Toyminator's 2000-2001 SEC Conference Preview

The SEC will once again be one of the toughest and most exciting conferences in the country this season. The power in this conference still resides in the Eastern division, with teams like Florida, Tennessee & Kentucky, but has become a little more balanced with improving teams at Arkansas & Alabama. The Gators will try to duplicate last season's run to the Title game, but it will be a lot harder without their 2 best players, Mike Miller & Donnell Harvey. In fact, Tennessee looks like the conference's premier team with talented & experienced players like Tony Harris, Isiah Victor & Vincent Yarbrough. And don't count out the Wildcats of Kentucky! With the late addition of Jason Parker, the Cats have an inside threat to team with the exciting Keith Bogans on the wing. It should be a tough fight in the East!

The West is full of solid, if unspectacular teams. Arkansas may be the best of the bunch, led by the multi-talented Joe Johnson. Imagine what he could do for a full season! Alabama's a team to keep an eye out for. With young talent, such as smooth shooting Rod Grizzard & the high flying freshman Gerald Wallace, it should be just a matter of time for Coach Marc Gottfried to teach these guys to play as a team. Another potential sleeper team is Mississippi St, who may have the league's best frontcourt of Hamilton, Jackson & Austin. With so many good teams, the conference may be well represented in March!

ON THE RISE: Alabama
Injuries last season slowed their rise up the conference, but that shouldn't be the case this season. A healthy Jeremy Hays & Sam Haginas help bolster an already solid frontcourt, while the backcourt is loaded with talented, young players like Rod Grizzard, Terrance Meade & Demetrius Smith. Oh, and don't forget about prep star Gerald Wallace, who brings his rim rattling show to Tuscaloosa. The cupboard is so stocked, that the loss of ball-hogging Schea Cotton should help more than it hurts! Watch out for this team!

IN DECLINE: LSU
The Tigers dramatic rise last season was one of the year's most pleasant surprises. Unfortunately, a return trip to the NCAA Tournament would be even more surprising! Losing their twin towers, Jabari Smith & wunderkind Stromile Swift, is too much to recoup from, even with the return of their excellent backcourt. Without an inside game, the Tigers will struggle to stay above .500 in this tough league.

1. TENNESSEE

Strengths: High scoring, yet balanced offense. Good rebounding team. Aggressive team defense. Deep, quality bench.
Weakness: Very inconsistent from outside. Commit too many turnovers.
Outlook: The Vols are loaded at every position, so much so, that the very talented Ron Slay may have to come off the bench again. If they can play consistently all year, then they could reach the next level!

2. FLORIDA

Strengths: Well balanced offense & aggressive team defense. Good shooting team. Deep, athletic backcourt.
Weakness: Questionable rebounding team. Lack of frontcourt depth. Play sloppy at times.
Outlook: Despite their heavy losses, don't count this group of Gators out for another title run! Not as deep, but just as talented and a little more experienced. Should give Vols quite a challenge for conference title!

3. KENTUCKY

Strengths: Excellent team defense. Good team quickness. Good rebounding team. Limit their turnovers.
Weakness: When Saul's running the point. Horrible shooting team, especially from 3-pt land. Inexperienced bench.
Outlook: If the team can start making a few baskets here and then, that would take some pressure off Stone, Camara & Parker down low and maybe they could get into some kind of offensive flow! That would help them win a few more games & make it bearable for us to watch!

4. SOUTH CAROLINA

Strengths: Big, deep frontcourt who know how to rebound. Good 3-pt shooting team.
Weakness: Need to improve defensively. Poor ball handling. Poor FT shooting team.
Outlook: After some limp years, the Cocks are rising again (LOL)! Fogler's got some players to work with now and should have them ready to put up a good fight. NIT is definitely within reach!

5. GEORGIA

Strengths: Good shooting & rebounding team. Experienced players & coaches.
Weakness: Big holes at PG & C. Poor team defense. Poor FT shooting team. Too many turnovers. Lack of frontcourt depth.
Outlook: If they can fill their holes, they could be a decent team but will struggle to reach any higher than this!

6. VANDERBILT

Strengths: Limit their turnovers. Good FT shooting team. Stallings in the coach's box.
Weakness: Poor team defense. Poor rebounding team. Inexperienced backcourt. Lack of a scorer.
Outlook: Just remember Commodore fans...last season was a good one for your team. But it won't be this season!

1. ARKANSAS

Strengths: Quick, athletic team. Deep backcourt, that can bury the 3! Good team defense that forces many turnovers.
Weakness: Small, limited frontcourt with little inside scoring. Poor rebounding team. Horrible FT shooting team.
Outlook: Last season's late run was a preview of this season, especially with superstar Joe Johnson back for the entire season (assuming he recovers from injury!). This team is small, but deadly!

2. ALABAMA

Strengths: Loads of young talent! Good rebounding team, led by solid frontcourt. Balanced scoring. Deep bench. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor ball handling & distribution. Better shooting would help.
Outlook: With a good combination of talent & experience, they could be this season's LSU! If not, they'll still be fun to watch!

3. MISSISSIPPI ST.

Strengths: Excellent backcourt that can score, rebound & throw bodies to the floor! Very deep team.
Weakness: Questionable PG. Poor outside shooting team.
Outlook: Coach Stansbury almost lost another blue chip this season, but big-man Mario Austin wised up and should team with underrated Robert Jackson to form a potent frontline. If backcourt becomes stable, postseason play is assured.

4. AUBURN

Strengths: Solid, deep backcourt. Good team defense. Very quick team.
Weakness: Lost too much talent & experience. Poor shooting & rebounding team. Question marks at PG & C.
Outlook: Coming off a disappointing season, the Tigers will want to rebound. Even though they're a decent team, I don't see that happening as they will continue their slide.

5. LSU

Strengths: Excellent team defense. Solid backcourt.
Weakness: Very questionable frontcourt. Poor FT shooting team. Too many turnovers. Little depth.
Outlook: Swift teased this program for months before bolting. Too bad...they would have been tough! Not so anymore.

6. MISSISSIPPI

Strengths: Quick backcourt. Good rebounding team. Inside scoring.
Weakness: Poor team defense. Poor ball handling & distribution. Poor FT shooting team. Little depth.
Outlook: This team isn't that bad, but in this conference it's tough to move up the standings. They're here by default.

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Last updated on 9/30/00 by toyminator@prodigy.net