Bull Hunting)

They know how to inbound the basketball. I've heard that may be important in winning basketball games. (not mad about that loss at all, nope. RAEG!!!!) (Dawg Sports)

That 2-0 start feels like a lifetime ago, but I was impressed with their performance in Gainesville. (Good Bull Hunting)

They looked like they were turning the corner... and then they managed to blow a 15-point lead in six minutes. (Anchor of Gold)

Had the most SEC of SEC weeks, win on the road at Florida, barf all over everything at home against Arkansas, classic SEC. (Rock M Nation)

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That will do it for this week, in which the SEC reverted to its old ways. Today we’ve got a great set of matchups in the SEC Big 12 Challenge, check out the list below with game times and TV options.

Until next week, keep the fever alive and kicking!