A look into the 2018 Men’s basketball SEC Tournament with predictions
SEC TOURNAMENT 2nd ROUND PREDICTIONS
Game 3: No.8 Texas A&M (9-9) vs. No.9 Alabama (8-10)
Watch: SECN Time: 1:00 pm ET
Billy Williford prediction: Alabama Crimson Tide
Billy: Game 3 features two teams that no one knows what to make of. Texas A&M started off the season with five straight SEC losses, and Alabama has matched them with five consecutive losses to end the season. The Aggies did beat Bama on Saturday 68-66. No way Alabama losses six games in a row, right?
Ian McBride prediction: Alabama Crimson Tide
Ian: This game is very intriguing. These teams closed out the regular season against each other, with the Aggies edging Bama by two points. Both teams have been woefully inconsistent by looking phenomenal or terrible, depending on the direction of the wind and star alignment on a given day. Bama is on a five-game skid, while the Aggies have won their past three unconvincingly. The Tide are better than they have shown recently and are bound to break the losing streak sometime. I think they turn it around to keep their NCAA tourney hopes alive.
Caleb Calhoun prediction: Alabama Crimson Tide
Caleb: This is an SEC Tournament battle between the two most inconsistent teams in the entire league. The Alabama Crimson Tide just barely lost to the Texas A&M Aggies on the road to close out the season. However, this game is on a neutral court, and they have more desperation since Texas A&M is likely already in the NCAA Tournament. As a result, Avery Johnson’s team will score the win.
Game 4: No.5 Missouri (10-8) vs. Winner of Game 1
Watch: SECN Time: 3:00 pm ET
Billy Williford prediction: Missouri vs. Georgia
Winner: Missouri Tigers
Billy: Missouri has proved to be a dangerous team, and they still have the potential to get even better with Micheal Porter Jr. for the tournaments. They slow the game down and make their opponents play their style of game. In the past, coach Martin has shown that he gets his teams ready to dance. Not to mention the tournament is in St. Louis. Missouri moves on.
Ian McBride prediction: Missouri vs. Georgia
Winner: Missouri Tigers
Ian: I think there is no question here. Georgia is a tough team and plays everyone hard, but has only beat one team ranked ahead of Missouri in the RPI. Couple that with the fact this is pretty much a home game for the Tigers, with the tourney being played in St Louis, and the prospect of the boost of Michael Porter Jr. rejoining the lineup Missouri pulls this one out.
Caleb Calhoun prediction: Missouri vs. Vanderbilt
Winner: Missouri Tigers
Despite being a dangerous team, there’s no way the Vanderbilt Commodores go into what is basically going to be the Missouri Tigers’ home court an pull out a victory. Assuming Michael Porter Jr. is back in the lineup and doesn’t cause any chemistry issues, Cuonzo Martin’s team should cruise to victory in this one.
Game 5: No.7 Mississippi State (9-9) vs. No.10 LSU (8-10)
Watch: SECN Time: 7:00 pm ET
Billy Williford prediction: LSU Tigers
Billy: Another rematch. In that game, LSU handled Mississippi State the entire game and won 78-57. I noted that LSU was a team to watch. Will Wade has turned this program around in just a short time. I think LSU is a year or two away from making some serious noise, but they get the win against the Bulldogs.
Ian McBride prediction: LSU Tigers
Ian: Another rematch from the last Saturday of the regular season. LSU throttled the Bulldogs by 21 points. Given recent familiarity between the two, I think the rematch will be much closer than the first installment of this drama, but the result will ultimately be the same…a win for LSU.
Caleb Calhoun prediction: Mississippi State Bulldogs
Caleb: Yes, the Mississippi State Bulldogs had a terrible close to the season. But they still are a very solid team, and Ben Howland’s group is right there with Alabama and Texas A&M when it comes to inconsistency. So they will turn things around here and upset the Tigers to advance to Friday.
Game 6: No.6 Arkansas (10-8) vs. Winner of Game 2
Watch: SECN Time: 9:00 pm ET
Billy Williford prediction: Arkansas vs. South Carolina
Winner: South Carolina Gamecocks
Billy: We don’t call it March Madness for nothing. St. Louis is the land of upset city. Okay, I just made that up, but the Gamecocks are going to prove me right. They are a tough bunch and led by experience in Booker and Silva. Look for South Carolina to impose their game style on the Razorbacks and move on to the quarterfinals.
Ian McBride prediction: Arkansas vs. South Carolina
Winner: Arkansas Razorbacks
Ian: Arkansas has come to be known for their inconsistency of play off of their home court. Amazingly enough, they are 3-1 on a neutral stage. The Hogs rank 28th in points per game to South Carolina’s 272nd. No glass slippers for the Gamecocks this season. This game is where it ends for them on onward to the NIT.
Caleb Calhoun prediction: Arkansas vs. South Carolina
Winner: Arkansas Razorbacks
Caleb: As Ian McBride pointed out, the Arkansas Razorbacks are 3-1 on a neutral court this year. On top of that, they’ve been incredibly dangerous at home. Playing in St. Louis is almost as much an advantage to them as it is to the Missouri Tigers. So it’s somewhere between a home game and a neutral site game. As a result, the Hogs score a big win here to get to Friday of the SEC Tournament.