The SEC set a new record for the 2024-25 season by sending 14 teams to the NCAA Basketball Tournament. With only LSU and South Carolina missing out on the Big Dance. This shattered the previous record of 11 teams, which was held by the Big East in 2011.
The SEC boasts several teams with legitimate championship aspirations. Alabama, led by a high-octane offense and a lockdown defense, enters as a No. 1 seed. Tennessee, with its suffocating defense, and Auburn, with its explosive scoring, are both poised for deep runs.
But what makes this story even more compelling is the underdog narrative. Teams like Georgia and Ole Miss, who battled fiercely to secure spots in the tournament, could play spoiler against higher seeds.
SEC First Round Matchups (All Times CST)
Wednesday March 19
8:35p.m. First Four: #11 Texas vs. #11 Xavier truTV Dayton, OH
Thursday March 20
12:50p.m. South: TBD vs. #1 Auburn CBS Lexington, KY
2:35p.m. Midwest: #9 Georgia vs. #8 Gonzaga TBS Wichita, KS
4:50p.m. Midwest: #15 Wofford vs. #2 Tennessee TNT Lexington, KY
5:10p.m. West: #10 Arkansas vs. #7 Kansas CBS Providence, RI
5:25p.m. South: #13 Yale vs. #4 Texas A&M TBS Denver, CO
5:35p.m. West: #11 Drake vs. #6 Missouri truTV Wichita, KS
Friday March 21
10:15a.m. East: #9 Baylor vs. #8 Mississippi State CBS Raleigh, NC
10:40a.m. East: #15 Robert Morris vs. #2 Alabama truTV Cleveland, OH
1:15p.m. East: #10 Vanderbilt vs. #7 Saint Mary’s truTV Cleveland, OH
2:05p.m. South: TBD vs. #6 Ole Miss TNT Milwaukee, WI
4:50p.m. West: #16 Norfolk State vs. #1 Florida TBS Raleigh, NC
5:10p.m. Midwest: #14 Troy vs. #3 Kentucky CBS Milwaukee, WI
7:25p.m. West: #9 Oklahoma vs. #8 Connecticut TBS Raleigh, NC
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