After the initial “buzz” of the conference tournament slate heating up earlier in the week, many of the leagues saw a bit of a lull before the “big guns” took to the stage, but on Saturday, the SEC Tournament will hit another gear, starting with the opening match-up between the top-seeded Florida Gators and the 4th-seeded Tennessee Volunteers.
Florida sleepwalked through the first 30 minutes or so against the Missouri Tigers on Friday afternoon, but after that period of average play, the Gators turned on the jets in route to a 20+-point win, and they remain the favorite to take the conference crown. Billy Donovan’s team is a near-unanimous #1 team in the country right now, and with the way they’ve been playing (top-15 unit on both offense and defense), it’s easy to see why.
Tennessee has struggled with consistency at times (as evidenced by their 21-11 overall record), but the Vols have a tremendously high ceiling, giving this match-up a bit more credence. “Advanced” metrics like KenPom rankings have the Vols as one of the top-20 teams in America, and they have an elite offense that is capable of exploding at any time. UT had little trouble with South Carolina in their tournament opener on Friday, and if they can keep that momentum going, it could be a troublesome match-up against a Florida team that hasn’t been challenged much in recent days.
Here’s how you can watch all the action on Saturday:
Date: March 15
Start Time: 1:00 PM ET
Location: Atlanta, GA
Arena: Georgia Dome
TV Info: ABC/ESPN3
Live Stream: WatchESPN app
Who do you think comes away with the win in this one? Sound off with your thoughts in the comments section below.