As it happens every year, the SEC / Big 12 Challenge provided an exciting basketball weekend outside the conference for the teams from the Southeast Conference.
Overall, the SEC performed well in its clashes, winning the challenge by a closed margin of 5-4. However, the list of games hasn’t changed much in terms of changing the scope of the SEC’s men’s basketball rankings this week.
Alabama basketball began its week beating Kentucky on Tuesday at the Coleman Coliseum. Having won this season at Lexington, the Crimson Tide swept the Wildcats for the first time since the 1988-1989 season.
On Saturday, Alabama traveled to Norman, Oklahoma, to face the Oklahoma Sooners in their SEC / Big 12 Challenge match. Before the game, Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats described the team as “injured” after suffering several injuries against Kentucky. While Alabama kept the game going, Crimson Tide ended up losing 66-61 at Sooners. However, with Alabama remaining 9-0 in the SEC game and Florida, second, losing by three games, Crimson Tide maintains its first position in this week’s power ranking.
Alabama has a tough week at the SEC ahead, hosting LSU on Tuesday night before traveling to face a tough Missouri team on Saturday.
Florida moves up from fifth to second in this week’s ranking after defeating Vanderbilt in Gainesville and taking down West Virginia on the road. While the Gators still have a lot to prove this season when compared to Alabama, their victory over LSU this season breaks the tiebreaker with the Tigers and places them as the new number 2 team this week.
LSU rises to No. 3 this week after hitting Texas A&M 78-66 on the road last Tuesday. Although the Aggies are hardly a SEC power this season, solid road victories have proved difficult to happen this season.
Completing the top four this week is Tennessee, which dropped to fourth place after being second last week. A sloppy 56-53 victory at home against the state of Mississippi was hardly impressive. A dominant turn in Kansas on Saturday is certainly impressive, but those are the SEC’s power ratings. If Tennessee wants to move up, it will have to fight harder against its conference opponents.
Here are the SEC men’s basketball power ratings after 10 weeks of college basketball:
SEC Men’s Basketball Rankings: Week 10
1. Alabama (14-4 overall, 9-0 SEC)
2. Florida (10-4, 6-3)
3. LSU (11-5, 6-3)
4. Tennessee (12-3, 5-3)
5. Missouri (11-3, 4-3)
6. Arkansas (13-5, 5-4)
7. Kentucky (5-10, 4-4)
8. Auburn (10-8, 4-5)
9. State of Mississippi (10-8, 4-5)
10. Georgia (10-6, 3-6)
11. Ole Miss (8-8, 3-6)
12. South Carolina (4-6, 2-4)
13. Texas A&M (8-7, 2-6)
14. Vanderbilt (5-8, 1-6)
Follow Bama Central every Sunday during the season to get updated ratings.