The SEC Tournament got underway on Wednesday with four first round games. March Madness hopes are on the line at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
The SEC hopes to be well-represented in the NCAA Tournament after one of the most contested conference seasons you could imagine. After it all, Auburn, Florida, Alabama, Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Missouri, Mississippi State and Georgia are almost certain to earn bids. Vanderbilt, Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas are on the bubble.
Every game in the conference tournament matters, whether high seeds are vying for better positioning in March Madness or bubble teams are fighting for their lives.
Updated SEC Tournament bracket after first round games
No. 10 seed Mississippi State left no opportunity for worry with a 91-62 rout of No. 15 seed LSU. They led by 20 by halftime. The Bulldogs will see No. 7 Missouri next.
Despite being the No. 16 seed, South Carolina caught No. 9 seed Arkansas by surprise. John Calipari's Razorbacks led by 20 at one point but they let the Gamecocks battle back to come within one point. Arkansas held on for a 72-68 victory and a reminder that you can never take your foot off the gas. They won't be able to get away with the same against No. 8 Ole Miss.
No bubble team needed a win in the first round more than No. 13 seed Texas. They got it against No. 12 seed Vanderbilt by jumping ahead by 15 points at the half. They'll get a rivalry matchup against No. 5 seed Texas A&M with hopes of adding to their tournament résumé.
No. 14 seed Oklahoma needs a win more than No. 11 seed Georgia, but the Bulldogs aren't likely to take it easy on the Sooners. The winner of that contest gets No. 6 Kentucky next.
The top four seeds in the conference await their first matchups in the quarterfinals on Friday. No. 1 seed Auburn will get Arkansas or Ole Miss. No. 2 seed Florida is waiting on Mississippi State and Missouri. No. 3 seed Alabama is on the look out for Kentucky and the first round winner. Finally, No. 4 seed Tennessee will meet someone from the state of Texas, either the Longhorns or the Aggies.