This will be a big week for a lot of SEC teams, but the Alabama Crimson Tide are facing perhaps the most pressure.

The Tide have been incredible in Tuscaloosa this year, picking up wins over the SEC’s top two teams in Auburn and Tennessee. This week, though, they’ll have to take their show on the road, with critical matchups against Kentucky and Auburn.

The Wildcats are in a free fall at the moment, but they still won’t be easy to beat today in Lexington. Then, on Wednesday night, the Tide head to Auburn to take on a Tigers squad that will be hungry for revenge.

If Alabama takes care of business against Kentucky, the Tide could slide back into the Top 25. They spent two weeks there in November, but not since.

If they rejoin the Top 25 on Monday, it will be significant because it would mark the first time since January 2003 that Alabama and Auburn would be ranked in the same poll.

What’s more, their game Wednesday night would then become the first since Jan. 21 1987 in which both were ranked when they played.

For perspective, the Alabama and Auburn football teams have both been ranked for the Iron Bowl an impressive 13 times since that 1987 game.

That will definitely be something to watch, but there’s plenty of other action going on throughout the conference. Here are some big games and stories to watch as Selection Sunday draws ever closer:

Current SEC standings

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Game of the week: Alabama at Auburn, Feb. 21 at 8:30 p.m. ET (SEC Network)

If the Tide beat Kentucky on Saturday afternoon (see below), they should move into the Top 25. Based on the way they’ve been playing lately, with five wins over Top 25 teams, you could argue they should be there already.

However, the Tide are only 2-5 on the road this year (compared to 12-3 at home), so this week will show just how good Avery Johnson’s crew really is. Star freshman Collin Sexton was injured in the first matchup between these two teams, but he’ll likely play this time.

It’ll be interesting to see if Bruce Pearl’s Tigers can stop him, or if they’ll drop another game to their hated rivals.

Other games to watch

Alabama at Kentucky, 2 p.m., today (CBS)

To set up a major Alabama-Auburn game, the Tide first need to take care of business in Lexington. Even though the young Wildcats have lost four in a row (three were on the road), they’re still 13-2 at home.

Keeping Kevin Knox and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander contained will be important for the Tide, and if they can prove they can pick up a huge road win in an unfriendly environment, they’ll be brimming with confidence going into Wednesday’s game at Auburn.

Mississippi State at Texas A&M, Feb. 20 at 7 p.m. (SEC Network)

The Bulldogs are 18-8, but they padded their record with a soft non-conference schedule. They only played one major conference team before SEC play started, losing 65-50 at Cincinnati. The NCAA committee sees right through that, thus the Bulldogs aren’t projected to be in the tournament in ESPN bracketology expert Joe Lunardi’s latest rankings.

Meanwhile, the Aggies just saw their five-game winning streak end at Mizzou, and now are in danger of going in the opposite direction, as two players were suspended and one will miss the rest of the year with an injury. They’ll need this win in the worst way, while a loss might all but eliminate Mississippi State from tourney contention.

Kentucky at Arkansas, Feb. 20 at 9 p.m.

If Kentucky loses to Alabama, they could fall onto the NCAA Tournament bubble. Even if the Wildcats win, following it up with a loss at Arkansas wouldn’t exactly help their tourney hopes.

Meanwhile, Arkansas is clinging to life in the tourney picture, as the Razorbacks are projected to be a No. 11 seed. Bolstering their resume with a win over a blue-blood program like Kentucky would be huge.

Florida at Tennessee, Feb. 21 at 9 p.m. (ESPN2)

Both teams are safe in their NCAA Tournament standing, but neither can afford another SEC loss and maintain hopes of a regular-season title. Tennessee is two games behind Auburn, and Florida is three games back.

At the very least, second place in the conference could be on the line when these squads meet in Knoxville on Wednesday night.

Key storylines

Which teams can position themselves for double byes?

Every year since 2013, the four top teams in the SEC have gotten double byes in the conference tournament. And, every year since 2013, a top-four team has won the tourney.

Kentucky has won the past three tournaments, but that could change this year. Right now, Auburn, Tennessee, Mizzou and Florida are the top four teams in the conference, but there’s still plenty of basketball left to be played.

Five additional teams are within two games of the No. 4 seed, so it’ll be interesting to see how things play out the rest of this month.

Will Kassius Robertson start getting the love he deserves?

Though Michael Porter Jr.’s injury has been the big story on the national stage, Robertson has quietly put together an outstanding season and deserves much more love than he’s been getting.

All Robertson has done is transfer to Mizzou from Canisius and, instead of finding the SEC tougher, he’s putting together a career year. His 16.6 points per game (tied for fifth in the SEC) are a career high, as are his 83.9-percent free-throw rate and 42.2-percent connection rate from beyond the arc.

Mizzou has plenty of talent in Jeremiah Tilmon, Jontay Porter, Kevin Puryear, Jordan Barnett and others, but this team will only go as far as Robertson can carry them.

Current bracketology

  • Auburn — No. 2 seed
  • Tennessee — No. 4 seed
  • Florida — No. 6 seed
  • Alabama — No. 7 seed
  • Mizzou — No. 7 seed
  • Texas A&M — No. 7 seed
  • Kentucky — No. 9 seed
  • Arkansas — No. 11 seed