Unlike college football, college basketball is a slow burn. Results in November are nice, but they aren’t nearly as important as results once the calendar flips to the new year.

Still, these early games are fun and can give us a look at how much work teams have to do before their first conference games.

For example, Kentucky opened the year in Indianapolis against a talented Duke squad and got blown out of the gym by the Blue Devils’ elite trio of freshmen. Meanwhile, other SEC squads that challenged themselves early found out a lot about their rosters.

At this early stage of the 2018-19 season, here’s a look at how each of the 14 SEC teams stands in our first power rankings of the year:

1. Auburn (2-0)

Auburn has the best victory of the season so far for an SEC team, trouncing No. 25 Washington 88-66 in Auburn. Even better than picking up a win over a ranked team was the way the Tigers did it. Instead of relying on Bryce Brown and Jared Harper to carry the scoring load, sophomore F Chuma Okeke (19 points) and junior G Samir Doughty (18 points) led the way.

The Tigers head to the Maui Invitational next week, where they’ll start with a game against a tough Xavier team and could end up playing an elite Duke squad. That will be a great measuring stick for coach Bruce Pearl’s team.

2. Tennessee (2-0)

The Vols struggled early against Lenoir-Rhyne, but then ended up blowing out their inferior foes in dramatic fashion. Grant Williams looks like he’s taken a huge step forward, and that should scare everyone else in the SEC.

Tennessee’s next two games are against ACC squads — Georgia Tech and Louisville — so those games should be more competitive. However, with the way the Vols have looked so far, Tennessee should be 4-0 by the time those contests are over.

3. Kentucky (1-1)

Yes, this is probably a little low. The Wildcats were blown out by Duke on opening night, with the 34-point loss setting the mark as the most-lopsided defeat Kentucky has suffered under coach John Calipari.

The fact of the matter is that the Wildcats played well at times and will improve as the weeks go on. I expect this to be a completely different team heading into SEC play in January, but for now, they deserve to be No. 3.

4. LSU (2-0)

Naz Reid is the real deal. I mean, seriously, this guy is insane.

Look at this highlight reel from the Tigers’ big win over Southeast Louisiana. Big guys aren’t supposed to have this many skills (look at that 3-point range!):

Add in the outstanding play of PG Tremont Waters and this might be a special year for the Tigers. At 2-0, coach Will Wade’s squad is off to a solid start.

5. Vanderbilt (2-0)

An 82-78 win at USC over the weekend was a huge confidence booster for Bryce Drew’s young Vanderbilt squad.

Freshman PG Darius Garland looks like a star, with incredible range and great situational awareness, as you can see from these highlights from the USC game:

https://twitter.com/BBallSociety_/status/1061833169031307265

This team is not a laughing stock anymore, and an NCAA berth is not out of the question.

6. Mississippi State (2-0)

Yes, the Bulldogs are 2-0, but just like last year, they haven’t played anyone even remotely newsworthy yet. That will change with a game against Arizona State on Monday, but until then, we’ll hold off judgment on this team.

7. Alabama (2-0)

The Crimson Tide don’t really test themselves until the end of the month at UCF, but starting 2-0 in the post-Collin Sexton era is a good opening statement. There’s plenty of reason for optimism for coach Avery Johnson’s young squad.

8. Florida (1-1)

Yikes. That first game against Florida State was ugly. The Gators bounced back with a big win over Charleston Southern, but that’s obviously not the same level of competition as the Seminoles.

A game against Oklahoma next week will provide a good barometer for where Mike White’s team stands.

9. Mizzou (1-1)

Without Jontay Porter, this team is going to be exactly what we expected — a squad that can beat lesser teams, but also lose 76-59 to good teams like Iowa State.

The Tigers head down to the U.S. Virgin Islands this weekend for the Paradise Jam Tournament. If all goes according to plan, they should meet Kansas State in the final. However, this will be a good test to see what sort of teams the Tigers can beat without Porter.

10. Arkansas (1-1)

A 2-point loss to Texas certainly isn’t a horrible way to start a season. This is still going to be a growing year for Mike Anderson’s squad, though, and Daniel Gafford isn’t going to have 20-point, 12-rebound performances every night (but could certainly average a double-double).

A game against Indiana on Sunday will be a lot of fun to watch, at least.

11. Georgia (1-0)

Tom Crean’s Georgia debut didn’t disappoint, as the Bulldogs hung 110 points on Savannah State. They play at Temple on Tuesday night, which is another winnable game, but it will be much tougher than their opener.

12. South Carolina (1-1)

When you lose to Stony Brook (at home, no less), you’re not going to be ranked very high on this list. Chris Silva is a preseason All-SEC player, but he’s going to need some help if the Gamecocks are going to turn things around.

13. Texas A&M (1-1)

Like Georgia (see above), the Aggies also routed Savannah State. But a loss to UC Irvine wasn’t great. A trip to take on No. 3 Gonzaga on Thursday could get pretty ugly.

14. Ole Miss (1-0)

The Rebels picked up a nice victory over Western Michigan to start Kermit Davis’ tenure in Oxford, but this is still going to be a rebuilding year for Ole Miss. Look for the struggles to start on Friday when the Rebels travel to take on Butler.