TAT: Razorbacks Earn 7th Seed in SEC

This article originally appeared in the March 12, 2013 issue of The Arkansas Traveler.

The Arkansas men’s basketball team is seeded seventh in the 2013 Southeastern Conference Tournament that begins Wednesday at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn.

They received a first round bye and will face the 10th seed, Vanderbilt, in the second round Thursday.

This is the second year that the SEC has used a one-division format for basketball. Last year, the Razorbacks were the ninth seed with a 6-10 record in the SEC and lost to LSU in the first round.

The Commodores were the third seed last season and won the tournament. It was their second SEC title in school history.

Vanderbilt comes into this year’s tournament with an 8-10 conference record, while Arkansas is 10-8 in league play.

The teams split their two regular season games. Arkansas won 56-33 at home Jan. 12 and the Commodores won 67-49 in Nashville Feb. 9.

The winner of the Arkansas-Vanderbilt game will move on to the quarterfinals and face second seeded Kentucky, who receives a double bye because they finished in the top four of the conference.

No. 13 Florida is the No. 1 seed in the SEC tournament, finishing the season with a 14-4 conference record. Each of their four losses came on the road, including one at Bud Walton Arena against the Razorbacks.

The other teams receiving a double bye are Ole Miss and Alabama, the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds, respectively.

The Rebels, Crimson Tide and Wildcats all finished with 12-6 SEC records, but Kentucky received the No. 2 seed by virtue of having the best record against the No. 1 seed, Florida. Ole Miss was awarded the No. 3 seed because they defeated Alabama in their only regular season matchup.

The first round of the tournament is Wednesday and it features two games. South Carolina and Mississippi State, the 12th and 13 seeds, respectively, will play, followed by Texas A&M and Auburn, the 11th and 14th seeds, respectively.

The winner of the first game will play fifth-seeded Tennessee and the winner of the second game will play sixth-seeded Missouri.

Georgia and LSU, the No. 8 and No. 9 seeds, respectively, will play in the other second round game Thursday.

The quarterfinals are Friday, with the semifinals Saturday and the championship game at noon Sunday on ABC.

Arkansas’ game against Vanderbilt is at 6:30 p.m. Friday. It will be televised on the SEC Network and streamed online on ESPN3.