SEC Notebook
by Ryan Glenn
SEC Player of the Week
Vanderbilt’s Mario Moore was named SEC Player of the Week following Vanderbilt’s impressive wins over Alabama and Tennessee. Moore averaged 17 points and 5 assists in the two games. During the Alabama game, he helped the Commodores take control of the game when he hit three 3-pointers in less than sixty seconds.
SEC East Division
Vanderbilt (11-5, 2-1)
Vanderbilt has to be one of the hottest and most surprising teams in the SEC so far. They started out decent before conference play with a 10-4 record and were on fire in their first two games. Then on Wednesday night, they headed to Rupp Arena. Even though they kept it close most of the game, they just couldn’t take control of the game and lost 54-69.
Florida (10-3, 2-0)
Florida has had to manage a few games with out their leading scorer, Matt Walsh. Walsh tore ligaments in his left ankle during a Gator practice and is expected to miss 4-6 weeks. When asked about the current status of Walsh, Coach Donovan had this to say: “He’s improving, but still we don’t anticipate him coming back for four to six weeks unless we get a miraculous recovery. He has not been able to run at all. He actually got the boot taken off his foot this morning. He can walk without the boot. He got taped up and we’ll put him in an air cast a little bit that he can walk with that will go right inside his shoe. He’s still weeks away from playing. He can’t run right now.”
Without Walsh, the Gators have to depend more on David Lee and Anthony Roberson to take on more of the load. Even when the Gators get their star junior back, Coach Donovan knows he won’t be playing at the same level he once was, “The big thing is Matt Walsh will not be Matt Walsh for the rest of this year. The Matt Walsh who you saw is not going to be able to do that. This is probably an injury that for him to fully recover and be capable of playing the type of game he had been playing, this season will be over. That’s the unfortunate part. He’s not going to be able to do that. It will be hard for him to get to the level that he was at.” The Gators came out and played a good game, taking down Auburn in overtime, 84-78. They were led by Anthony Roberson, who scored an amazing 34 points in the win.
Kentucky (11-2, 2-0)
Kentucky is by far the strongest team right now in the SEC. Coming off a loss at home to Kansas, the Wildcats came out strong against Vandy. They were led by Rajon Rondo, who scored 18 points in the win. Their only two losses of the season so far have come against two highly ranked teams, North Carolina and Kansas.
South Carolina (9-5, 1-2)
The Gamecocks have come out trying to prove they should not have been predicted to finish fourth in the division. In their three conference games so far, they are 1-2. However, that one loss was to Kentucky by just four points. In their second game, the Gamecocks destroyed Georgia by twenty. On Wednesday, South Carolina just couldn’t seem to get things together as they fell to LSU, 64-79.
Last Friday, Coach Odom announced that sophomore Paulius Joneliunas is transferring to American University. “Paulius has been a pleasure to have as a person and as a student-athlete. It is difficult to let him go but I agree it is in his best interest. The opportunity to play regularly and to reach his goals as a player can be realized at American University. I wish him the best and will continue to support him in every way.”
Tennessee (9-6, 2-1)
After their embarrassing loss to in-state rival Vanderbilt, Coach Buzz Peterson would not even let his players wear Tennessee gear at practice.” I don’t know that our guys understand what it means to put on that uniform. I’m taking that away from them until they show me different,” Peterson said after practice on Monday. “They’ll have to bring their own gear to practice in. They will not wear a Tennessee practice shirt until I see some sense of pride that they’re playing for the University of Tennessee.” It must have paid off. The Vols upset Mississippi State at home Wednesday night. They were led by Scooter McFadgon and Brandon Crump, who had 14 and 12 points respectively.
Georgia (6-7, 0-3)
The season to this point has been a disappointment to Georgia. With their record below .500 and three losses already in the conference, things are going to need to turn around quick for the Bulldogs. With only two players averaging over ten points a game, the Bulldogs are desperately looking for somebody to step up. The problem seems to be the lack of experience. Georgia is a very young team. All their starters are underclassmen (Three Freshmen and Two Sophomores).
SEC West Division
Mississippi State (14-3, 2-1)
Like Florida, Mississippi State has experienced a key injury. The Bulldog’s second leading scorer, Winsome Frazier, left the Ole Miss game with an ankle injury just 8 minutes into it. Frazier is expected to miss six weeks. Sophomore Dietric Slater is a probable replacement for Frazier. “The thing about Dietric that I love, and that is why I’ve played him, is that he brings energy to the court,” Coach Stansbury responded when asked about Slater. “He’s come a long way especially the defensive side. That is something we are working more and more towards. He and Frazier cause other teams a lot of trouble defensively because of great quickness.” The absence of Frazier was obvious against Tennessee. After trailing big most of the game, Lawrence Roberts was able to bring the Bulldogs back, but couldn’t seal it. They had one last shot to win the game, but couldn’t get a good look, losing by one.
Alabama (13-3, 2-1)
On Tuesday night, Coach Mark Gottfried got his 200th career win as the Crimson Tide defeated Arkansas in a close one, 64-61. This came after a 1-1 start in the SEC. In the first game, they got routed by Vanderbilt and their three point bonanza. After that, they came back home to defeat LSU easily by fifteen.
Arkansas (13-3, 1-2)
Arkansas had one of the best starts in the SEC. They were 12-1 heading into conference play, with that only loss coming to 3rd-ranked Illinois. In their first SEC battle, they had an easy win over Ole Miss. The past two games, however, have been rough for the Razorbacks. They went down to Florida and lost by eight. On Tuesday night, they had a hard fought game with Alabama, but couldn’t come out on top.
Auburn (9-6, 0-2)
Auburn had a very good season up until conference play. The only loss that might look bad come tournament time, is the 78-85 lost to Wofford on December 5th. In the Conference so far, they have losses to Mississippi State and Florida. Both of their losses came against two of the better teams in the SEC. With Ole Miss coming up next for the Tigers, it looks like a great chance to get that first conference win.
LSU (7-5, 1-1)
LSU is starting to play better than they did early in season, including an ugly loss to Southern Miss. They opened their conference play by heading to Alabama and getting beat pretty bad. They were able to get their first win in the conference against South Carolina Wednesday night. They were led by Freshman Glen Davis, who scored 28 in the victory for the Tigers.
Ole Miss (10-6, 1-2)
The Rebels finally got their first SEC win Wednesday night. Sadly though, it was only a five point win against Georgia, who is starting to look like they are going to be the worst team in the league this season. I guess you have to start some where, right? Next up for the Rebels is Auburn, who is still looking for their first conference win.
Game of the Week
Florida at Vanderbilt, Saturday, 3:00 ET
Two of the better teams in the SEC East meet in this early season match up. Florida gets their first road challenge without Matt Walsh. Watch this game just to see if Vanderbilt can come out shooting lights out from three point land and get the Memorial Gym crowd behind them. On the Gator’s side, they will be looking for another big game from Anthony Roberson, who scored 34 in their last game against Auburn.
