March Madness: Top takeaways from 2019 NCAA Tournament

By Brian Rauf | Apr 9, 2019

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - APRIL 08: De'Andre Hunter #12 of the Virginia Cavaliers celebrates his three point basket basket late in the second half against the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the 2019 NCAA men's Final Four National Championship game at U.S. Bank Stadium on April 08, 2019 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /

7 of 9

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH – MARCH 23: Jared Harper #1 of the Auburn Tigers reacts to a play against the Kansas Jayhawks during their game in the Second Round of the NCAA Basketball Tournament at Vivint Smart Home Arena on March 23, 2019 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) /

6) The SEC might be the deepest conference in the country

I know the Big Ten got all the headlines early in the tournament as they went 7-1 in the first round, but be careful not to overlook the strength of the SEC.

Auburn became the fourth different school from the conference to make the Final Four this decade and the second in the last three years to make their first-ever appearance there (South Carolina). They also had two teams in the Elite Eight and four in the Sweet 16, further showcasing the amount of top-end teams they have.

For a long time, the SEC was Kentucky and everyone else, but the conference has made a concerted effort over the last decade to invest in and improve their basketball programs, and it’s working.

Oh yeah, they also added two more coaches that made the NCAA Tournament this year (Eric Musselman – Arkansas, Nate Oats – Alabama) and another with NBA experience (Jerry Stackhouse – Vanderbilt) to teams that missed out on the Big Dance.

The conference is only getting stronger.

Home/March Madness