Men’s basketball SEC Power Rankings Feb. 5: Vols remain among elites

Last week: Lost to Mississippi State Bulldogs and Texas A&M Aggies

Last rank: 7th

The inconsistencies of the South Carolina Gamecocks this year look uglier and uglier. Now on a three-game losing streak, these guys are barely staying afloat in the NCAA Tournament race. Frank Martin’s team is going to struggle to get in this year after a Final Four appearance last year.

South Carolina was showing promise by putting up a fight against the Texas Tech Red Raiders and the Mississippi State Bulldogs. But they then let the Texas A&M Aggies blow them out, and that was not a good look.

Now, these guys are 13-10 and have a losing record in the SEC at 4-6. Again, there is only room for so many SEC teams to get in, and they did not want this past week to happen. It dropped them in the bottom tier of our SEC Power Rankings.

The Gamecocks are not out of it, though. Despite only being 13-10, their RPI is ranked No. 63 thanks to their No. 30 ranked strength of schedule. That means they’re right there, and they just need to rip off a winning streak to get firmly into the tournament.

That streak can come now with a chance to keep their schedule strength up. This week, they host a reeling Florida Gators team, providing them with a great chance at a quality victory. But before that, they visit another team that is in their situation: struggling to stay afloat in a brutal SEC. This team is the next team in our SEC Power Rankings.