Georgia Basketball Will Face Auburn, Florida and South Carolina Every Season
Georgia basketball will play its three biggest conference rivals home and away every season. The SEC should demonstrate similar wisdom during football scheduling discussions.
The Southeastern Conference announced permanent basketball opponents for league teams this week during SEC meetings in Destin, FL.
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Georgia plays Auburn, Florida and South Carolina home and away beginning with the 2016 basketball season, each year giving the Dawgs two shots at their fiercest in conference Rivals. The new scheduling model also guarantees Dawg fans a shot at these arch-enemies every year in the friendly confines of the Stegeman Coliseum.
“I’m excited about each of our permanent SEC opponents,” head coach Mark Fox told Georgiadogs.com. “We are assured of having some of our traditional rivals come to Stegeman Coliseum every year. I think our fans will be excited about knowing that we’ll face those three teams in Athens each season.”
The Dawgs will also rotate home and away games each season with two other SEC teams. The SEC will announce other home and away 2016 match ups and the rest of the conference schedule later in the summer. The result will be an 18 game SEC schedule with five teams played both home and away.
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The Southeastern Conference’s foundation, like most conferences, is annual rivalry contests. With three permanent home and home opponents, the SEC takes advantage of each team’s biggest rivals. SEC Football schedulers might take note of the basketball scheduling model and recognize the power and appeal of games between arch-rivals. Make top priority rivalries such as Georgia vs. Auburn and Alabama vs. Tennessee instead of roaring headlong into a scheduling model that puts these rivalries at risk.
In SEC basketball, the scheduling big prize each year is avoiding a second game against the Kentucky Wildcats. Florida, Tennessee and Vanderbilt have Kentucky designated as a yearly home and away opponent. For the most part, it couldn’t happen to a more deserving bunch.
Ironically, a team that goes on the road to face Kentucky for a single match up avoids a likely home loss. Playing Kentucky on the road, while brutal, avoids a sure home loss and can be advantageous.
Despite playing and losing twice to Kentucky last year, the Dawgs snagged a four seed in the SEC Tournament with an 11-7 conference record. It is doubtful Georgia will face Big Blue home and away in consecutive years. Georgia finished 21-12 in 2015, advancing to the NCAA Tournament before falling to Michigan State. In 2013-14 the Dawgs finished 20-14, reaching the NIT second round.
Permanent SEC Basketball Opponents
Alabama – Auburn / Mississippi State / LSU
Arkansas – Missouri / Texas A&M / LSU
Auburn – Alabama / Ole Miss / Georgia
Florida – Kentucky / Georgia / Vanderbilt
Georgia – South Carolina / Florida / Auburn
Kentucky – Florida / Tennessee / Vanderbilt
LSU – Texas A&M / Alabama / Arkansas
Ole Miss – Mississippi State / Auburn / Missouri
Mississippi State – Ole Miss / Alabama / South Carolina
Missouri – Arkansas / Texas A&M / Ole Miss
South Carolina – Georgia / Tennessee / Mississippi State
Tennessee – Vanderbilt / Kentucky / South Carolina
Texas A&M – LSU / Arkansas / Missouri
Vanderbilt – Tennessee / Kentucky / Florida