The SEC Tournament tips off in Nashville on Wednesday with numerous teams vying to raise a banner ahead of an upcoming run in the NCAA Tournament, and others needing a strong showing in order to make the field at all.
Things get started on Wednesday afternoon with the first four games between teams who did not earn a single bye. The top four seeds automatically earn a double-bye to Friday’s quarterfinal round, while seeds four through eight will begin their tournaments on Thursday.
Playing on Wednesday meanwhile means you finished 9th or worse in the conference, a group which includes the Auburn Tigers who desperately need to win at least a game or two to have a chance to hear their name called during Selection Sunday this weekend.
Here is a look at the full bracket:
Auburn will face Mississippi State Wednesday afternoon for the right to play Tennessee, and while they could be left out of the NCAA Tournament entirely if they do anything short of winning the whole thing in Nashville, two wins would have them in a much better spot than they sit today following the dreadful February they had.
Alabama meanwhile as the No. 2 overall seed awa nits their fate until Friday night where the Tide is set to face the winner between No. 7 seed Georgia and either Ole Miss or Texas.
Should Alabama secure a win on Friday, it will likely be a rematch with Arkansas after an overtime classic in Tuscaloosa a couple of weeks back.
The most likely winner by far is the regular season champion and defending national champion Florida Gators, who look as strong as they did a year ago. The Gators will face the winner of No. 8 Missouri and either LSU or Kentucky in their Friday game with a Saturday date with most likely either Tennessee, Auburn or Vanderbilt.
Things will come to a head on Sunday afternoon with the winner being decided at 12:00 p.m. CST, and the main narrative is whether or not anyone could upset Florida. Those hoping to see a third Iron Bowl matchup are likely going to be disappointed with the only possibility of it coming on Sunday in the championship round.
For the top seeds, they are battling for not a whole lot other than pride, but some of the teams playing on Wednesday night likely only have a chance to make the tournament by winning in Nashville.
Time will tell who comes out on top, but it should be another fun edition of the event.
