The Kentucky Wildcats open the 2017 SEC Tournament against the Georgia Bulldogs on Tuesday afternoon.
TV schedule: Thursday, March 9, 1 p.m. ET, SEC Network
The Georgia Bulldogs kept their 2017 NCAA Tournament hopes alive with a win over the Tennessee Volunteers in their opening game of the 2017 SEC Tournament. Georgia, who maintained a respectable RPI for most of the season, will have to at least make the SEC Tournament final to even stand a chance at going to the Big Dance.
Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, their last shot at joining March Madness goes through the Kentucky Wildcats.
Kentucky head into their first game of the 2017 SEC Tournament off of an impressive eight-game winning streak that saw them take the SEC regular season title from the Florida Gators. The Wildcats seem to be getting hot at the right time, and, if they run the table in the SEC Tournament, they might be a lock for the Final Four.
Now, do not be surprised if Georgia gets this win. Beating a team three times in one season is one of the hardest things to do in college basketball, and the Bulldogs played the Wildcats close both times in their previous match-ups.
However, what I expect to happen is that Georgia comes out strong, leads Kentucky heading into halftime, and then gets blown out in the second half. Emotion can only carry a team so far, and, eventually, the more talented team is going to come out on top.
Prediction: Kentucky 74, Georgia 62
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The Bulldogs’ close win against the Volunteers will have shaken the rust off, and the desire to potentially go to the Big Dance will push this team. However, Kentucky has underperformed all season, and I expect Coach Cal and Co. to put it all together to make a deep run in both the SEC Tournament and NCAA Tournament. Kentucky is just getting started – the rest of college basketball should be wary.