Big Saturday Of SEC Men’s Basketball

In the SEC, more than 60% of the men’s basketball teams are nationally ranked, making the conference one the most competitive in the NCAA. Of the 16 SEC teams competing this weekend, 10 are in the top-25.

Fans can tune in Saturday to eight highly anticipated matchups, including Florida’s rematch at Tennessee.

No. 5 Florida at No. 8 Tennessee

The Gators (18-2, 5-2 SEC), who are on a three-game win streak, are in Knoxville for a noon (ESPN) game Saturday against a Tennessee team they routed 73-43 on Jan. 7 in Gainesville. The Volunteers are sixth in the league after dropping consecutive games against Auburn and Kentucky. Florida is tied for third with Missouri and is coming off a 30-point win against Georgia last Saturday.

UNBEATEN NO MORE. pic.twitter.com/WjXrTc1ZDW

— Florida Gators Men’s Basketball (@GatorsMBK) January 8, 2025

No. 20 Missouri at No. 14 Mississippi State

No. 20 Missouri looks to grab a win on the road, while Mississippi State hunts for its first home win in two weeks in the 1 p.m. game (SEC Network). The Tigers bolster a 5-1 record after defeating LSU, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Florida and Ole Miss. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs are 2-4, struggling against conference rivals of late. They fell to Kentucky, Auburn, Tennessee and Alabama in January, while grabbing wins against Ole Miss and South Carolina.

No. 1 Auburn at No. 23 Ole Miss

Auburn is out to keep its No. 1 national ranking by breezing by Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss., at 2 p.m. (ESPN) Auburn is 12-0 since Dec. 4, a loss to Duke, is 19-1 on the season and 7-0 in the conference. After losing three of their last four, the Rebels (16-5, 5-3) grabbed a huge home win against Texas on Wednesday, 72-69.

1️⃣ pic.twitter.com/8lWDRkoLzb

— Auburn Basketball (@AuburnMBB) January 13, 2025

No. 24 Vanderbilt at Oklahoma

Oklahoma will look to stop its backslide as it attempts to halt battle-tested Vanderbilt at 3:30 p.m. (SECN) After going 12-1 to start the season, a slew of tough conference opponents have posed a challenge for the Commodores. Vanderbilt went 4-3 in its last seven games. However, the Commodores (16-4) grabbed big wins against LSU, South Carolina, Tennessee and Kentucky. Oklahoma struggled against good opponents in the last seven games, posting a 2-5 record. The Sooners (15-5 overall) fell to Alabama, Texas A&M twice, Georgia and Texas.

Georgia at No. 4 Alabama

Alabama looks to hold onto its No. 4 ranking Saturday when it attempts to fend off a hungry Georgia team at 4 p.m. (ESPN2). After victories against Kentucky, Oklahoma and South Carolina, Georgia struggled in January in ending with a 3-5 record in the league and 15-6 overall. The Bulldogs fell to Ole Miss, Tennessee, Auburn, Arkansas and Florida. Alabama (18-3, 7-1), on the other hand, lost once in January to Ole Miss 74-64.

This week in the polls. pic.twitter.com/aGB2jB1r2M

— Alabama Men’s Basketball (@AlabamaMBB) January 27, 2025

Texas at LSU

Texas travels to LSU for a 6 p.m. tip-off (SECN). With a 3-5 January, the Longhorns (14-7 overall) have struggled to win more than two consecutive games. After a big win against Missouri and a one-point victory against Texas A&M, Texas was unable to keep the momentum, falling to Ole Miss on Wednesday. LSU struggled in January with a 1-6 mark. Aside from a four-point victory at home against Arkansas, LSU lost the three previous and three ensuing games to fall to 12-8 on the season.

No. 13 Texas A&M at South Carolina

The Aggies look to build on Tuesday’s win against Oklahoma, while South Carolina looks to grab its first win of 2025 at 8:30 p.m. (SECN). Texas A&M (16-5 overall) presented a respectable 5-3 record in January when it climbed to a fourth-place tie in the conference. South Carolina had a rough showing in the first month, going winless through eight games. The Gamecocks now sit in last in the SEC and are 10-11 overall.

See y’all Saturday night at Colonial Life Arena.

️ » https://t.co/lgfopbLTxG#Gamecocks // #ForeverToThee https://t.co/qey2ZjcG1W

— Gamecock Men’s Basketball (@GamecockMBB) January 31, 2025

Arkansas at No. 12 Kentucky

Arkansas (12-8 overall) goes after a big win on the road, while the Wildcats look to win in front of the home crowd and preserve their No. 12 ranking at 9 p.m. (ESPN). The Razorbacks have fallen to second-to-last in the SEC due to a 1-6 month of January. After a strong 11-2 start, they fell to six conference opponents in January, but snagged a much-needed win against Georgia 0n Jan. 22.

The Wildcats took care of business in big games against ranked opponents. Though they were victorious against Florida, Mississippi State, Texas A&M and Tennessee, Kentucky struggled in losses against  Georgia, Alabama and Vanderbilt to fall to 4-3 and 15-5 overall.