Pope Update

Wild night in the SEC last night.  The Cats were down 40-22 in Baton Rouge early in the second half, and then roared back to win 75-74 on a buzzer beater by Malachi Moreno.  The Cats are now 2-2 in the SEC, 11-6 overall, and 27 on Ken Pom.  They finally got some luck, so they're up to 295 in that category.  Meanwhile, LSU falls to 0-4 in the SEC, which means that coach Matt McMahon, who took Murray State to the NCAA Tournament in 2018, 2019, and 2022, is at risk of missing the NCAA's in all four of his seasons at LSU.

Meanwhile, Vandy got crushed down at Texas, 80 to 64.  The previously undefeated Commodores were overwhelmed by the more physical Longhorns.  Vandy's record falls to 3-1 in the SEC, 16-1 overall, and 11 on Ken Pom.  They are 68 in luck.

The cream of the SEC appears to be Florida, who have won three games in a row by impressive margins:  92-77 at home against Georgia, 91-67 at home against Tennessee, and 96-79 at Oklahoma.  The Gators are now 3-1 in the SEC, 12-5 overall, and 10 on Ken Pom.  Each of their five losses is by six points are less, which is why they rank 357 in luck.  Interestingly, Florida will be coming to Vandy on Saturday, so that should be fun.

Here are the classic SEC standings:

10.  Florida:  12-5

11.  Vanderbilt:  16-1

16.  Alabama:  12-5

19.  Tennessee:  12-5

27.  Kentucky:  11-6

32.  Georgia:  14-3

34.  Auburn:  10-7

45.  Louisiana St:  12-5

59.  Mississippi:  10-7

78.  Mississippi St:  10-7