Each Monday we'll post the results for the weekly SEC Hoops Power Poll, compiled from a network of blogs covering SEC basketball. Votes are submitted each Sunday evening after each weekend's conference games have wrapped up. This week we had 7 blogs participate in the voting. Read below the jump to see where Bama was ranked.
#1...(14-3, 2-1 SEC)...projected NCAA #2 seed
Last week: Playing Auburn and LSU in Rupp just wasn't fair.Two ugly blowouts.
This week: Road games at Alabama and at South Carolina will test them.
Outlook: The 'Cats are for real once again, but the SEC title is far from a guarantee until they prove they can win consistently on the road.
#2...(13-3, 2-1 SEC)...projected NCAA bubble team
Last week: Played Vandy to the wire in Memorial Fortress, then smoked Ole Miss in Oxford.
This week: Home games against Tennessee and MSU give them a chance to prove they belong here.
Outlook: The 'Dawgs have emerged as a force in the East with a home win over Kentucky and a big road win already under their belts. A solid non-conference resume to boot gives them a great shot to return to the Big Dance in only Mark Fox's second year.
#3...(13-4, 2-1 SEC)...projected NCAA #5 seed
Last week: Overtime win in Knoxville was big, but followed up with home loss to South Carolina.
This week: A pair of winnable games against West foes: at Auburn then home to Arkansas.
Outlook: The Gators have a great resume and a solid team; they should be Dancing in March. The question is will they be consistent enough to win the SEC and position themselves with a high seed in the Tourney?
#4...(11-5, 2-1 SEC)
Last week: Winning one of two on the road wasn't surprising, but winning at Florida after losing at Bama?
This week: Home games against Arkansas and Kentucky will tell us a lot more about this young team.
Outlook: The 'Cocks have already proven they won't be a push-over in the East by beating two of the top teams, Vandy and Florida. The Dance is still a long shot for them, but if they can win those two games, who knows how many games the team picked to finish 6th in the East could win.
#5...(12-4, 1-2 SEC)...projected NCAA #6 seed
Last week: Barely knocked off Georgia in Memorial Fortress then let a lead slip away in Knoxville.
This week: Home games against Ole Miss and a very, very good St. Mary's team give them a chance to pad their resume.
Outlook: The 'Dores are in fine shape for the postseason as evidenced by their computer rankings and tournament projection. Still, they have to find ways to finish teams off away from home when they have a big lead.
#6...(11-6, 1-2 SEC)...projected NCAA #10 seed
Last week: Two nail-biters at home: lost to Florida in overtime but came back late to beat Vandy.
This week: Road games at Georgia and UConn are enough to scare any team.
Outlook: The Vols, playing without coach Bruce Pearl, are one of the nation's biggest mysteries. Talented enough to knock off Villanova and Pitt on the road but inconsistent enough to lose to Charlotte and College of Charleston. Who knows where this team goes next.
#7...(12-4, 2-1 SEC)
Last week: Disappointing loss at LSU, but rallied for late comeback to knock off Bama at home.
This week: Road games at South Carolina and Florida will make for a tough week.
Outlook: The Hogs don't have any bad losses (although at LSU is borderline), but they don't really have an impressive win either. The Bama win keeps them alive in the West, and at this point they have as good a chance as anyone to finish atop the division, but they'll have to step it up in a big way if they want to sniff the Dance. At this point they're the West's only hope of an at-large bid.
#8...(10-7, 2-1 SEC)
Last week: Solid home win over South Carolina but let one slip away at Arkansas.
This week: Home game against Kentucky and road game at Auburn make this a crucial week for the program.
Outlook: The Tide blew their chance at an NCAA berth back in November and December, but right now they're playing as well as anyone in the West. If they keep playing like they have they should be in the thick of the West race.
#9...(9-7, 2-1 SEC)
Last week: An emotional win at Ole Miss and an easy home win over Auburn were exactly what they needed.
This week: A pair of games against foes from the East will test this team: at Georgia, then home to Vandy.
Outlook: The 'Dawgs looked like a program adrift after getting smoked at home by Bama in the conference opener, but this week they've looked like the team that was picked to win the West. It's too late for an NCAA berth, but like Bama, they can and will compete for the West if they keep improving like this.
Tie--#10...(12-6, 0-3 SEC)
Last week: Lost two home games, first to rivals MSU, then in lopsided fashion to Georgia.
This week: A tough trip to Memorial Fortress looms first, but a more winnable road trip to LSU follows.
Outlook: The 'Rebs played as well as any team in the West in non-conference play (not saying much), but an understandable loss at Florida was followed up by two gutting losses this week. There's no reason they can't compete in the West but they couldn't have had a worse start to SEC play.
Tie--#10...(10-8, 2-1 SEC)
Last week: Notched a surprising home win over Arkansas but then were violated by Kentucky at Rupp.
This week: Home to Ole Miss and then at Tennessee.
Outlook: The Tigers were downright bad in non-conference play, but a win at Auburn essentially assured they'd avoid being #12 for the time being. A home win at Arkansas gave them further hope that they will be able to win a handful of games against the weaker West division, especially at home.
#12...(7-10, 0-3 SEC)
Last week: Were manhandled at Rupp and then manhandled almost as badly at MSU.
This week: Home games against Florida and Bama.
Outlook: The Tigers are in danger of finishing as the worst team from a power conference in the history of college basketball. To their credit, though, they do play hard, so odds are they will be able to catch a team or two from the West at home on a bad day and avoid being the first 0-16 SEC team ever, but that's about the best they can hope for this year.
* * *
For the record, my votes in the poll:
1) Kentucky
2) Florida
3) Georgia
4) Vanderbilt
5) Tennessee
6) South Carolina (don't see putting them ahead of Vandy, but obviously I was out-voted)
7) Arkansas (had to give them the edge, though I'd like us if we played today on a neutral court)
8) Bama
9) MSU
10) Ole Miss
11) LSU
12) Auburn
So my votes were virtually identical to the results, with the exception of SC being two spots higher and Florida and Georgia being reversed.