NCAA Basketball: Iowa vs Gonzaga, Missouri vs UK and other key questions
The latest NCAA Basketball roundtable is out, featuring an epic clash of offenses this weekend.
We’re now a few weeks into the NCAA Basketball season and while nothing is promised, we have a great slate of games coming this Saturday. Thanks to our six great and talented contributors for answering some of our burning questions of the week.
1. Who is more likely to win the SEC reg season title – Kentucky or Missouri?
Chris Thedinga – @CThedinga
Missouri has looked quite impressive thus far, but I’m still going to say Kentucky. If Davion Mintz, BJ Boston, and Devin Askew can figure some things out in the backcourt, this team can still be salvaged. Their shooting woes are unprecedented, but I believe it’ll figure itself out. Missouri is a quality team that will be playing in March, but I don’t see a way in which they win the SEC.
Jacob Zinkula – @1Perfectbracket
Although Missouri’s win over Illinois was undeniably impressive, I don’t think the Illini are as good as their No. 6 ranking suggested. Kentucky has looked mediocre thus far, but their young talent (which should improve) and 2nd-half comeback against Notre Dame provide some reasons for optimism.
Tennessee — likely the conference favorites — has only played two games, so it’s difficult to know if the Volunteers are as good as advertised. If they are, however, it will take a really solid team to overtake them. While the Wildcats have a lower floor than Missouri moving forward, their ceiling remains higher. Kentucky is still the better bet to win the SEC.
Benjamin Zacher – @beezacher
Missouri. Kentucky will get better as the season progresses, and they showed flashes of a decent team in their late-game run against Notre Dame – but, truthfully, I don’t think they will be among those at the top of the SEC come the end of the regular season. Missouri has continuously impressed, especially in their wins over Illinois, Oregon, and Liberty.
Mizzou also gets the benefit of playing Kentucky just once in the regular season – at Missouri. In addition, if we are talking top teams – Missouri and Kentucky both play Tennessee twice, but Mizzou only sees Florida once – Kentucky sees them twice. Right now, the Tigers look like the most dominant team in the SEC – and I think that will continue into March. They just have so many offensive weapons, too.
Nicholas Diamantis – @ngdiamantis29
Missouri is most likely to take the SEC regular-season title this year. Cuonzo Martin’s team is on a mission this season, and his team is finally off to a better start with no significant injuries to worry about. Missouri looked very impressive in its 81-78 upset over Illinois on Saturday. This is an experienced Tigers program led by three seniors looking to spark some noise come March Madness time.
Joey Loose – @jloose128
It’s hard to know what to think about either of these teams after just a few weeks, but it’s clear that Kentucky is mightily struggling and this Missouri squad is way better than we all thought a month ago. It’s hard to bet against Calipari and the Wildcats figuring things out as the season progresses; they didn’t let last season’s loss to Evansville torpedo their season.
Obviously, this year is different, but there’s a lot more talent for the Wildcats; they just need to learn how to use it.
Andrew Tineo – @D_Tineo4
Missouri and Kentucky stand on two different ends of the spectrum, Missouri has been fantastic, coming off an impressive blowout of Illinois. Meanwhile, Kentucky is 1-4, and not much more optimism heading their way. This season full of COVID has not been run by blue bloods, but by teams with experience.
The Wildcats do not have that and are coming off their fourth straight loss on the season, most recently to Notre Dame. Five of the top seven scorers on the team are freshmen. The two that are not freshman are with Kentucky for their first season, through the transfer market.
For Missouri, their roster is littered with experience as there are only four underclassmen on the entire roster. They only have Two Top 100 players, yet find themselves ranked at #15 and 5-0 on the season. If 2020 has taught us anything, it’s that experience reigns supreme in College Basketball this season. Missouri has a lot of it and Kentucky has minimal. Missouri has a higher chance of winning the SEC regular-season title.