SEC Tournament Round 2 Takeaways: A&M Game-winner, Vandy to the Quarters
The first full day of the SEC Tournament had it all. After a game winner and two upsets, there should be plenty of excitement heading into tomorrow’s slate of quarterfinal matchups.
Game #1: #8 Texas A&M beats #9 Florida 83-80 in OT
In the opening game from the SEC Tournament on Friday, Texas A&M and Florida met up in a massive bubble battle. From the jump, Texas A&M outfought the Gators in every way possible. They were the far more physical team and gave much more effort across the board.
Down by as much as 16 and with their season on the line, Florida chipped their way back in. By capitalizing on some key Aggie mistakes down the stretch with some massive contributions from their role players, the Gators were able to get it into overtime. In those five free minutes, it was a back and forth match in Tampa. Florida had the lead twice in OT, but A&M kept battling without a fouled-out Quenton Jackson.
In the end, it was Hassan Diarra who broke the tie with a three-pointer with less than a second left to stun Florida. With so much on the line in this one, Florida will now await their likely NIT bid. Meanwhile, the Aggies advance to Friday’s first quarterfinal to face #1 Auburn.
Texas A&M: How can they muck it up against Auburn?
Buzz Williams’ group is one of the toughest in the SEC. At points, they’re offensively challenged which is how Florida was able to get back into this game. Even when blowing that 16-point lead, there weren’t many possessions where you could say the Aggies weren’t competing. If you want to beat a team like Auburn, that edge is exactly what you need.
At the start of February, #1 Auburn beat the Aggies by 17 after holding them to 18 points in the first half. Since that point, these two teams have been much different. A&M has gone 6-1 to get back on track while Auburn has added two of their four losses this season since. The Tigers are a team that, while tough in their own right, finds their success in finesse plays and highlights that makes them one of the best shows in college basketball. In a one-game scenario on a neutral site, Texas A&M is a different team than they were in the first matchup that can dirty up the game against a team like Auburn.
They won’t be favored going in, but the Aggies could get Auburn on the ropes if they tap into their gritty quality and fight with the Tigers for a full 40 minutes.
Florida: Find a way to reset expectations
In a dramatic snap of a finger, Florida’s NCAA Tournament dreams evaporated. In this game and their season in general, they simply dug a hole that was too deep to crawl out of in the end. Now that they find themselves firmly outside the field, they’ll likely land in the NIT. After squandering their opportunity to make the big dance, they’ll need to refocus and shift their expectations.
With a ton of veterans on the Gator’s roster, not playing in the NCAA Tournament stings. Still, Florida would enter the NIT as one of the favorites to win it. They’ll have a few days here until Selection Sunday to lick their wounds. After that, Mike White will need to get his team ready to participate in the postseason, even though it’s not the one the Gators had hoped for.
Game #2: #5 LSU beats #12 Missouri 76-68
LSU absolutely outclassed Missouri in this one. The eight-point final margin wouldn’t make you think so, but Missouri only made this look nice at the end with a 9-0 run to end the game. LSU led this one by 25 at one point with about five minutes left in the first half. From there, the Tigers took their foot off the gas and coasted to victory. Will Wade had five players score in double-figures, led by SEC Sixth Man of the Year Tari Eason with 19. They will advance to play Arkansas in the quarterfinals while Missouri’s season will end at 12-21.
LSU: Whose offense will prevail in quarterfinals?
LSU and Arkansas are two teams whose success comes from the defensive end. The difference between them is Arkansas has the more reliable offense to pair with their stops. While the Razorbacks can capitalize on both sides of the ball, the Tigers rely on stops and turnovers to help them score and win games. For two teams whose calling cards are defense, the scoring efficiency will be the key in their quarterfinal.
In their first matchup this season, LSU mustered just 58 points in a game they lost by seven. A little over a week ago, they met again and LSU scored much better with 76 points. It came in a one-point loss, but they had a much better chance at winning that ball game. It doesn’t matter where they get it from, but their trio of Eason, Days and Pinson will be key in getting them where they need to be offensively to win. LSU’s defense will keep them in any game they play, but their offense will determine whether or not they can knock off Arkansas and advance to the semifinals.
Missouri: Will Martin be the SEC head coach that’s next out?
After a passable first four years in Columbia, Missouri plummeted to the basement of the SEC standings this year. Considering their roster, finishing at 12th and making it to the second day of the SEC Tournament could almost be considered a success. In an SEC that’s waiting for nobody, though, 12-21 screams changes. Although he got them to 66-56 and two NCAA Tournaments in his first four years, this fifth year was enough to turn up the heat under Cuonzo Martin’s seat.
A lot of Missouri’s problems stemmed from their lack of depth production. Kobe Brown would do his thing and then the rest of the box score was a giant question mark. Although true, this was the roster Cuonzo Martin put together. Beyond Missouri’s 2017 recruiting class, there have been hardly any impact players in the program during his tenure. It’s hard to believe, but Martin’s run at Missouri has been longer than his initial run in the SEC at Tennessee. He’s an adequate leader of a program but the Tigers could look to reset the program and try to catch up with the rest of the SEC pack at the expense of Martin’s job.
Game #3: #10 Mississippi State beats #7 South Carolina 73-51
In the most physical game of the SEC Tournament thus far, Mississippi State bludgeoned South Carolina on their way to a 22-point victory. After South Carolina took a seven-point lead to start, Mississippi State hung around until taking the lead with under five to go in the half. The Bulldogs took a two-point lead into halftime and that was as close as the game would get the rest of the way.
The Gamecocks’ offense didn’t seem to find its way back out to the floor as they scored just 17 points in the second half. Pair that with the Bulldogs 42-16 advantage in points in the paint and Mississippi State ran away down the stretch. Tolu Smith finished with 20 and 12, Iverson Molinar scored 19 and Ben Howland’s group will now face Tennessee tomorrow evening. For South Carolina, their season comes to an end at 18-13 on the year.
Mississippi State: Can the Bulldog guards keep up with Tennessee’s backcourt?
When you look at this matchup, the team’s strengths don’t line up with each other. While Tennessee’s backcourt has the advantage, Mississippi State has the advantage in the frontcourt. When they played last month, Tennessee pulled away in the second half to get a nine-point win. That victory was led by their backcourt, who scored 58 of the Vol’s 72.
Since then, Tennessee has gotten even better as one of the hottest team’s in the country to end the year. If Mississippi State wants a shot at the semis, their guard play will have to match up with Tennessee’s. Molinar, Shakeel Moore and DJ Jeffries will need to produce on their end while also keeping the Volunteer guards in check. From there, it’ll be on the shoulders of Smith and Garrison Brooks to win their battle down low.
South Carolina: Who can be your go-to guy?
South Carolina’s greatest strength might have been their undoing in the end. Time and again, their depth helped them turn their season around over time. Everyone who checked in matched the physicality of the player before and it wore teams down. On Thursday, it finally came back to bite them. While depth is a great thing to have, the Gamecocks didn’t have a ‘go-to guy’ to get them a basket when they needed it the most.
Multiple teams in the SEC have that kind of player and, with most of them set to play in the quarterfinals tomorrow, it’s the difference between advancing and your season ending. Keyshawn Bryant, Jermaine Couisnard, James Reese and Erik Stevenson are all great players. Even with Stevenson’s 18, though, nobody was impactful enough to keep them within striking distance. With potential roster changes coming for Frank Martin’s team, it’ll be key for them to determine who that ‘guy’ is for them moving into next season.
Game #4: #11 Vanderbilt beats #6 Alabama 82-76
In the nightcap, Vanderbilt came back from 14 down and knocked off the reigning SEC Tournament Champion Alabama. Early on, Alabama was doing Alabama things from deep. Jaden Shackelford and the Crimson Tide got off to an 8-0 start and ran away from Vanderbilt to get that 14-point cushion. In the second half, though, Vandy came out as the aggressor. Facing a 10-point halftime deficit, Vanderbilt paired an onslaught from deep with an attacking mentality towards the rim that got Alabama in foul trouble. Shackelford ended up fouling out along with Jahvon Quinerly. Keon Ellis picked up four fouls as well. With the Tide’s impactful backcourt off the floor, Vandy simply needed to wrap this one up at the end. Scotty Pippen Jr. put up 26 and seven assists, Myles Stute and Rodney Chatman combined for 30 points on eight threes, and the Commodores will move on to play Kentucky on Friday night.
Alabama: What on Earth are the Tide?
Alabama’s placement on Selection Sunday is going to be fascinating. The puzzle that is the Crimson Tide did not get any less complicated on Thursday night. Nate Oats’ team has some of the best wins in the country on their resume. They also have more losses, specifically bad ones, than any other team with similar wins this year.
As the reigning champion of the SEC Tournament, plenty of these players had been there, done that a year ago. On a night where they held a double-digit lead, they let go of the rope and picked up their third straight loss and 13th overall. Now, they’ll await their seeding where they could fall just about anywhere from a #5 or #6 and on down. They’ll be a trendy pick to make some noise because of their resume…that is if they make it out of the Round of 64. If anyone understands what they’ve got going on down in Tuscaloosa, feel free to help us out.
Vanderbilt: Keep on keeping on
Once again, Vanderbilt handled their business. On night one, they 30-pieced Georgia. That earned them this date with Alabama. Vandy getting this upset over the Tide might have been the trendiest prediction heading into the SEC Tournament and it came true. It didn’t look great early, but they hunkered down and put Alabama in a bind that they couldn’t get out of. Now, they’ll have their chance to take down Kentucky.
If the jump from Georgia to Alabama was a leap, the jump from Alabama to Kentucky is another significant step up. With that said, Vanderbilt easily has the most momentum in the SEC Tournament thus far. With two big wins behind them and the SEC leading scorer driving them, they won’t be scared of the Wildcats or BBN.
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