It is mid-January, and if you haven’t looked at the southeastern conference basketball standings lately, you might want to brace yourself. Things are weird. Vanderbilt—the same program that has spent years as the conference’s punching bag—is currently 16-0. They aren't just winning; they're the only undefeated team left in the entire league.
Honestly, nobody saw this coming.
Mark Byington has the Commodores playing like a group of guys who have been together for a decade, even though the roster is a mix-and-match of transfer portal finds. They just beat LSU 84-73 on January 10 to keep the streak alive. Tyler Nickel put up a double-double with 19 points and 10 boards. It’s wild. Meanwhile, the usual heavyweights like Kentucky and Alabama are currently sitting in the middle of the pack with losing records in conference play.
The SEC has changed. It's more of a meat grinder than ever before.
The Current State of the Southeastern Conference Basketball Standings
If you look at the top of the board right now, you’ll see Texas A&M and Vanderbilt tied for the lead. The Aggies are 3-0 in the SEC, while Vandy is 2-0. Bucky McMillan has Texas A&M playing an incredibly physical brand of ball that basically suffocates opponents. They just took down Oklahoma—one of the new kids on the block—behind a massive performance from Rashuan Agee.
But behind them? It’s a total logjam.
Georgia, Florida, and Arkansas are all hovering at 2-1. Mike White has Georgia finally looking like a real threat. They actually trailed South Carolina by 12 points recently before Kanon Catchings went nuclear for 20 points to spark a comeback win. That’s the kind of game that tells you a lot about the southeastern conference basketball standings this early in the season. Teams that used to fold under pressure are now finding ways to grind out wins on the road.
- Texas A&M: 3-0 (13-3 overall)
- Vanderbilt: 2-0 (16-0 overall)
- Georgia: 2-1 (14-2 overall)
- Florida: 2-1 (11-5 overall)
- Arkansas: 2-1 (12-4 overall)
- Missouri: 2-1 (12-4 overall)
- Mississippi State: 2-1 (10-6 overall)
Notice a pattern? There isn't one. The middle is a disaster.
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Why Kentucky and Alabama are Struggling
You’d expect to see the Wildcats or the Crimson Tide at the top. Instead, they are both 1-2 in the SEC. Alabama just got stunned by Texas—another newcomer—in a 92-88 shootout. Jordan Pope dropped 28 on Nate Oats’ squad, and it honestly felt like the Longhorns just wanted it more. Alabama’s defense has been... well, let’s call it "optional" at times.
Kentucky is in a similar boat. Mark Pope’s second year hasn’t been the smooth sailing fans wanted. They did manage to beat Mississippi State 92-68 recently, thanks to Otega Oweh, but they already have a conference loss on the books and several head-scratching non-conference defeats.
The depth of this league is just stupid.
LSU is currently at the bottom at 0-3 in conference play, but even they have 12 wins overall. There are no "off nights" in this schedule anymore. When you add Texas and Oklahoma to a league that was already top-heavy, you end up with a situation where a Top 25 team can easily finish 9-9 in the conference.
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What the Metrics Actually Say
The NET rankings tell a slightly different story than the pure win-loss columns. For example, Vanderbilt is ranked #7 in the NET as of this week, largely because they’ve racked up five Quadrant 1 wins. They aren't just beating cupcakes. They are handling business against legitimate tournament teams.
Florida is sitting at #19 in the NET despite being 2-1 in the SEC. They have a massive game tonight against Oklahoma in Norman. This is the Gators' first-ever conference trip to OU territory. It’s a huge test. If Todd Golden’s group wants to prove they belong in the top tier of the southeastern conference basketball standings, they have to win these cross-country road trips.
The Newcomers Impact
Texas and Oklahoma aren't exactly acting like guests. Texas is 1-2 in the SEC, but that win over Alabama was a statement. They have athletes that match up with anybody. Oklahoma, at 1-2 as well, has been a bit more inconsistent, but Porter Moser always has his teams ready to scrap.
The travel is the real story here. Flying from Gainesville to Norman or from Columbia to Austin adds a layer of fatigue that SEC teams haven't had to deal with in the past. It’s going to impact the standings significantly as we get into February.
Predicting the Turnaround
Can Kentucky and Tennessee make a run? Probably. Rick Barnes has the Vols at 1-2 in the league, but they are still #23 in the NET. They play elite defense, and usually, that travels. The problem is their offense goes into these weird droughts where they can't throw a beach ball into the ocean.
Arkansas is the wildcard. John Calipari has them at 2-1 in the SEC. They lost a heartbreaker to Auburn (95-73) where they just got bullied in the paint. Steven Pearl—taking over for his dad—has Auburn playing with a chip on their shoulder.
Here is what you should actually watch for in the southeastern conference basketball standings over the next two weeks:
- Vanderbilt vs. The Gauntlet: Vandy plays Alabama and Tennessee soon. We’ll find out if they are a Final Four contender or a January fluke.
- The Battle for the Bubble: Mississippi State and Missouri are both 2-1. One of them usually fades by February. Which one holds on?
- Texas A&M's Consistency: Bucky McMillan has them at 3-0. They have a target on their back now.
The SEC is probably going to get 9 or 10 teams into the NCAA Tournament. Because of that, the conference record is almost secondary to the "eye test" and the NET. You can be 8-10 in this league and still be a 6-seed in March.
Basically, don't panic if your team is 1-2 right now. Unless you're an LSU fan. Then maybe panic a little.
If you're trying to keep track of this chaos, stop looking at the preseason polls. They're useless now. Focus on the Wednesday night road games. That’s where the conference is won. Keep an eye on the injury reports for Alabama, too, because their thin rotation is starting to show some cracks.
Check the NET rankings every Monday morning. It's the only way to see through the noise of the current southeastern conference basketball standings and figure out who is actually good. Watch the Florida vs. Oklahoma game tonight—it'll tell you everything you need to know about the middle of this league.