Alabama vs Tennessee: 2021 SEC Tournament game preview, TV schedule

When: 1:00 pm ET, Saturday, March 13 on ESPN

Location: Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, TN

After securing blowout Quarterfinal victories, Alabama and Tennessee will meet for the second time this season with a trip to play for an SEC Tournament Championship on the line.

Alabama is back in the SEC Tournament Semifinals for the first time since 2018 after they cruised to an 85-48 Quarterfinal win over Mississippi State.

The Crimson Tide have been the top team in the SEC all season long, and this sure felt like a performance on Friday that reassured that. Alabama held the Bulldogs to 48 points on 29% shooting from the field, as well as forcing 18 turnovers in-route to take over the #1 defensive ranking in the country according to KenPom. Alabama also had their normal offensive output as the Tide knocked down 13 3’s in their 17th 80+ point performance of the season.

Meanwhile, Tennessee is back in the SEC Tournament Semifinals after they defeated Florida 78-66. This is a familiar position for the Volunteers as Tennessee has played in the previous two SEC Tournament Semifinals, both of which were victorious and advanced to the SEC Tournament Championship.

While Alabama is ranked as the #1 defensive team in the country, the Volunteers are not far behind as they are ranked as the #4 defense. Tennessee held Florida to 34.5% shooting from the field, while also having one of their better offensive games of the season. The Volunteers had five players score in double-figures, and moved the ball well in-route to 21 assists, 14 more than the Gators.

These two teams met once during the regular season which resulted in a 71-63 Alabama win over Tennessee in Knoxville early on in SEC play. This meeting however could look a little different due to the uncertain availability of Alabama’s Joshua Primo and Tennessee’s John Fulkerson, both of whom sustained injuries on Friday.

This game will most likely be the opposite of the games that Alabama and Tennessee played on Friday. The Tide and Vols both exploded offensively, and you should expect this game to be a close-defensive battle with no bucket easy to get.

The score could very well end up similar to the previous meeting, but I do believe Alabama’s offensive effort from Friday will carry over to Saturday. If the Tide can make their shots and shut down Tennessee’s guards, the SEC Regular Season Champs will play for an SEC Tournament Championship.

Prediction: Alabama 75, Tennessee 68