What we learned about Kentucky, Tennessee during OOC slate

[ad_1]

It’s almost time for SEC basketball teams to start their post-holiday diet.

Conference play is looming, but there’s still time to fit in one more sweet cupcake treat. For Tennessee, that’s Norfolk State. Kentucky has Illinois State coming to town. Mississippi State is lining up one final tune-up against Bethune Cookman.

Here’s how our power rankings stack up before the real fun begins.

1. Tennessee

Dalton Knecht, the spark expected to give this defensively stout Tennessee team some explosive oomph, has 15 points in his last three games. Rick Barnes isn’t worried. Probably because the Vols are 3-0 in those games, holding two of their opponents under 60 points.

Last week: 1

Record: 9-3

2. Auburn

Good luck beating Auburn at home this season. There’s not a better basketball environment in the conference when the Tigers are cooking. Just ask Bronny James and USC, which took a 16-point thrashing at Neville Arena last week.

Last week: 2

Record: 9-2

3. Kentucky

We keep banging the young team drum with the Wildcats, who have six freshmen in their primary nine-man rotation. But only two teams in college basketball turn it over less frequently than Kentucky. It might be inexperienced, but this looks like it could be one of those UK teams that makes that irrelevant.

Last week: 5

Record: 9-2

Texas A&M rarely turns the ball over and is the best offensive-rebounding team in college basketball. The only problem is the 3-point line, where it gets crushed on both ends of the floor. These Aggies would be unstoppable in 1978.

Last week: 3

Record: 8-4

The Crimson Tide has played five games against top-30 KenPom opposition so far this season. It is 0-5 in those games. Nate Oats has the SEC’s best offense, but he’s going to have to figure out how to get the occasional stop.

Last week: 4

Record: 7-5

The Rebels, ranked for the first time since 2019, are the conference’s last unbeaten team. The computer ratings that are going to help seed the March Madness field remain unimpressed. One final tune-up against Bryant…

[ad_2]
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/sec-basketball-power-rankings-learned-101414284.html

Author : The Clarion Ledger

Publish date : 2023-12-27 10:14:14

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.