Dalton Knecht 

I’m not sure I have ever witnessed a performance in person, quite like what I saw Dalton Knecht do on Wednesday night. He is the best player in the country and should be the first college player drafted in the upcoming draft.

Knecht outscored Auburn 24-21 in the last 12 minutes of the game. Now I know that Zach Edey has already won National Player of the Year, but Knecht is a better player. Knecht is a three level scorer, who can drive and dunk on you and then pull up from 30 feet and hit a three.

He is great in pick and roll situations, as last night Auburn ran different ball screen coverages for him and it didn’t matter. I really love when Knecht posts up and he has a really nice post fadeaway jumper. 

The guy is the total package and he has locked up SEC player of the year. This should not even be a question after this performance. There is really nothing else to say about what happened in Knoxville. One player beat a top 15 team in the country. Knecht is the reason the Vols can cut the nets down and win a national championship. 

Knecht beats Auburn

The Auburn Tigers played the best game they have played all year and still lost a game. In my opinion, this was the game of the year in the league so far. Two championship level teams just going back and forth. Auburn had this game in their hands until Dalton Knecht went nuclear.

I have already talked about Knecht, but how can you not just keep talking about it because these types of performances are once in a generation. The crazy thing is if Knecht didn’t pick up two fouls in the first half, he might have scored 50.

I thought in the first half that Auburn and Tennessee had a great plan of attack on offense. Auburn hit some shots and ran some great offensive sets. Both teams turned the ball over a bit. Auburn turned the ball over in crucial situations throughout the game. I thought Auburn should have played through Johni Broome more on offense because Tennessee had zero answer for him. The second half was a chess match and Tennessee won the game with matchups. 

Early in the second half Tennessee had a chance to really take control of the game when they went up nine, but missed free throws and turnovers, let Auburn right back in it. The Tigers started to isolate Broome on the block and Tennessee was just letting him play one on one with Jonas Aidoo. Broome was giving Tennessee problems and eventually Tennessee sent a double. Broome made a lot of great plays out of the double team. Auburn ened up with an 8 point lead. 

Then the Dalton Knecht experience happened. Auburn went into a zone, which I’m still not sure why. Knecht hit a three then went for a back door dunk. Once Auburn went back to man, Tennessee went into its floppy action for Knecht and Knecht hit two straight mid range jumpers. Knecht was feeling himself at this point and it became to get him the ball and get out of the way.

Tennessee was very strategic in the way they got Knecht in his isolation play. Knecht would use a double down screen with the big as the second screen. They knew Auburn would switch and Knecht was able to get Johni Broome on him. Knecht proceeded to hit two threes and then a dunk in three straight possessions. Tennessee ran this same play the least eight minutes of the game. 

Game winner in Starkville

This was another great game and it is a shame that it will get overlooked. Reed Sheppard was unbelievable in this game with 34 points, 7 assists, and 5 rebounds. He also hit the game winning shot as time expired. I love the way Reed plays the game and have been high on him all year. The biggest reason for his success is the demeanor. You never see Sheppard get too high or too low and this is what makes him so great in pressure situations. He is able to play relaxed, which is why he has hit so many big shots for this team. 

This is a very underrated win for this Kentucky team. Mississippi State was the hottest team in the league and had beaten Tennessee and Auburn at home. This team is starting to come together and should be getting Tre Mitchell back very soon. Antonio Reeves had a very nice game as well. Kentucky's ability to get the ball up the court in transition is key to their success.

It might not result in a score, but it puts pressure on the defense and creates matchups that favors Kentucky. Mississippi State could never get matched up and the Wildcats got into the paint all night. Kentucky won the game on their ability to push the ball and putting pressure on Mississippi State. 

Josh Hubbard is a bucket getter and might be the second best pure scorer in the league. He also should be getting more Freshman of the year recognition. His shot making ability is at an NBA level and he can carry the Bulldogs in March. He isn’t Dalton Knecht, but he can carry a team in a similar way.

If you would have told Mississippi State that they would have scored 89 points, I think they would have taken it in a heartbeat. Kentucky is just that elite on offense, which is why they can be so dangerous in March. 

Best of the rest in the SEC

Alabama survives against a desperate Ole Miss. I’m afraid Ole Miss is out of chances to make the NCAA Tournament after this loss. The Rebels do not have a single quad one this year. We all know the Tide can score, but to give up 88 points to Ole MIss is just not going to get it done. They have to start guarding people to get to where they want to go.

They are the best offensive team in the country and their dribble drive actions are very elite concepts. The ability for the system to create space and driving opportunities is fun to watch. If I am a defense I am not letting them shoot threes and having big men sit at the rim. You have to force these guys to shoot contested two’s. 

Texas A&M’s chances of making the tournament might be over as well. The Aggies have now lost five games in a row, since beating Tennessee. Another impressive win for Lamont Paris and the South Carolina Gamecocks. This team just keeps winning games and doing it their way. It might not be a flashy style or they might not have superstars players, but they have found a winning formula. They play great defense and are able to generate a lot of shots late in the shot clock. 

Florida continues to stay hot and I think they have a great shot of making some noise in Nashville. They are my surprise team to make the championship game. Missouri is well on its way to a winless conference season.

Vanderbilt goes into Bud Walton and defeats Arkansas. I firmly believe Eric Mussleman has one foot out the door at this point. I would not be surprised if Chris Beard is coaching the Razorbacks next season. Georgia loses to the LSU Tigers in what was a great game. I’m interested to see if LSU could pull off an upset in Nashville. 

Look ahead to the weekend

The biggest game of the SEC season is happening in Tuscaloosa this weekend, as the Tennessee Vols face Alabama. This game will likely decide who wins the regular season. College Gameday will be there and this game is the primetime game in College Basketball. Alabama looks for revenge as they were blown out in Knoxville earlier in the year. The Tide have not lost a conference game at home this season.

Tennessee has done a really good job of guarding the three this year and perimeter defense is their strength. I think you will see a lot of Jahmi Mashack in this game, as he is the best perimeter defender for the Vols.

I think Tennessee matches up well with the Tide and we all know basketball is a game of matchups. The big question for Alabama is who will guard Knecht? I think you just have to send doubles at him and make someone else beat you. Make Josiah Jordan-James, Jonas Aidoo, and Santiago Vescovi hit shots, which they are capable of doing. I just do not think Alabama can let Knecht go one on one.

As I said before, I really do like this matchup for Tennessee, but going into Tuscaloosa is a hard task. 

Florida goes to South Carolina in what is a massive game for both teams. A Florida win, and we have the possibility of having a four-way tie for third. South Carolina can almost guarantee a double-bye in Nashville with a win. I do think that the Florida guards do have an advantage over the Gamecock guards. I look for Pullin and Clayton to control the pace of the game.

The key matchup will be between the bigs. Florida is a really good rebounding team and we all know how good South Carolina is down low. I think this is a bad matchup for the Gamecocks.

For South Carolina, Ta’lon Cooper and Meetchie Johnson have to play well. They need to hold their own in the guard matchup. These guys need to hit around 6 or 7 threes combined to feel good about the matchup. I am also interested in seeing how Lamont Paris uses BJ Mack. The Florida bigs are actually very comfortable playing on the perimeter, which could result in South Carolina playing a smaller lineup with only one big. 

Mississippi State goes to Neville arena to face Auburn. Both teams are coming off heartbreaking losses and I am interested to see if there is any hangover. For Auburn, being back home is huge for this team. They played so well in Knoxville and would have beaten every other team in the league that night. They still had some awful turnovers late in that game and it is what I have been worried about all year.

This team has not won a close game all year and that is concerning. Mississippi State also played well enough to win against Kentucky. Tolu Smith and Josh Hubbard need to continue to play well. In order to pull off the upset they need a role player to have a big game. They really need Shakeel Moore to hit some outside shots, this will take pressure and open up more opportunities for Hubbard.

Kentucky hosts Arkansas which has the making of being a total beatdown. These teams could be heading in more different directions. Arkansas is coming off a home loss to Vanderbilt. Texas A&M heads to Athens in what is a must win game for the Aggies, if they want to stay in the conversation for the national tournament. Who will step up and score for the Aggies besides Taylor and Radford?

Ole MIss heads to Missouri and this is the best chance for Missouri to win a conference game. I do think the Tigers have a really good shot at winning this game. LSU travels to Nashville, in what could be back to back wins for Vanderbilt.