Tennessee Favored To Cut Down the Nets At SEC Tourney
Plenty of Contenders in the 2024 SEC Odds Heading into Conference Tournament
Seven SEC Teams Are Currently Projected To Be in March Madness Bracket
With five teams finishing within a game of each other at the top of the SEC standings during the regular season, the SEC men’s basketball tournament as the potential for plenty of chaos. Regular-season champion Tennessee is listed by the 2024 SEC odds as the team to beat.
The 2024 SEC tournament begins when Vanderbilt plays Arkansas on Wednesday followed by Missouri squaring off with Georgia.
Teams in contention for a spot in the March Madness bracket will begin taking to the court on Thursday when South Carolina and Florida await the winners of Wednesday’s first-round games.
Arkansas and Georgia could be top options when it comes to predictions for college basketball today on the first day of the SEC tournament. However, Vanderbilt is one of five SEC teams to have a winning record against the spread this season when listed as the underdog.
One projected bracket has Tennessee as a No. 1 seed in the March Madness bracket, with Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, and South Carolina in contention for the top 16 seeds, so there is plenty of play in this tournament. The SEC tournament championship game is scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN.
When looking at the odds to win March Madness, Tennessee is fourth nationally at +1100 in the odds of winning the national title. Kentucky (+2000), Auburn (+2200), and Alabama (+3500) are other title contenders from the SEC. The pecking order is pretty much the same in the odds to reach the Final Four.
Keep on reading for more on the 2024 SEC men’s basketball tournament.
Tennessee Comfortable As the Favorite
While Tennessee knows it will be in the NCAA tournament, if the Volunteers want to be a No. 1 seed, they likely need to win the SEC tournament. As a betting favorite this season, the Volunteers are three games over .500 against the spread.
Tennessee leads the way at +150 in the 2024 SEC odds. The Volunteers last won the tournament in 2022 and only reached the title game three times in the previous 17 SEC tournaments that were held in Tennessee.
The Volunteers will play either LSU or Mississippi State in the quarterfinals with Auburn or South Carolina likely opponents in the semifinals. Mississippi State and South Carolina did beat the Volunteers during the college basketball regular season.
A Look At the Other Top Contenders
Auburn comes in at +250 in the 2024 SEC odds, followed by Kentucky at +350 and defending champion Alabama.
Auburn has won three games in a row, all by at least 14 points, so the Tigers seem to be peaking at the right time. There could be a quarterfinal showdown with South Carolina before Auburn has a chance to meet up with Tennessee.
Kentucky has the longest active winning streak in the SEC. The Wildcats have won five college basketball games in a row to move back into the top 10 in the national polls.
The Wildcats earned the No. 2 seed in the tournament, which could result in a quarterfinal meeting with Texas A&M. Alabama has struggled against elite competition, with a 2-7 record against NCAAB teams in the top 25 in the Associated Press poll and a 1-8 mark versus teams in the top 25 in the USA Today coaches poll.
Don’t Overlook These Sleepers
South Carolina and Florida are among the teams that could take down one of the top challengers in the SEC tournament.
The Gamecocks lead the SEC with 25 wins and an 8-3 road record is an indication of the Gamecocks’ ability to win tough games. South Carolina offers good value at +4000 to win the SEC tournament.
Florida is priced at +1600 in the SEC tournament odds. After beating Alabama by 18 points, the Gators promptly lost to lowly Vanderbilt in the next game, and that speaks volumes about the risk and reward potential with the Gators.
Mississippi State joins South Carolina with +4000 odds to win the SEC tournament. The Bulldogs are trending in the wrong direction with four losses in a row.
Breaking Down the Schedule
Things get underway at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Wednesday with two first-round games. Georgia, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, and Missouri were a combined 1-28 against NCAAB teams ranked in the top 25 in the Associated Press poll.
With five teams ranked in the top 25 going into this tournament, multiple matchups versus ranked teams among the teams that finished at the bottom of the SEC standings would likely be necessary.
Barring any upsets, the quarterfinals would feature LSU-Tennessee, South Carolina-Auburn, Kentucky-Texas A&M, and Florida-Alabama.
South Carolina led the SEC with a 22-9 record against the spread this season, followed by Auburn at 19-12, and Kentucky at 18-13. Alabama tops the SEC with 23 games going over the total with 22 games landed over for both Arkansas and Kentucky. Keep that in mind when looking at the college basketball point spreads during the SEC tournament.
Tennessee’s Dalton Knecht, Alabama’s Mark Sears, and Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves all average more than 20 points per game and could be top options in player prop and parlay bets.
For NCAAB betting news, odds analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.
