SEC Bulletin Board: A new leader and blue jeans shake up the conference

Alright, everybody in. It’s time for our weekly look around the Southeastern Conference. Kentucky gave us plenty to talk about last weekend, but the rest of the league didn’t exactly sit still either. Let’s take a spin around basketball in the SEC.

What The Weekend Taught Us

Saturday taught us that the denim jerseys still have magic, and that Kentucky is never down too big too early. Playing in throwback Cons Blues, the Wildcats erased a big first-half deficit to beat Tennessee for the second time this season, pulling off another comeback win over the Vols. Once again, we were reminded of how quickly Kentucky can flip a switch when it defends, rebounds, and starts knocking down shots. We’re still riding the excitement around KSR HQ.

Elsewhere in the league, the chaos continued. Florida made a loud statement by blasting Texas A&M to shake up the top of the standings, Alabama outlasted Auburn in a rivalry shootout, Arkansas rolled at Mississippi State, and last-place Oklahoma dropped 92 on Vanderbilt in Memorial. A month into SEC play, no one is safe, no lead is comfortable, and the race for the title is still wide open.

The Standings

• #14 Florida 8-2 (17-6)
• #25 Kentucky 8-3 (17-7)
• #21 Arkansas 7-3 (17-6)
• Texas A&M 7-3 (17-6)
• Alabama 6-4 (16-7)
• Missouri 6-4 (16-7)
• Tennessee 6-4 (16-7)
• #19 Vanderbilt 6-4 (19-4)
• Texas 6-5 (15-9)
• Auburn 5-5 (14-9)
• Georgia 5-5 (17-6)
• Ole Miss 3-7 (11-12)
• Mississippi State 3-7 (11-12)
• LSU 2-8 (14-9)
• Oklahoma 2-9 (12-12)
• South Carolina 2-9 (11-13)

SEC Co-Players of the Week

Two players shared SEC Player of the Week honors. The league couldn’t decide between guards Otega Oweh and Labaron Philon Jr., so the honors were split between Lexington and Tuscaloosa.

Philon Jr. averaged 21 points while stuffing the box score in wins over Texas A&M and Auburn, capped by a 25-point, six-assist night in the rivalry game on the Plains. Meanwhile, Oweh kept his heater rolling, averaging 22.5 points in wins over Oklahoma and No. 25 Tennessee. Oweh has now scored 20 or more in five straight games and nine of 11 SEC contests.

Other SEC Player of the Week

With Oweh and Philon already spoken for, Alabama guard Aden Holloway gets the nod as our Other SEC Player of the Week. Holloway helped Philon power two Tide wins, scoring 20 points against Texas A&M before adding 15 in a rivalry win at Auburn, his former school. He averaged 17.5 with four assists and four rebounds per game in two wins, including one revenge trip.

Box Score Shenanigans

• SEC in the NET: The SEC leads college basketball conferences with 10 teams ranked in the Top 40 of the NCAA’s NET ranking.
• SEC in KenPom: The league’s +19.48 KenPom rating is the fifth-highest in history and third-highest over the last 22 seasons. Last year, the SEC’s +22.09 KenPom rating was the highest in history, passing the ACC’s +21.37 in 1997.
• Georgia’s block party: The Dawgs lead the country in blocks per game (6.9). Somto Cyril, a former UK commit, leads the SEC with 2.65 blocks per game.
• Ament on fire: Tennessee forward Nate Ament was named Freshman of the Week after he averaged 28.5 points over two games, shooting 59.4% from the floor, 60% beyond the arc, and 81.3% at the line against Ole Miss and Kentucky.
• Chinyelu’s rebounding: Florida big man Rueben Chinyelu is an elite rebounder, leading the SEC by nearly three rebounds per game, while ranking fifth in the country (11.5). He averaged 16.5 rebounds in the Gators’ last two games, and hauled in 21 in a game last month. Kentucky will see him on Saturday.
• Efficient Matas Vokietaitis: Against Ole Miss, Texas center Matas Vokietaitis went 9-11 from the field (81.8%) and 9-12 at the line (75%) for 27 points in a win. Vokietaitis ranks fifth in the country in free throw attempts this year.

Game of the Week

With four teams on break and no top-25 matchups, the best game on the midweek slate could go several ways. The first one may be the best one when Vanderbilt plays at Auburn tonight. The Commodores are the conference’s second-highest-ranked team, playing in the very unfriendly confines of Neville Arena, as the Tigers try to tie Vandy in the conference standings with four losses each.

Tuesday, Feb. 10

• #19 Vanderbilt at Auburn (SEC Network) – 7:00 p.m. ET
• #21 Arkansas at LSU (SEC Network) – 9:00 p.m. ET

Wednesday, Feb. 11

• #14 Florida at Georgia (ESPN2) – 7:00 p.m. ET
• Alabama at Ole Miss (SEC Network) – 7:00 p.m. ET
• Tennessee at Mississippi State (ESPN2) – 9:00 p.m. ET
• Missouri at Texas A&M (SEC Network) – 9:00 p.m. ET

Looking Forward To Saturday

On Saturday, we look to our own game in Gainesville as the best game on the SEC slate. Kentucky could tie or even pass Florida for first place with a little help from Georgia tomorrow night.

Saturday, Feb. 14

• Texas A&M at #19 Vanderbilt (SEC Network) – 1:00 p.m. ET
• #25 Kentucky at #14 Florida (ABC) – 3:00 p.m. ET
• Georgia at Oklahoma (SEC Network) – 3:30 p.m. ET
• LSU at Tennessee (SEC Network) – 6:00 p.m. ET
• Mississippi State at Ole Miss (ESPN2) – 6:30 p.m. ET
• Auburn at #21 Arkansas (ESPN) – 8:30 p.m. ET
• Texas at Missouri (ESPN2) – 8:30 p.m. ET
• South Carolina at Alabama (SEC Network) – 8:30 p.m. ET

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Until next time, enjoy the basketball and the Wildcats’ midweek breather.