The SEC is fresh off one of its most exciting men’s basketball seasons in recent years, so it’ll be important to keep that momentum going during the 2018-19 campaign.

Fortunately, it looks like there will be some competitive squads once again. In fact, in Gary Parrish’s early 2018-19 top 25 (and 1) list, there are five SEC teams ranked.

As you can see below, Tennessee and Kentucky both land in the top 5, while three other squads crack the top 20:

  • No. 3 — Tennessee
  • No. 4 — Kentucky
  • No. 10 — Auburn
  • No. 15 — Mississippi State
  • No. 20 — LSU

Tennessee and Auburn split the regular-season title, while Kentucky cruised to yet another SEC Tournament title.

All those teams, and perhaps several more, will be forces to be reckoned with on a national level this season, too.