Tennessee-Alabama is the non-Arkansas game Hog fans will be watching. That and more in our latest SEC basketball Saturday scene-setter
The only thing Arkansas basketball can control on Saturday in the SEC is whether it defeats LSU. The Hogs have to take care of business and hold up their end of the bargain. If they do, they will be interested in a number of SEC hoops clashes on Saturday. The big one is in Tuscaloosa, where Alabama hosts Tennessee.
The Vols look like a No. 8 or 9 seed in the NCAA Tournament. They're a far cry from what they have been the past few years, which is an Elite Eight-level team with Final Four potential. Losing so many veteran guards and key shooters who stretched the court has limited the ceiling of this Tennessee offense. The Vols are ordinary instead of imposing, something Arkansas fans saw when the Hogs dispatched UT earlier in January. Tennessee then blew a 17-point lead at home to shorthanded Kentucky, a brutal collapse which caused reality to set in for a lot of Vol fans who know this is not Tennessee's year.
Yet, for all of Tennessee's struggles, this game does not feel like a lock for Alabama. The Crimson Tide have actually been a better road team than a home team in SEC play. They lost at home to Texas, a team which came into that contest struggling. Texas just lost on the road to Kentucky, a team Alabama handled with ease. If Alabama can lose at home to Texas, it can lose to the other "UT" as well. Alabama had a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament in 2023, but Bama teams under Nate Oats usually do go through periods of wild fluctuations and considerable variance between their best and worst iterations. Alabama has to find a measure of consistency, and until we see it, a measure of skepticism is warranted. Arkansas fans obviously hope the Tide don't turn things around.
Elsewhere in the SEC on Saturday, Florida hosts Auburn. It's highly unlikely the Tigers will help out the Hogs by upsetting the Gators, who are the hot team in the conference and, arguably, the team to beat. Todd Golden continues to show how gifted he is as a coach. He had a real problem in his backcourt and has worked hard to fix it. Let's see if the Gators stay on track at the top of the conference.
Texas A&M figures to stay at the top of the SEC standings. The Aggies host lowly South Carolina.
Georgia goes to Texas in a highly intriguing game. The Dawgs just won by two at Missouri.
Ole Miss visits Rupp Arena. Kentucky is banged up, but Ole Miss looks like one of the worst teams in the SEC.
Vanderbilt goes to Mississippi State. Both teams desperately need a win for different reasons -- VU to stop a three-game slide, MSU to boost an inadequate NCAA Tournament resume.
Oklahoma, in free fall, visits Missouri in a matchup of two teams unlikely to play in March Madness.