The 2024 SEC Basketball Tournament is less than a week away. The First Round will be played on Wednesday. Heading into Saturday’s regular-season finales, the most intrigue surrounds which teams will get to wait to play until Friday.

Wednesday’s SEC Tournament action from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville features the bottom 4 seeds (11-14). On Thursday, seeds 5-10 get involved. The top 4 seeds sit the first two rounds out, joining the fun for Friday’s Quarterfinals.

In recent weeks, it has been a 6-team race for the 4 double-byes. It’s now 5 teams fighting for the last 3 double-byes.

Tennessee defeated South Carolina on Wednesday night, locking up the regular-season conference title and the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament.

Saturday is the last day of the 2023-24 SEC regular season. With 3 double-byes up for grabs, 4 teams are 12-5 in conference play and Florida is 12-6.

Chances are, some ties are going to need to be broken to figure out the 4 double-byes.

In the case of a 2-team tie, here are the SEC’s procedures:

  1. Won-lost results of head-to-head competition between the two teams.
  2. Won-lost record of the two teams versus the No. 1 seed (and proceeding through the No. 14 seed, if necessary).
  3. Coin flip by the Commissioner.

And here’s how a 3-team tie would be sorted out:

  1. Best winning percentage of games played among the tied teams (Example: Team A is 3-1, Team B is 2-2 and Team C is 1-3 – Team A would be seeded highest, Team B second-highest and Team C lowest of the three).
  2. Best winning percentage of the tied teams versus the No. 1 seed (and proceeding through the No. 14 seed, if necessary).
  3. If two teams remain, coin flip by the Commissioner.
  4. If three or more teams remain, draw by the Commissioner.

Here’s a look at where everybody stands heading into Saturday, including records against the other teams in the hunt for the 2-4 seeds.

South Carolina – 12-5 SEC (24-6 overall)

Season finale at Mississippi State, Saturday (2:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)

While the Gamecocks don’t have the toughest of the Saturday draws, it’s still a road game against a projected NCAA Tournament team. (Mississippi State was a No. 9-seed in Joe Lunardi’s Tuesday bracketology before losing to Texas A&M Wednesday).

MSU enters Saturday on a 3-game losing skid, standing at 19-11 overall and 8-9 in SEC play. The Bulldogs are 11-3 at home this season, while South Carolina is 7-3 on the road.

South Carolina defeated MSU 68-62 in Columbia on Jan. 6.

Relevant records

  • Tennessee: 1-1
  • Auburn: 0-1
  • Kentucky: 1-0
  • Alabama: 0-1
  • Florida: 1-0

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Auburn – 12-5 (23-7)

Season finale vs. Georgia, Saturday (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)

Auburn gets a favorable draw to end regular-season play.

Georgia is 16-14 on the season, with a 6-11 record against SEC competition. UGA snapped a 3-game losing skid by picking up a home win against Ole Miss on Tuesday night. Mike White’s team has not won back-to-back SEC games since Jan. 10 (wins over Missouri and Arkansas).

Auburn defeated Georgia 97-76 in Athens on Feb. 24. The Dawgs are 4-5 on the road this year, while AU has gone 14-1 playing in front of its home crowd.

Relevant records

  • Tennessee: 0-1
  • South Carolina: 1-0
  • Kentucky: 0-1
  • Alabama: 1-1
  • Florida: 0-1

Kentucky – 12-5 (22-8)

Season finale at Tennessee, Saturday (4 p.m. ET, CBS)

John Calipari’s squad gets the toughest draw to finish the regular season. While Tennessee has secured the SEC Tournament’s No. 1 seed, the Vols still have plenty to play for. UT is trending for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, and another win over Kentucky would be a big boost to the resume.

UT is 14-1 at home and on a 7-game winning streak. UK can hope some fatigue has set in, as Tennessee is playing its fourth consecutive game against a ranked opponent.

The Vols beat Kentucky 103-92 in Lexington on Feb. 3.

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Relevant records

  • Tennessee: 0-1
  • South Carolina: 0-1
  • Auburn: 1-0
  • Alabama: 1-0
  • Florida: 1-1

Alabama – 12-5 (20-10)

Season finale vs. Arkansas, Saturday (12 p.m. ET, ESPN)

Alabama was on top of the SEC standings not too long ago but has struggled lately, dropping 3 of its last 4. The last time the Crimson Tide was on a losing skid was a December stretch against a trio of top-10 teams: Purdue, Creighton and Arizona.

Arkansas at home might give UA the get-right game it needs before tournament play. The Razorbacks are having an off year at 15-15 overall with a 6-11 mark in SEC play and 2-6 road record.

Relevant records

  • Tennessee: 0-2
  • South Carolina: 1-0
  • Auburn: 1-1
  • Kentucky: 0-1
  • Florida: 1-1

Florida – 11-6 (21-9)

Season finale at Vanderbilt, Saturday (4:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network)

Florida is hoping for some Saturday chaos to shake up the standings, having already picked up a sixth loss. The Gators would rather be at home, but for a road game, Vanderbilt is a favorable draw.

The Commodores are 8-22 on the year, with a 3-14 record in SEC play and a 7-10 mark at home. Vandy has lost 5 of its last 6 SEC outings, including Feb. 24 at UF (77-64).

Relevant records

  • Tennessee: 0-1
  • South Carolina: 0-1
  • Auburn: 1-0
  • Kentucky: 1-1
  • Alabama: 1-1