This ESPN article summarizes a portion of what I have been thinking for the last week or so . . . the SEC is not as good as expected (which, of course, makes our performance even more infuriating) and VU's performance further serves as an "anchor" (pun intended) on the conference's strength relative to other conferences:
Despite having seven different teams receive votes for the AP Top 25 this week, the SEC has taken its lumps in nonconference contests. Tennessee and Kentucky are the two highest-ranked teams in the league, but the Vols already have three losses while Kentucky has a home loss to UNC Wilmington and zero top-50 KenPom wins. Let's run down the line: Auburn has a loss to Appalachian State, Alabama and Texas A&M each already have three losses, Arkansas is just 6-4, Mississippi State has losses to Southern and Georgia Tech, Florida has three losses, and its best win is over Pittsburgh. Ole Miss and South Carolina have been pleasant surprises, but both are still relatively unproven.
Unlike the ACC feeling the impact of a middling nonconference performance when Selection Sunday rolls around, the SEC's combination of competitive top-half teams and number of nonconference losses might be felt more when it comes to earning high seeds in the NCAA tournament. The league could end up in a situation where none of its teams are on the top-two lines, but five or six teams are still seeded among the top half of the bracket.
www.espn.com
Will the SEC's sheer number of nonconference losses be felt on Selection Sunday?
Despite having seven different teams receive votes for the AP Top 25 this week, the SEC has taken its lumps in nonconference contests. Tennessee and Kentucky are the two highest-ranked teams in the league, but the Vols already have three losses while Kentucky has a home loss to UNC Wilmington and zero top-50 KenPom wins. Let's run down the line: Auburn has a loss to Appalachian State, Alabama and Texas A&M each already have three losses, Arkansas is just 6-4, Mississippi State has losses to Southern and Georgia Tech, Florida has three losses, and its best win is over Pittsburgh. Ole Miss and South Carolina have been pleasant surprises, but both are still relatively unproven.
Unlike the ACC feeling the impact of a middling nonconference performance when Selection Sunday rolls around, the SEC's combination of competitive top-half teams and number of nonconference losses might be felt more when it comes to earning high seeds in the NCAA tournament. The league could end up in a situation where none of its teams are on the top-two lines, but five or six teams are still seeded among the top half of the bracket.
6 questions for 6 major conferences ... and how mid-majors could benefit
Which conferences are in trouble? Is the Big 12's dominance actually a disadvantage? As we enter conference play, what concerns us about the major conferences -- and how the mid-majors could benefit.
