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Here’s everything you need to know about the 2023 SEC tournament.
The SEC has been one of the country’s most unpredictable conferences since the 2022-2023 men’s basketball season started, and now it’s time for the league to host its annual tournament and and hand out its automatic berth to the NCAA tournament. The 2023 SEC Tournament runs from March 8-12 in Nashville at Bridgestone Arena.
Alabama was picked to finish fifth in the league in the preseason, but they will enter the SEC tournament as the top seed. The Crimson Tide is likely to be a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament regardless of what happens in Nashville. Alabama showed it could be an elite team with early season wins over Houston and North Carolina, and it maintained that status by winning the conference in the regular season with 16 wins in 18 games. Star wing Brandon Miller is the leading scorer among all freshmen in DI men’s college basketball, and projects as a potential top-five NBA draft pick. This has been the season in program history on the court for Alabama, but it’s been overshadowed by former forward Darius Miles being charged with capital murder for the Jan. killing of 23-year-old Jamea Harris. Miles was kicked off the team after his arrest.
Texas A&M was picked to finish sixth in the league, but will enter the conference tournament as its No. 2 seed. Head coach Buzz Williams has an emerging star point guard in sophomore Wade Taylor. The Aggies are rock solid on both ends of the floor, and thrive crashing the offensive glass and getting to the foul line.
Kentucky was picked to win the league in the preseason, and still earned the double-bye despite an up-and-down season. The biggest storyline for the Wildcats is health: point guards Cason Wallace and Sahvir Wheeler were both held out late in the regular season with injuries. The Wildcats enter the tournament as the No. 16 offense in the country despite rarely taking three-pointers. The team still revolves around reigning national player of the year Oscar Tshiebwe and his incredible rebounding on both ends of the court.
The top four seeds in the SEC tournament receive a double-bye. Our latest bracketology projection had eight SEC teams in the NCAA tournament field. The winner gets an automatic berth to the big dance.
You can stream the entire SEC Tournament using WatchESPN.
SEC Tournament bracket 2023
SEC Tournament predictions 2023
Our JP Acosta picked Tennessee to win the SEC tournament:
The smart thing might be to pick Alabama, due to their consistency and ability to take over games on both sides of the ball. However, Tennessee’s defense is number one in the country according to KenPom, and they’ve beaten Alabama recently, holding them 30 points under their scoring average. Rick Barnes has got this team to be extremely well coached, and while their offense can lag at times, this is an experienced group who knows how to play deep into the tournament. Their defensive pressure should cause fits for the SEC on their way to the title. — JP Acosta
SEC Tournament schedule, TV, start times, and more for 2023
First round
Game 1: 12-seed South Carolina vs. 13-seed Ole Miss, 7 pm (SEC Network)
Game 2: 11-seed Georgia vs. 14-seed LSU, 9 pm (SEC Network)
Thursday, March 9
Second round
Game 3: 8-seed vs. 9-seed, 1 pm (SEC Network)
Game 4: 5-seed Tennessee vs. Game 1 winner, 3 pm (SEC Network)
Game 5: 7-seed vs. 10-seed, 7 pm (SEC Network)
Game 6: 6-seed Vanderbilt vs. Game 2 winner, 9 pm (SEC Network)
Friday, March 10
Quarterfinals
Game 7: 1-seed Alabama vs. Game 3 winner, 1 pm (ESPN)
Game 8: 4-seed Missouri vs. Game 4 winner, 3 pm (ESPN)
Game 9: 2-seed Texas A&M vs, Game 5 winner, 7 pm (SEC Network)
Game 10: 3-seed Kentucky vs. Game 6 winner, 9 pm (SEC Network)
Saturday, March 11
Semifinals
Game 11: Game 7 winner vs. Game 8 winner, 1 pm (ESPN)
Game 12: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 3 pm (ESPN)
Sunday, March 12
SEC Championship Game
Game 13: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 1 pm (ESPN)
Alabama: +170
Tennessee: +280
Kentucky: +450
Texas A&M: +500
Auburn: +1200
Arkansas: +1200
Missouri: +2500
Vanderbilt: +3500
Mississippi State: +4500
Florida: +10000
Ole Miss: +50000
Georgia: +50000
South Carolina: +80000
LSU: +100000
