Georgia basketball lost ugly to Arkansas on Saturday. The Bulldogs are now 1-8 against the RPI Top 50, but are still right on the cusp of making the NCAA Tournament.
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Going 1-8 against the RPI Top 50 is normally enough to eliminate any team from NCAA Tournament contention well before the regular season ends.
But five of the eight losses Georgia basketball suffered were against the no, 2 (Kansas), no. 3 (Kentucky twice) and no. 8 (Florida twice) teams in the RPI. And each of those games were close ball.
Georgia also had a pair of close losses against South Carolina. The blowout to Arkansas is the only bad loss against an RPI team this season. And Georgia’s only bad loss, it’s really all that bad.
For that, the Bulldogs NCAA Tournament chances aren’t yet shattered. Which is why it’s not such a bad thing for Georgia to be a no. 8 seed in the SEC Tournament.
We’re going to look at the SEC Tournament bracket, who the Bulldogs will play and who they are likely to play in later rounds. And then ask if a win in this round can be enough for Georgia to sneak into the NCAA field of 68 teams.
Thursday vs. Tennessee
Georgia basketball avoids playing on Wednesday, but they do not get the luxury of playing a team who played on Wednesday. Instead the Bulldogs play Tennessee again. Georgia won the last meeting 76-75 in Knoxville.
Tennessee did give Kentucky their worst loss of the season back in January. But after beating Kansas State and Auburn in their following games, the Volunteers fell apart. They ended the season 3-6 in their final nine games and are now 16-15 overall and 8-10 in SEC play.
It’s going to take more than a win over Tennessee for the Bulldogs to impress the selection committee.
Friday vs. Kentucky
Georgia gets one more shot against the Kentucky Wildcats if they defeat Tennessee. Georgia lost the first meeting in overtime after Malik Monk tied the game with just seconds remaining. Then Yante Maten got injured moments into their second meeting, but the Bulldogs still kept the game close.
So even though the game will put the no. 1 seed versus the no. 8 seed, Georgia has plenty of reasons to be optimistic.
Georgia should also be optimistic about their NCAA Tournament hopes if they win the game. The fact that after 13 losses that they’re still just barely on the outside looking in means Georgia can very easily salvage the season without winning the SEC Tournament.
However, it’s likely going to take more than just beating Kentucky on the third day of the SEC Tournament.
Saturday vs. South Carolina
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For the sake of this topic, we’re going to assume Georgia will play South Carolina if they beat Kentucky because Georgia will need to beat a higher seed team in order to impress the selection committee.
South Carolina aren’t ranked as high in the RPI as Kentucky or Florida, but they still are the no. 3 seed in the SEC Tournament. The Gamecocks defeated Georgia in both regular season games but they were both close until the very end.
It’s going to be a long shot, but a win over South Carolina might be the win Georgia needs to break into the NCAA Tournament.
Of course, if Georgia wins that game and then goes on to win the SEC Championship Game then Georgia will automatically be in the NCAA Tournament. But the Bulldogs might need less than that to sneak into the field of 68 teams.
We will certainly see this weekend in the 2017 SEC Tournament