The Southeastern conference had tons of hype coming into the season, some have lived up to it while others have come up short. Here are our mid-season power rankings.
Kentucky (pre-season: 5) 12-3, 2-1
John Calipari and the Wildcats have returned to their roots, mainly relying on highly ranked freshman recruits. Rob Dillingham (14.4 ppg) and Reed Sheppard (12.0 ppg) are electrifying on the offensive end and will be playing in the NBA next year. The team is anchored by their seniors, Antonio Reeves (18.9 ppg) and Tre Mitchell (12.9 ppg). Coach Cal appears to have found the balanced between 5-star recruits and college basketball veterans to put together a team capable of winning it all in March.
Tennessee (pre-season: 2) 12-4, 2-1
The Vols have gotten off to a very solid start to the season after returning a fair amount from their Sweet 16 appearance a year ago. They acquired perhaps the best transfer in the country in Dalton Knecht (17.2 ppg) and have paired him with veterans Jonas Aidoo (11.2 ppg and 7.4 rpg), Santiago Vescovi (7.7 ppg) and Zakai Zeigler (10.5 ppg and 5.1 apg). Tennessee has tremendous depth, with 8 players averaging over 10 minutes and 5 points per game.
Auburn (pre-season: 8) 14-2, 3-0
Bruce Pearl's Auburn Tigers have been the most surprising team in the SEC so far this year. At the time of writing they have only taken defeats to a good Baylor team on a neutral and at a top 100 Appalachian State team. They played with tremendous tempo and have the depth to handle that with 10 players averaging over 15 minutes per game. Johni Broome leads the way offensively with 15.4 ppg and 8.4 rpg.
Alabama (pre-season: 4) 11-5, 3-0
The Crimson Tide have played an extremely difficult schedule so far and have taken a number of losses because of it. For the most part they have hung around in their losses, and picked up many lopsided wins, which puts them in the top 10 of KenPom at the time of writing. The numbers say Alabama is an elite team, while the results haven't quite caught up yet. Mark Sears leads the way with 20.3 ppg on the offensive end with Aaron Estrada the second option at 13.2 ppg.
Ole Miss (pre-season: 10) 15-1, 2-1
Chris Beard's Ole Miss was the second to last team to be undefeated this season. While they didn't play a great non-conference schedule, the Rebels looked really solid in the first part of the year. At the time of writing, their only loss is on the road at Tennessee. Beard seems to have compiled a roster capable of winning in Year 1 with Matthew Murrell leading the way at 17.3 ppg and Allen Flanigan just behind a 16.3 ppg.
Texas A&M (pre-season: 3) 10-6, 1-2
Buzz Williams' squad had a ton of hype coming into the season and have largely failed to meet those high expectations. They took 3rd in the ESPN Events Invitational with a 2-1 record while losing to Houston and Memphis to round out the non-con. They started conference play poorly, dropping their first two games to LSU and Auburn before edging Kentucky in OT on Saturday. Wade Taylor IV leads the way with 19.2 ppg while Tyrece Radford rounds out a solid one-two punch with 13.6 ppg. They get after it defensively and crash the offensive glass, making them a tough out for anyone.
Mississippi State (pre-season: 7) 12-4, 1-2
Chris Jans' squad got through the non-con with mixed results, dropping winnable games to Georgia Tech and Southern. They have looked really solid since getting star player Tolu Smith (16.8 ppg) back from injury. Having just knocked off Tennessee, the Bulldogs look likely to be in the NCAA Tournament mix come March.
South Carolina (pre-season: 13) 14-2, 2-1
The Gamecocks have not had a very tough schedule like some of these other SEC teams, but they have picked up W's in Lamont Paris' second year at the helm. Their notable non-con wins were against DePaul and Notre Dame, while taking a loss on the road to Clemson. They have at least put themselves in position to make the Big Dance on the sheer amount of wins alone with SEC games providing enough opportunities for big wins. Meechie Johnson leads the way offensively with 17.1 ppg with BJ Mack at 13.4 ppg as South Carolina looks to continue to prove the doubters wrong.
Florida (pre-season: 6) 11-5, 1-2
The Gators have had a very mixed bag so far this season. They took non-con losses to Virginia, Baylor, and Wake Forest, who are all good teams. Their only notable non-con wins were against Pitt and Michigan, who barring a miracle are not headed to the Tournament. They will need to show something different to break into the top half of the conference. Iona transfer Walter Clayton Jr. leads the offense with 15.9 ppg while Zyon Pullin is just behind at 15.2 ppg.
Georgia (pre-season: 12) 12-4, 2-1
The season has been a pleasant surprise for Mike White and Georgia fans as he leads the squad in Year 2. They've taken losses, but all to solid teams in Oregon, Providence, and Miami. They are significantly better on the defensive end, ranking 45th in efficiency compared to 115th on the offensive end. Jabri Abdur-Rahim (12.9 ppg) and Noah Thomasson (12.8 ppg) are the only ones who average double-figures. This season seems to be a step in the right direction.
Arkansas (pre-season: 1) 9-7, 0-3
There hasn't been a team in Division I that has been as disappointing as the Arkansas Razorbacks. They returned a solid amount of talent from last years team and brought in several high ranked transfers. Early on, they took a loss to UNC-Greensboro before going 1-2 at the Battle 4 Atlantis. They did pick up a home win against Duke but have started conference play 0-3 with big losses to Auburn and Florida with a narrow road loss to Georgia. Houston transfer Tramon Mark has been very good, averaging 16.7 ppg and getting after it defensively. Other transfers such as El Ellis and Khalif Battle have underwhelmed while Keyon Menifield Jr. has just been introduced to the fold. It is put up or shut up time for the Muss Bus in Fayetteville as tournament hopes might slip away with more poor results.
Missouri (pre-season: 9) 8-8, 0-3
It has not been a great season for Dennis Gates and Missouri so far. They were not challenged in the early part of the non-con before rounding it out with 3 straight losses to Kansas, Seton Hall, and Illinois. Ever since then they just have one win, at home to Central Arkansas. They have started conference play poorly and are headed towards the bottom of the conference unless something changes quick.
LSU (pre-season: 14) 10-6, 2-1
Expectations were not very high for the Tigers in Year 2 for Matt McMahon, so finishing near the bottom of the conference was expected. They've taken a number of losses, many of which were fairly lopsided, but they do have some quality wins too. They knocked off Wake Forest in the Charleston Classic and Texas A&M on the road. Year 3 might have to show significant improvement or the LSU administration may look to make a change at the helm of LSU hoops.
Vanderbilt (pre-season: 11) 5-11, 0-3
It is just not meant to be at Vanderbilt. Jerry Stackhouse has failed to get the program off the ground since he took charge barring a couple of NIT berths. More than likely the university or Stackhouse will move on after the end of the season as the Commodors are destined to finish in the bottom of the conference.
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