KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee's loss to Auburn in the regular season finale coupled with Kentucky's win over Florida means that the Vols will be the number three seed in the SEC Tournament next week.
LSU took the regular season conference championship outright with its 80-59 win over Vanderbilt.
SEC Tournament play begins Wednesday. Rick Barnes and crew will play Friday at 9 p.m. eastern time in the quarterfinals against Mississippi State, Texas A&M or Vanderbilt. The Vols are 4-0 against those teams this season.
Kentucky gets the number two seed over Tennessee because of a tiebreaker. The first tiebreaker is head-to-head record. The Vols and Cats split two games this season, so you have to move to the second tiebreaker which is record against the no. 1 seed and on down the standings as necessary until the tie is broken. In this case it goes down to no. 5 seed Auburn. Kentucky is 2-0 against them. The Vols are 0-1.
SEC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE (ALL TIMES EASTERN)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 13 FIRST ROUND
Georgia vs. Missouri, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
Vanderbilt vs. Texas A&M, 9 p.m. (SEC Network)
THURSDAY, MARCH 14 SECOND ROUND
Arkansas vs. Florida, 1 p.m. (SEC Network)
Georgia/Missouri winner vs. Auburn, 3 p.m. (SEC Network)
Alabama vs. Ole Miss, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
Vanderbilt/Texas A&M winner vs. Mississippi State, 9 p.m. (SEC Network)
FRIDAY, MARCH 15 QUARTERFINALS
Florida/Arkansas winner vs. LSU, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Auburn/Georgia/Missouri winner vs. South Carolina, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
Ole Miss/Alabama winner vs. Kentucky, 7 p.m. (SEC Network)
Mississippi State/Vanderbilt/Texas A&M winner vs. Tennessee, 9 p.m. (SECN)
SATURDAY, MARCH 16 SEMIFINALS
Florida/Arkansas/LSU winner vs. Auburn/Georgia/Missouri/South Carolina winner, 1 p.m. (ESPN)
Ole Miss/Alabama/Kentucky winner vs. Mississippi State/Vanderbilt/Texas A&M/Tennessee winner, 3 p.m. (ESPN)
SUNDAY, MARCH 17 CHAMPIONSHIP
SEC Tournament Championship Game, 1 p.m. (ESPN)