While Arkansas visits Auburn, Hog fans will watch other games from other SEC contenders. Here's an overview:
Arkansas basketball has to take care of business Saturday evening at Auburn, but in the SEC championship race, other teams will try to take a step forward in addition to the Razorbacks. Here's a look at the SEC basketball Saturday slate as we move toward the middle of January:
The day begins at noon Eastern with Tennessee visiting Florida. This is a huge game for both teams. They're 1-1 in the conference and can't lose too much ground early in the season. Florida lost at Missouri a week ago, and Tennessee lost to Arkansas last Saturday. This becomes a crucial battleground for the Gators and Vols. Florida struggles in the backcourt, which should conceivably give Tennessee's guards a chance to create a lot of turnovers and disrupt the UF offense. Tennessee needs better perimeter shooting. The Gators figure to pack the paint and defend the rim, trusting that UT won't be able to hit enough 3-pointers to win.
At 1 p.m. Eastern, unbeaten Vanderbilt hosts LSU. The Commodores are coming off a massive win over Alabama, which probably helped Arkansas more than it hurt UA. However, Vanderbilt now becomes the main team Arkansas needs to worry about. It's unlikely that LSU, having just lost at home to South Carolina, will help out the Razorbacks in Memorial Gym.
At 2 Eastern, Georgia visits South Carolina. The Gamecocks just did beat LSU, so Georgia will have to be on guard against an upset.
At 3:30 Eastern, Oklahoma visits Texas A&M. The Aggies are 2-0 in the SEC and are trying to build an NCAA Tournament resume. Their win at Auburn was a big step forward. Oklahoma lost to Mississippi State and has to show it can win on the road in the SEC. Otherwise, the Sooners will slide to the NIT.
At 6 Eastern -- when Arkansas visits Auburn -- Missouri will go to Oxford to play Ole Miss. Missouri has beaten Florida and Kentucky. Can the Tigers keep their surprising SEC start going against a very disappointing Ole Miss team whose coach, Chris Beard, has struggled to find a winning defensive formula this season?
At 8 Eastern, Texas visits Alabama. This looks like a total blowout. Texas is just plain bad, and Alabama is coming off a loss, playing at home.
At 8:30 Eastern, Mississippi State goes to Kentucky, where the natives will be restless in Rupp Arena. Kentucky is 0-2 in the SEC and in serious danger of missing the NCAA Tournament. Wins over St. John's and Indiana aren't quite enough to carry UK into March. The Wildcats will have to get a lot of work done in the SEC, and it has to start here for embattled coach Mark Pope. Mississippi State started 4-5 but has since won six straight games to move to 10-5 and 2-0 in the SEC. This game joins Tennessee-Florida and Oklahoma-Texas A&M as one of the three most important non-Arkansas SEC games on Saturday.