Even for the more football-focused crowd like myself, I must admit: Conference championship week is a beautiful, magnificent beast.

That’s exactly how I’d describe this year’s SEC. We had the possibility of a 5-way tie for the regular-season title going into the final week. Tennessee ruined that magnificent beast of a possibility by winning at South Carolina. Still, though. That much competition near the top should make for an intriguing week in Nashville.

The SEC Tournament kicks off on Wednesday at 7 pm ET at Bridgestone Arena.

Who cuts down the nets? That’s a basic question.

These 7 questions are much more interesting than just that:

1. Kentucky loss aside, is Tennessee the immovable force?

Tennessee clinched the regular season title at No. 17 South Carolina in somewhat fitting Rick Barnes fashion. A 66-59, grind-it-out victory is the type of stuff that we’ve come to expect from Barnes’ Vols. But this year’s squad is a bit of an offensive outlier. That game marked the Vols’ fewest points in an SEC win all season (a 65-point output vs. Tarleton State in December was the only Tennessee win with fewer points).

Even though Tennessee broke up the 5-way tie potential and then lost to Kentucky in the regular-season finale, it does feel like this is the Vols’ tournament to lose. We’ve got time to find out if Dalton Knecht is the missing piece for the Vols’ first Final Four run in program history. In the meantime, it’s fair to wonder if a Tennessee team that’s No. 25 in offensive efficiency (via KenPom) finally has the balance to sweep the SEC like Alabama did last year.

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2. Will Alabama actually play defense?

That’s going to be a question all March, as long as it lasts for the Tide.

Nate Oats knows defense will determine whether this team can make a deep run. We know that with Mark Sears running the show, it’s as good of an offensive team as there is in the country. We don’t know if this Alabama team will defend with the urgency needed to defend its 2023 SEC Tournament title, especially if Kentucky awaits in the semifinal matchup.

History says it’ll put a cap on the Tide’s NCAA Tournament ceiling, but that’s different than running through the field in Nashville. Mind you, Oats did that 2 out of the last 3 seasons. Why did that happen, though? Because the Tide defended extremely well. Not only did Alabama not surrender 80 points in any of those 6 victories, but it held 5 of its 6 foes under 70 points. In SEC play this year, Alabama only held 2 teams to less than 70 points. There might not be a switch to flip on that side of the ball, especially if Rylan Griffen isn’t able to go or is at less than 100% coming off the calf injury.

3. Is a healthy Kentucky team now defending like it should?

It’s funny. If you had told a Kentucky fan that Dalton Knecht would hit 40 points in the regular-season finale, nobody would be praising the Cats’ defensive turnaround. But hey, beating Tennessee in Knoxville has the Cats feeling confident and perhaps capable of a postseason run.

Unlike Alabama, Kentucky is a much improved defensive team down the stretch. Some of that could be getting a healthy DJ Wagner back (UK allowed an average of 91 points and went 1-2 in the 3 games he missed). It could also be Reed Sheppard’s continued emergence on that side of the ball.

The counterpoint is that UK has won 9 games when allowing 80 points. Ideally, a game in the 90s favors UK. At the same time, it does feel like the defensive improvements carrying over will determine how deep of a run UK makes in the SEC Tournament, where John Calipari’s squad is 1-3 in the 2020s decade.

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4. Does Texas A&M have a 3rd consecutive deep run in it? And if so, will there be a different ending than 2022?

Each of the past 2 years, Buzz Williams’ squad made it all the way to the SEC Tournament Championship. The 2022 squad stunningly was left out of the NCAA Tournament while last year’s squad had that locked up … but still got a raw deal with a 7-seed. This year’s team lost 5 in a row in February on the heels of that big Tennessee win, which has A&M in an eerily familiar spot as 2022. That is, firmly on the bubble.

Joe Lunardi had the Aggies on his “first 4 out” line after Saturday’s blowout win at Ole Miss. A few others projected the Aggies as a 10th or 11th seed. The question now becomes what’s the path to the dance?

The Aggies already beat Tennessee and Kentucky, and they nearly pulled off a 21-point comeback against national title favorite Houston. They can play with elite competition, which will be needed if A&M can get to that quarterfinal game against Kentucky. One would think beating Kentucky is the minimum for A&M. But Williams’ squad can also suffer baffling losses against teams like Vandy, which is why one shouldn’t assume that a blowout win in Oxford means that a rematch is a given. A&M has 4 Quad 3 losses for a reason. That’s why the herky-jerky Aggies have a NET Ranking of No. 46.

In other words, buckle up, Aggie fans.

5. Can South Carolina continue to convert skeptics into believers?

A South Carolina team that was picked to finish dead last in the SEC went into the final week of the regular season with a shot at a conference title. No matter what happens for the Gamecocks in March, that’s remarkable. Lamont Paris did a whale of a job with a team that wasn’t expected to have an NCAA Tournament locked up after GG Jackson was one-and-done. Hence, why that extension is reportedly on the way.

There’s still clearly some skepticism about the lack of Quad 1 wins (4). KenPom and NET barely have the Gamecocks in the top 50 and Joe Lunardi had South Carolina as a 6-seed entering the weekend. Can the Gamecocks find enough offensive mojo to turn some heads? Or would a loss put South Carolina in jeopardy of being on that daunting 8-9 line for the NCAA Tournament? If this season has been any indication, betting against Paris’ squad doesn’t seem wise.

6. Who is the best non-Dalton Knecht pick to win SEC Tournament MVP?

Consider this: The last time the SEC Tournament MVP went to a player who wasn’t on the winning team was Allan Houston in 1991. Also consider this: Since the SEC expanded to 14 teams, here are the non-double bye teams (that’s worse than a 4-seed) that have made it to the SEC Tournament Championship:

  • 2019 — No. 5 Auburn (W)
  • 2022 — No. 8 Texas A&M (L)

That’s it. I bring that up because based on that logic, you’re only picking a player from a top-4 seed. That means Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama and Auburn have the best path to produce SEC Tournament MVP.

For the sake of this argument, let’s exclude Knecht as the best player on the top seed and look at the best values for SEC Tournament MVP:

  • Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee
  • Santiago Vescovi, Tennessee
  • Reed Sheppard, Kentucky
  • Antonio Reeves, Kentucky
  • Rob Dillingham, Kentucky
  • Johni Broome, Auburn
  • Jaylin Williams, Auburn
  • Mark Sears, Alabama
  • Grant Nelson, Alabama
  • Aaron Estrada, Alabama

I’m not crazy about Auburn players as SEC Tournament MVP because as much as KenPom and NET love the Tigers, I’m skeptical of a deep run because of that lone Quad 1 win. As great as Bruce Pearl has been in the SEC Tournament, getting through a path that could feature the likes of South Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky feels like a major challenge.

With that said, I’ll go with Zeigler or Sheppard to win Tournament MVP. Zeigler suffered the torn ACL late last season that knocked him out before Tennessee’s postseason run. In the Volunteer State, wouldn’t it be fitting if his return to the SEC Tournament concluded with him bringing home the hardware? And with Sheppard, it feels like when Kentucky is playing its best, it’s because the freshman sensation is doing everything. Both guards could be in for a monumental March.

7. Is Mississippi State going to blow an NCAA Tournament bid?

If Sheppard doesn’t hit that buzzer-beater in Starkville a couple weeks ago, how different is Chris Jans’ squad feeling heading into Nashville? Instead, it’s firmly on the bubble, possibly in need of beating LSU in the 8-9 matchup and then taking down top-seed Tennessee to guarantee a spot in the tournament. Maybe beating LSU would be enough, maybe it wouldn’t be. Tough schedule or not, that’s what happens when you lose 4 straight to close the regular season.

The only positive of that draw is that Mississippi State’s last win came against LSU — it was an 87-67 blowout — and it beat Tennessee in that lone matchup back in January. More recently, though, the Bulldogs have had defensive issues during their late-season skid, which is extremely atypical for a Jans-coached squad. Now seems like as good a time as ever to correct that.

If not, Mississippi State’s bid to win its first NCAA Tournament game since 2008 will end in Nashville.

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