Toyminator's 1999 SEC Conference Preview

The SEC will once again be one of the toughtest and most exciting conferences in the country this season. But other than Auburn, most of the power in this conference resides in the Eastern division, with teams like Florida, Tennessee & Kentucky. They should be mainstays in the Top 25 all season long and will be difficult to beat come March once again. In fact, both Florida & Auburn have enough talent to take them to the Final Four. That would be great for the fans because they will be two of the most fun & exciting teams to watch this season. When they face each other, make sure you get a chance to watch the game! You won't regret it!

The rest of the league should fare well also. Alabama, Miss. St & Georgia all should have solid teams and most likely will be playing somewhere in March. There's also a plethora of quality players that should make plenty of ESPN highlight reels, such as, Florida's Mike Miller, Georgia's D.A. Layne, Tennessee's Tony Harris, Vanderbilt's Dan Langhi, Alabama's Schea Cotton & of course, the guy you'll see nightly....Auburn's Chris Porter. It'll be a hell of a season!

ON THE RISE: Alabama
It took awhile for the Tide to get over the fact that Wimp wasn't patrolling the sidelines anymore, but this year they may forget about the man in plaid! In only his second year, Coach Mark Gottfried has done a good job of attracting talent back to Tuscaloosa. The arrival of future stars Schea Cotton & Rod Grizzard should provide some needed scoring on the wings to help open things up for an already decent frontline. And they've already snagged a few blue chippers for next year, as well!

IN DECLINE: Arkansas
Nolan's Hogs were poised to have a solid season, but took some huge hits over the offseason. Leading scorer Chris Jeffries transferred, top recruit Joe Johnson failed to qualify, and the few big men they had couldn't cut it either! This team will still be able to provide 40 minutes of hell on defense thanks to a quick & talented backcourt, but they've got nobody inside to score or to rebound to start any fast breaks. If Nolan doesn't start recruiting some "student" athletes soon, the rest of the SEC will pass him by!

1. FLORIDA

Strengths: Well balanced offense & agressive team defense that goes 2-deep at every position. Good 3-pt & FT shooting team.
Weakness: Due to a lack of height, this team is just average on the boards.
Outlook: Donovan has turned this program into a real power that should be both exciting AND good this season!

2. TENNESSEE

Strengths: Big, strong frontline that can score & rebound well. Excellent team defense.
Weakness: Very inconsistent from outside. Poor ball distribution.
Outlook: The offense fizzled out last season, so they need to regain their explosiveness to challenge the Gators for the title.

3. KENTUCKY

Strengths: Good shooting & rebounding team. Solid team defense. Young talent.
Weakness: Questionable ball handling. Very inexperienced. Little depth. Poor FT shooting team.
Outlook: No Final Four, but the blossoming Prince & Camara should lead this team to a respectable, if not great, season.

4. GEORGIA

Strengths: Layne's scoring ability. Good 3-pt shooting team. A real coach this season!
Weakness: Little inside scoring. Questionable team defense. Very inexperienced, especially off the bench.
Outlook: Lost most of their team, but the addition of Harrick should put some energy back into this program after the Jirsa years.

5. VANDERBILT

Strengths: Solid frontcourt. Good 3-pt & FT shooting team. Stallings in the coach's box.
Weakness: Poor team defense. Poor ball handling. Little depth. No SF on the team!
Outlook: With only 9 players, the Commodores may start out strong but wither as the season goes along.

6. SOUTH CAROLINA

Strengths: Decent team defense.
Weakness: Poor shooting team that's truly inept on offense. Turn the ball over way too often! No true scorer.
Outlook: I'm surprised Fogler had allowed this team to be this bad! They've just got nothing!

1. AUBURN

Strengths: Explosive offense. Excellent rebounding team. Good ball handling. Defense forces many turnovers. Very quick team.
Weakness: Poor FT shooting team. Loss of Smith at SF.
Outlook: Teams will be gunning for them this season, but they should be just as tough. Top 10 all year long!

2. ALABAMA

Strengths: Good rebounding team, led by a solid frontcourt. Good FT shooting team.
Weakness: Poor ball handling & distribution. Shaky on offense, especially from outside.
Outlook: They've got some talent & coaching once again, which should help this team make the postseason.

3. MISSISSIPPI ST.

Strengths: Good team defense. Good rebounding team. Solid frontcourt.
Weakness: Poor backcourt that turns the ball over too often. Poor 3-pt & FT shooting team. Lack of a true scorer.
Outlook: Bender would have really elevated this team, but they should still be decent. NIT?

4. ARKANSAS

Strengths: Solid, deep backcourt. Good team defense that forces many turnovers.
Weakness: Small, limited frontcourt. Poor rebounding team. No depth!
Outlook: Where did all the players go? Hopefully to hit the books! Definitely a rebuilding year.

5. LSU

Strengths: Solid frontcourt that can score & rebound well.
Weakness: Very questionable backcourt. Poor FT shooting team. Horrible turnover margin!
Outlook: Improving, but they need to find a point guard to run with JUCO star Lamont Roland to get to the next level.

6. MISSISSIPPI

Strengths: Good defense that forces many turnovers. Good inside scoring.
Weakness: Very questionable backcourt. Poor 3-pt & FT shooting team. Big hole in the middle!
Outlook: Some talent remains, but the Rebels are rebuilding. Not much this season.

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Last updated on 10/4/99 by toyminator@prodigy.net