Men’s basketball SEC Power Rankings for Jan. 22: Vols lose ground

Last week: Defeated Tennessee Volunteers; Lost to Texas A&M Aggies

Last rank: 6th

Cuonzo Martin has done a great job turning around the Missouri Tigers. And last week, his guys scored another huge win by beating the Tennessee Vols at home. That should have been enough to move them up in our SEC Power Rankings.

However, a road loss to the Texas A&M Aggies over the weekend was enough for us to knock them back down into the middle of the pack. Look, this is a good team right now. But it’s far too inconsistent to warrant moving up the rankings.

They have significant quality wins over Tennessee, the Georgia Bulldogs, the South Carolina Gamecocks and the UCF Knights. However, they also still have a terrible home loss to the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Again, it’s hard to get a read on this team. Nonetheless, at .500 in the SEC, they are No. 36 in the RPI with their 13-6 record thanks to their No. 21 ranked strength of schedule. So right now, they are firmly in the NCAA Tournament as well.

But they are pushing toward bubble territory. A home game against the Auburn Tigers could give the some breathing room this week if they get a big win there. The Kentucky Wildcats at home are coming up too. However, in between them, they need to find a way to win on the road against the Mississippi State Bulldogs and Alabama Crimson Tide. And that could help define them. So this stretch is huge.