SEC Conference Overview

The deep south was a little bit later in coming around to integration than the rest of the country and many Universities from this conference would not allow their teams to play in games that allowed blacks to play.  Programs from Mississippi State, Auburn and Alabama all have passed up opportunities to play in the Big Dance and Rupp and company was more than willing to take their place even if they had no black athletes on their roster either.  Don’t get me wrong Kentucky has more than earned their fair share of appearances in the national tournament and when they get there they have done extremely well.  Kentucky is the only SEC program to not only have won in the Big Dance but the only one to make a final four as well.  But this, contrary to popular belief, is not a league of Kentucky and everyone else.  Sure, they are prohibitive favorites and ranked # 1 in the preseason polls but these other programs want the attention they deserve.  And like Stuart Smalley says ‘they are good enough’ plus they have a little extra chip on their shoulder after all of the years they have had to acquiesce their chance at glory. 

Adolph Rupp is a legend in Kentucky on the same level as Daniel Boone, Muhammed Ali and Colonel Sanders.  Like Bear Bryant down in Alabama, he is the creator and figurehead of one of the most dominant programs in the country.  What Rupp has built is the template for college basketball but he wants to keep this train going.  He has the horses to do this once again this year led by a group of seniors that have already won more games and glory then most people could ever dream of.  The duo of Alex Groza and Ralph Beard alone have won more titles and awards then any pair in the country going into this year including Lew and the Big Redhead out west.  And Rupp has made it a point to let the world know that he is confident that his boys are better than the crew from Westwood and has even gone so far to schedule UCLA in the tip-off tournament this upcoming season.  That game will be played in Indianapolis which is also not coincidentally the home of the final four this year.  The in-state hated rivals of Louisville and former John Wooden assistant Denny Crum set this up wanting a shot at Rupp and his team but the only way the Baron would play is if he got a shot at UCLA first.  That means Louisville will have to wait to see the results of the most anticipated game of the year before he gets his wish and he has to play the home state Hoosiers first.  Yes, that’s right Kentucky, UCLA, Indiana and Louisville with legendary coached Rupp, Wooden Bobby Knight and Crum will be leading their programs in this spectacular kick-off to the season.  But back to the team.  Beard is the captain and runs the show from the point at a level of consistency and headiness not seen before on the basketball court.  Groza joins fellow big men Bill Spivey and Dan Issel to rotate at the post.  No team, not even the mighty Bruins. Have three elite post players the likes of these three who complement each other so well with Groza’s great low post game, Spivey’s size and defense and Issel (the Horse) incredible ability to run opponents into the ground with his constant motion.  It doesn’t stop there as Rupp will have at least five other seniors rotating in for minutes including Cliff Hagan and Frank Ramsey (who might actually come off the bench again) who are good as they come but get overshadowed by the other studs on this team.  And, yes, the Wildcats have broken into the modern game as Assistant Joe B. Hall (the already named replacement for Rupp once he decides to step down) has recruited some non-pasty players (finally). Though they might not play much this year, they will be the next generation of great Kentucky players.  Unless something goofy happens in their crazy schedule Kentucky will win the SEC once again.  But not without a cat fight. 

The team with the most talent, at least on paper, is the squad from Louisiana State University.  Coach Dale Brown has a pair of senior studs who are legends in Baton Rouge but the rest of the country is only starting to hear about due to this program’s lack of national visibility.  And these Cats can play with anybody.  Seniors Bob Petit and ‘Pistol’ Pete Maravich might be the finest offensive front court/back court combo in the country let alone the SEC.   Petit is a true four who has played too much five but has one of the best inside/outside games you will see.  He can post up but is better moving and boy can he hit that corner shot.  He is also a beast on the boards with springs for legs and though he is not known for his defense can guard other big men.  The Pistol is quite frankly the best scorer in the country as he proved last year by averaging over 30 points a game.  He has every shot and is a magician handling the ball.  Brown wants him to become a bit more of a team player but how can you argue with his success except of course for the team’s wins and losses!  Two sophomores will likely start at two of the other positions as Chris Jackson and Rudy Macklin fit well with the big two.  Jackson can handle and shoot and can guard other team’s quicker guards which is a need with Maravich around. Though the Pistol handles the ball often on offense he cannot guard waterbugs at all.  Brown has supposedly recruited a couple of studs to support his big two and if they are good as they are hyped they might propel this team to a post season berth.  Or further.  With everyone wanting a piece of Maravich the Tigers will play an incredible schedule which could help or hinder depending on how this team with so many diverse personalities (and guys who want the ball) will come together?  Many believe this is the team that could challenge Kentucky and knock the King’s off their throne. 

The newbies from Arkansas and their brazen Coach Nolan Richardson beg to differ.  Richardson’s 40 minutes of hell style will unnerve most opponents but it is to be seen if this group of players can hang with the elite (and much bigger) athletes of the SEC.  Richardson might shuttle in even more players than Rupp but that is more due to the style which has his team pressing from tipoff to the end and running the court at any chance they get.  The Razorbacks do go at least two (and sometimes three) deep at every position except power forward where Richardson needs to find someone who can match up with some of the bests in the SEC (Barkley, Issel, Howell) but he will compensate if need be with four smaller guys and one of his big centers to guard the rim and board.  Will this work?  It will most nights but like we said we shall see when they face the big boys which they will early and often and not just in the SEC.  The quintessential Razorback player may be junior Sidney Moncrief who is a super wing who prefers playing defense over offense but is gifted at both ends and does not need to have huge stats to affect games.  He won’t get huge stats as will anyone else on this roster as Richardson will play ten or eleven and there are about three more who are Moncrief clones in this pressing defense.  This team is full of wings with senior John Adams being the trendsetter as he was the first star here but has superseded to some younger, more athletic players.  Richarson still needs big man George Kok.  The 6’11 thin as a rail big man has been a stud here but now they need his height and ability to guard the rim more than anything.  Moncrief is part of trio of wings dubbed the Tiplets who have brought the attitude to Fayetteville.  Marvin Delph and Ronnie Brewer are both 6’4 like Moncrief but bring different strengths to their role.  Delph is a gifted defender who can finish and Brewer is Mr. Offense for Arkansas.  Richardson’s team could surprise if they can get a couple more physical big men.  The two teams from Tennessee are both in the hunt for upper division status and quite possibly invites to the BD. 

The Volunteers have accumulated a group of offensive players that match up with just about anyone as far as positions two through four.  The Bernie and Ernie show has become a must watch in Knoxville as junior forwards Bernard King and Ernie Grunfield are as tough and competitive as they come.  King from the streets of New York is one of the best post up forwards in the country with every move they have made and some he invented.  The problem is he has to guard the other team’s four and he is not that guy.  Grunfield usually plays the three but is more physical then King but though he performs well is nowhere near the talent of his buddy.  Sophomore Dale Ellis, a pure shooter who could be the best three point shooter in the SEC without a gun nickname, gives this team a real outside presence.  The problem here is the other two positions are not up to SEC standards though big man Tom Boerwinkle does enough of the little things’ rebounding, passing, screening, to make himself viable but if you have no point guard you are in trouble and unless the Vols have somebody step up here this talented team can only go so far. 

The Commodores (no Lionel Richie here) do have the requisite size to match up in the SEC and have some nifty shooters as well.  Senior Clyde Lee is a horse in the box and can score and board and sophomore Will Perdue is just plain big but neither is going to get confused for Groza or Petit with their foot work.  Where the Nashville boys are lacking is in the back court and athleticism and coach Roy Skinner knows if they do not get better here than the lights will go down early in the country music Capitol.  The two schools from Alabama are not lacking in athleticism and both could move up the ranks fairly rapidly this season. 

The Crimson Tide might have the deepest roster in the league and that is saying something but what they do not have is experience both in years and playing in big games.  Plaid wearing Coach Wimp Sanderson is collecting athletes sort of like the Bear does in football but now he has to be able to get them to play together.  He has exactly one senior coming back who is expecting to get serious minutes in undersized post Jerry Harper but the base of this team will be juniors Reggie King and Leon Douglas also up front.  Sanderson has a stellar sophomore class coming back and some say the freshmen coming might even be better.  Now if he can get them to gel and find some shooters the boys from Tuscaloosa might get out from under that imposing shadow of their gridiron brethren.  Of course that will never happen in Bama but you can dream! 

The Auburn Tigers live under the same kind of shadow, just not as imposing.  The new coach for the Tigers Sonny Smith does have a pair of sophomores that could be as good as anyone in this league.  The talkative one Sir Charles Barkley is an undersized monster who should be a four but might have to play some center as this team is weak there.  Barkley can flat ball as he is an incredible board guy with a super inside game who seems to have a non-stop motor running at all times and we are not just talking about his mouth.  Wing Chuck Person might not get the hype of the round mound but he might be more important as the Rifleman (great nicknames here) can nail jump shots from just about anywhere.  He is so accurate from deep range he would make Quigley go back under.  This duo is dynamic but they are not all Auburn has but if they are going to move on up they will need to get more support for these two studs especially inside. 

The Mississippi schools have a much harder row to hoe.  Both of these schools were last in line to integrate and missed many opportunities to play in post season due to dumbheadedness.  The times have changed and these programs will now get the chance to play schools from across the Mason-Dixie Line whether they want to or not!  As a matter of fact the Bulldogs start the season with a trip to Chicago to play Loyola of Illinois in a historic game if the Governor does not block them at the border.  A home game with HBCU power Alcorn State follows as Coach Babe McCarthy has made it clear he is not afraid of moving this program forward from the dark ages and welcomes change.  McCarthy also has one of the most talented forwards in the country on his roster in senior Bailey Howell who has not received the recognition he deserves due to the lack of national games.  Speaking of attention Ole Miss has what they are claiming is the next coming of Pistol Pete in junior Johnny Nuemann.  There are similarities for sure in the two big guards who can flat sling it from the perimeter but Nuemann is nowhere near the all-around talent Maravich is but it should lead to two fun matchups in the western bracket of this league.  Like their brethren these Rebels (change that name please) do not have near enough overall talent to compete for the league title but could surprise and win enough for some kind of post season berth. 

The Georgia Bulldogs like many other teams in this league have one superstar player and a bunch of others who are not quite up to the elite level of this league.  Sophomore Dominique Wilkins is the real deal though right now he is more a supreme athlete than basketball player.  This highlight reel waiting to happen with the next spectacular dunk came to Georgia from North Carolina and has made a name (and a bunch of nicknames) for himself with his spectacular play.  It seems Coach Hugh Durham has scheduled every other phenomenal athlete in the country for the Bulldogs to get Wilkins and his team some recognition including the first two games in NC against Mr’s Thompson and Jordan.  This will be an exciting year in Athens but we don’t Wilkins has enough support to get this team over the hump to the post season with that crazy tough schedule though fellow sophomore point guard Vern Fleming might be the most underrated player in the SEC. 

The Florida Gators have been in basketball purgatory for quite some time but have hired a new, young coach who will emphasize the three and supposedly is a super recruiter.  Billy Donovan, a star once up at Providence not too long ago, will bring a new approach that will not just rely on the team getting the ball into center Neil Walk and playing defense.  It is rebuilding time for sure in Gainesville but the Gators have a fairly easy schedule and a few pieces of the puzzle already in place next to Walk including a terrific shooter/slasher in sophomore Vernon ‘Mac Max’ Maxwell who can play with anyone if he can stay on the court and he fits Donovan’s style of play to an M.  Nobody is expecting this team to win the SEC but 500 does not seem completely out of reach if these recruits Donovan has brought in are as good as they say they are! 

The other program joining the SEC this year is not quite the level of Arkansas but South Carolina has compete in big leagues before and could again this year.  Legendary coach Frank McGuire left North Carolina years back to protégé Dean Smith to take over here and has continued to funnel players from his old stomping grounds of NYC.  Conflict with the ACC over respect has this team leaving to the yonder lands of Indy basketball and then the Metro before the SEC put them back on the national map.  McGuire has a veteran nucleus who can play with size, athleticism and shooting including one of the best junior classes in the country.  The Toms, Owens and Riker, are almost seven footers who handle the post and guards Kevin Joyce, Brian Winters and John Roche are games who all can hit the long range jumper especially the latter two.  But the best junior of the bunch might be wing Alex English.  McGuire has kept him under check so far as he played behind senior Grady Wallace (the first African-American in the ACC) but his scoring off the bench (he was second on the team last season) has elevated him to a starting role and to be honest the only guy that can keep this smooth shooting and driving stud under 20 a game is McGuire.  Will the Gamecocks compete for the title?  Probably not but they most assuredly will be in the hunt for a post season berth. 

The SEC per usual comes down to who will finish second but with some new teams joining up this conference will not be the cakewalk for the Wildcats it has in the past.  Coach Rupp’s boys will almost assuredly win the league but there are at least six other teams battling for the second spot and a few more who have designs of post season play this season.