Florida, Tennessee dominate to set up SEC title showdown
03/15/2025
By Chris Marler
The Final Four is one of the biggest events of the year every year.
It legitimately may pale in comparison to the Final Four teams left in the SEC Tournament semifinal round on Saturday in Nashville.
Four teams. Four teams ranked in the top six of the Ken Poms rankings and all four teams ranked as a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament.
Auburn vs. Tennessee
Going into today’s games, the resounding thought and feeling about the two matchups was how close they both were to what we should, and would, expect from a Final Four matchup. Auburn and Tennessee did not disappoint. The game never got out of hand and neither team led by more than seven for most of the game.
Granted, at one point the Vols played their way to a 12 point lead. However, Auburn clawed their way back to a two point deficit after their 31st 10-0 run of the season. That stat was better than any other team in the league this season. However, it did not propel the Tigers to getting into a final game on Sunday to see if they could once again prove that they were clearly the best team in the country. Or the conference.
Tennessee did to Auburn what they’ve done to almost every other team they played this season.
Styles make fights is the old adage that boxers and people around the sport love to say. Tennessee knows they are not prime Mike Tyson. They don’t play a style of basketball that dominates opponents from the opening buzzer or bell, keeping them on defense until they’re knocked out early.
Tennessee goes into most games with a gameplan, like prime Mayweather, where they know there is no way they can be defeated at the hands of their defense. They pick their spots, they drag opponents down into the mud, and they wait until they make a mistake. Then, it’s over.
That’s what Tennessee did to Auburn on Saturday. Honestly, it’s what they did to them at the end of January when they played in Neville Arena. The only difference is that day the Vols lost by two and today the Vols picked their spots, landed their shots, and outlasted their opponent.
That was their knockout punch. And, it was all they needed to win.
vibes 👍 pic.twitter.com/jwQfFaeLhA
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) March 15, 2025
Alabama vs. Florida
I have said this once, and I will say it again: Auburn has the best record and resumé in the country and Alabama has the best roster in the country. However, Florida may very well be the best team in the country.
our highest score this season ✔️ highest score in an sec tournament ✔️ pic.twitter.com/9M432LUme6
— Florida Gators Men’s Basketball (@GatorsMBK) March 16, 2025
The longer this season goes on, the more it seems apparent that the “maybe” in that sentence is completely unnecessary.
Florida and Alabama seemed primed to be a back and forth battle much like Auburn and Tennessee, just with much more offense.
However, in the blink of an eye, Florida created more separation from Alabama than players in the transfer portal after Nick Saban’s retirement or social progress did to the state as a whole. In the blink of an eye, a back and forth battle between two of the best offenses and two of the best teams in the country turned into a drubbing.
Florida trounced Alabama in the second half and won by over 20 points.
Objectively, it’s hard to ignore that if Mark Sears played like his usual March self, Labaron Philon matched his performance from yesterday, or Grant Nelson stayed on the court for more than 15 minutes, Alabama might have held its own.
Regardless, the hypotheticals don’t outweigh how dominant Florida was. And, that is why the Gators go into Selection Sunday with a 4-1 record against Alabama, Auburn, and Tennessee this season.