With Signing Day behind us, it’s time for college basketball to really take over the spotlight.

The bubble. Bracketology. KenPom. BracketMatrix. RPI. Last Four In. Last Four Out. March Madness. Enjoy every reference to these wonderful words and phrases, because in 6 short weeks, they’ll be gone again.

We’ll start with a quick look at the conference standings to see what has happened since the last time we talked, and then dig into each team individually.

You ready for 2,000 more words about a mediocre conference’s basketball?

YOU STILL GOT IT!

Current Situation

Hooooo boy, there’s been lots going on in the last few weeks. Teams trying really hard to play their way into tournament conversation, teams trying really hard to play their way out of tournament conversation, teams trying really hard to get their coach fired. You name it, it’s there.

So let’s break it down in a bit more detail and see how errybody doin’.

Florida Gators

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 14
• KenPom on 2/13: 6
• Bracket Matrix: 3 seed
• Trend: Up

Back in December, I said, “As long as Michael White is at Florida (and the Vols continue to struggle), Tennessee fans may look longingly at the Gators. And right now, there appears to be something to envy in Gainesville.”

It hurts to be right so much sometimes.

Since a totally random loss to Vanderbilt at home on January 21st, the Gators have won 6 straight by the following margins: 35, 32, 39, 22, 12, and 9. Now, those first 3 were LSU, Oklahoma, and Missouri, but the 4th one was Kentucky, the Gators’ largest win ever over the Wildcats.

The Gators are getting it done on both ends as they’ve risen to the top 25 in both offense and defense on KenPom, and 6th overall. It’s a tough finish (4 of 6 on the road, games against the other co-leaders), but the Gators are hot right now. They may end up as the SEC regular season champ.

Kentucky Wildcats

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 4
• KenPom on 2/13: 8
• Bracket Matrix: 3 seed
• Trend: Down

The Wildcats stumbled to the finish in the 2013-14 season, losing 4 of their last 7 to end up with an 8 seed. Calipari invoked a much discussed “tweak” (which it turns out was simplifying the reads for my coworker, Andrew Harrison) as the Cats found their way to the national title game before losing to Shabazz Napier.

May it be time for another tweak? The loss to Tennessee immediately before my last post set off a string of losing 3 of 4 (with only Malik Monk’s shot to force OT against UGA saving them from going 0-4) culminating by getting blasted in Gainesville.

There’s still plenty of upside here as the Cats have the most talented roster in the league, but 1 title in 7 years, plus the chance they might not win the league, may have the natives getting a bit restless re: the one and done model.

They’ll be favored in each of their remaining 6 games (UT, @UGA, @Mizzou, UF, Vandy, @TAMU). The rematch with Florida may decide the SEC.

South Carolina Gamecocks

Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 32
• KenPom on 2/13: 27
• Bracket Matrix: 6 seed
• Trend: Up

I wasn’t super enthused by the Gamecocks in December, but I’ll give credit where it’s due. Frank Martin has perfected the Rock Fight (TM), and South Carolina just bludgeons people with the top ranked defense in the country, per KenPom.

The offense isn’t great and they play at a middling tempo, so the ultimate upside for the Gamecocks is probably limited. That said, they’ve put themselves squarely into the tournament (which ESPN tells me hasn’t happened since 2004), so have a pat on the back.

And after damning them with that faint praise, I probably should mention they’d be the SEC leader if not for a 4OT loss to Bama last week, and they could still win the league. They’ll also be favored in 5 of the last 6 and get a shot at Florida (where a win would give them a 2-0 sweep), but I’m the least sanguine about them winning the league among the 3 teams tied at 10-2.

Arkansas Razorbacks

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 43
• KenPom on 2/13: 57
• Bracket Matrix: 11 seed (last team in)
• Trend: Down

When I asked in December, “What do you suppose the patience level is for Mike Anderson at Arkansas,” I didn’t know he was going to try so hard to put that to the test immediately.

The last 5 games have not been Arkansas’ finest, hence why they’ve played themselves into “up to the whims of the committee” territory. Blasted by Oklahoma State. A bounce back against Alabama, then giving Mizzou their first SEC win. And then getting smoked at home by Vanderbilt. And then toying with the idea of losing at LSU.

There’s probably not a conclusion to this season that leaves Pig Sooie fans feeling comfortable with what they’ve got. Their inability to lock down the league’s 4th bid by playing uninspired basketball isn’t doing much for the SEC’s outside perception.

Alabama Crimson Tide

Marvin Gentry-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 83
• KenPom on 2/13: 62
• Bracket Matrix: N/A
• Trend: Up

ALABAMA AIN’T PLAYED NOBODY, PAAAAAAAAWL!

But, no, really, their SEC schedule is super light and they’ve taken advantage. They’ve played their one game against Florida (L), South Carolina (W in not 1, not 2, not 3, but 4 OTs), and Kentucky (L). If you go to the next tier...well, they only get Arkansas once (which they also lost), UT once (last game of the year), and Ole Miss once (the penultimate game of the season).

They have zero games remaining against teams with winning SEC records. They might end up with a double bye in the SEC tournament without having played anybody in the top half of the league twice.

That fact plus a crappy non-conference will probably relegate them to the NIT...but never say never if they finish strong?

Tennessee Volunteers

Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 81
• KenPom on 2/13: 41
• Bracket Matrix: 2nd Team Out
• Trend: Up

In a vacuum, the Vols’ season has been a pleasant surprise. I think we all would’ve taken 9-9 in the SEC and the 7 or 8 seed in Nashville.

And yet...the last two Saturdays have been absolutely BRUTAL for a team with legitimate tournament aspirations. I mentioned in the comments following Saturday’s game how close this team has been to something special only to crush our hopes with demoralizing losses.

In league play, there have been double-digit leads in the second half of games against Ole Miss, Mississippi State, and Georgia. If the Vols close out all 3, they’re at 9-3, in 4th, and with games left against South Carolina and Kentucky to maybe move higher. And that doesn’t even consider the double-digit leads lost to Arkansas and North Carolina.

The Vols seem destined to flirt with the bubble all the way until Selection Sunday with 2 they should win (Mizzou, @LSU), 2 toss ups (Vandy, Bama), and 2 they’ll probably lose (@UK, @USCe).

Buckle up.

Ole Miss Rebels

Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 95
• KenPom on 2/13: 69
• Bracket Matrix: N/A
• Trend: Up

Ole Miss’ numbers don’t jump off the page. They’ve got the 72nd ranked offense and the 92nd ranked defense. Meh.

But these dudes can absolutely fly around on offense and are kind of terrifying. They had Baylor on the ropes before letting them wiggle out of it, and they led most of the game in Knoxville last week before the Vols surged at the end. Outside of that, they beat Mississippi State by 27, waxed Vanderbilt in the 2nd half, and overcame a 23-point 2nd half deficit to beat Auburn.

They’re kind of like Alabama in that I guess they could theoretically still play their way in...they’ve got a fringe RPI and some winnable games left. They’d probably need to get Arkansas in Fayetteville and South Carolina to close the year. But maybe?

Georgia Bulldogs

Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 62
• KenPom on 2/13: 50
• Bracket Matrix: Others
• Trend: Steady

As Will noted, Georgia has had a bit of bad luck. ¹⁄₃ of the way through the SEC slate, they were 4-2 and feelin’ fine. Then they lost 5 straight conference games before they found their way off the mat on Saturday in TBA.

Again, could they make a run? They get Kentucky at home (after almost clipping them in Lexington), and then have a bunch of games against the middling tier (Mississippi State, Alabama, Auburn, Arkansas). So, it’s theoretically possible, but the SEC’s problem seems to be that all the mediocre teams are cannbializing each other instead of anybody rising up.

So...maybe not.

Vanderbilt Commodores

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 80
• KenPom on 2/13: 59
• Bracket Matrix: Others
• Trend: Down

I feel like I can safely skip the “do they have a chance?” line of questioning here. Yes, their RPI is still in range and KenPom doesn’t hate them, but they’re 12-13 and just lost by 20 to Missouri. Yeesh.

It’s unclear whether Saturday was just a bad day at the office or if the cumulative effects of only playing 9 guys (and only 7 appreciable amounts of time), not having a PG, and possessing a roster ill-suited to the current coaching staff is catching up to them.

They’ve got games left against the top 3 plus a trip to Knoxville. They feel like the squad in the 5-7 camp most likely to stumble to the line and end up in 12th.

Mississippi State Bulldogs

Justin Ford-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 137
• KenPom on 2/13: 97
• Bracket Matrix: N/A
• Trend: Up

The Bulldogs started 4-3 in league play, but are 1-4 since then with the only win being NO I DON’T WANT TO TALK ABOUT IT.

Their RPI is atrocious, so no matter how hot they finish, no matter if they beat Florida and South Carolina, ain’t nothing happening here except maybe an NIT appearance. That said, this season feels like a nice foundation for a young team to build on as they look toward 2017-18.

Auburn Tigers

Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 99
• KenPom on 2/13: 75
• Bracket Matrix: Others
• Trend: Steady

Back in December, I said about these guys, “Could they sneak out 20 wins? Maybe. Would it have them in serious NCAA consideration? Probably not.”

That guess was good. They still might do that with 5 of their last 6 against A&M, LSU, Arkansas, UGA, and Mizzou (the 6th is against UF, which, probs not). Auburn should be 4-1 in their last 5. They picked up a nice win at TCU, they took down Alabama and Mississippi State, and they had a 23-point second half lead against Ole Miss before...well...whoops.

Picking Auburn to make the tournament in spite of my earlier prediction...that was less good. That said, Bruce seems to have them pointed in the right direction. He may yet make good things happen on The Plains.

Texas A&M Aggies

Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 35
• KenPom on 2/13: 64
• Bracket Matrix: N/A
• Trend: Down

The Aggies started off the SEC slate 1-5, so a 4-2 stretch represents a nice response. Heck, they could wind up going 5-1 in the last third (probably not gonna get UK in the finale).

But that 1-5 start was beyond puzzling, and it really prevented them from getting on any kind of run and maintaining any sort of excitement. We probably should’ve expected a step back after all of the senior talent lost from last year’s team.

Missouri Tigers

Jay Biggerstaff-USA TODAY Sports

• KenPom on 12/18: 168
• KenPom on 2/13: 165
• Bracket Matrix: N/A
• Trend: Steady

Missouri was on a 13-game losing streak and had just lost by 39 in Gainesville. And then they bounced back and beat NCAA-hopeful Arkansas. And then they were in a 2-point game with 4 minutes left against A&M before falling. And then they housed Vandy by 20.

This is what it looks like when your team doesn’t totally go in the tank. Good on ya, Other Other Tigers.

LSU Tigers

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

Conversely, this is what it looks like when your team is totally in the tank. WHY IS JOHNNY JONES STILL EMPLOYED?!?!?!