It’s possible every No. 1 seed team in the NCAA Tournament this year is from the SEC. And as much as I hate to admit it, it would be a crime if it wasn’t. No conference has been as dominant in college basketball as one of the premier college football conferences.
Auburn has long been the No. 1 team in the country, Alabama is the highest scoring team in college basketball and has only one loss outside of conference play, Florida is the only team to beat the Tigers in conference play and Tennessee is lurking in the background.
The ACC is down this year, the Big Ten has a lot of parity so it wouldn’t be crazy to see the SEC have all four No. 1 seeds in March Madness. And it would be a sight to see. Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the SEC dominate the top three seeds, truthfully.
It’s been that type of year in college basketball and the SEC has been that type of conference in a year where no one else can catch up.
An everything conference? Why the SEC could dominate the top four seeds in the NCAA Tournament
The only other teams that could contest the SEC for a No. 1 seed is either Duke or Houston in my eyes. And either team would have to win their respective conference tournaments to get it. If Tennessee, Alabama, Florida and Auburn are the final four teams in the SEC tournament, don’t be surprised to see them end up with No. 1 seeds.
And if not Tennessee, Texas A&M is very much in contention as well. Duke has been a strong team, but with a depleted ACC conference, it’s not clear just how good Duke is. They won some solid non-conference games early in the year and have basically coasted since.
The SEC has been the gauntlet. Each week it seems like when the top teams face either, anybody could win. In the latest Bracketology by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, the SEC has three of the top seeds with Duke taking the final one.
Tennessee is the No. 2 seed in the same region as Duke. Texas A&M is a No. 2 seed and Kentucky is a No. 3 seed. This shouldn’t be a shock. In the latest AP top 25, the SEC has nine teams ranked.
The conference has been the strongest all year. They should be rewarded with not just the most at-large bids, but also with as many top seeded teams as possible. If Houston can’t win the Big 12 tournament, they shouldn’t be a No. 1 seed; same for Duke.
It’s just been that type of year where the SEC is supreme over every other conference. I hate to admit it, especially with what the SEC and the Big Ten have done to college football with the College Football Playoff.
But the SEC has earned the right to be the most represented conference in the NCAA Tournament and they absolutely deserve the top four seeds in the tournament if they take care of business in the SEC tournament.