The match-ups for the semifinals of the SEC men’s basketball tournament are set, and they’ll feature two teams from each conference division. Three of the teams that lost today (Tennessee, Kentucky, and Missouri) were – and still are – on the bubble, and they’ll have to sweat it out for a few more days until the NCAA Tournament teams are announced.

(13) Florida 80, LSU 58

After squeaking by Georgia in the second round of the tourney, the Tigers couldn’t do the same against the powerful Gators in the quarterfinals, as they lost their lead less than two minutes into the game and never regained it. LSU kept things close for the first quarter of the game or so, but UF brought their A-game and led 43-28 at the half.

Things didn’t get any better for the Tigers in the second 20 minutes of play. They trailed by as many as 35 points and allowed the Gators to pretty much do whatever they pleased. With less than a minute to go and down by more than 20 points, LSU missed a jumper, two rebounds, and two attempts at a tip-in. That pretty much sums up how well – or, not well – things went for them all day.

Erik Murphy had a career-high 27 points and 12 rebounds to lead the Gators. Charles Carmouche led the Tigers with 14 points, 2 rebounds, three assists, and a steal. UF outshot LSU 50.9 percent to 33.3 percent and outrebounded them 42-26.

LSU falls to 19-12 overall and was 9-9 in regular season SEC play. Florida is now 25-6 overall and went 14-4 in conference play. They’ll face off against Alabama Saturday at 1 ET. The game will be televised on ABC.

Alabama 58, Tennessee 48

The Tide may still be on the Big Dance bubble, but they kept their season alive for at least one more day as they found a way to contain the Vols both offensively and defensively. The first half of the game was close, but after going on a 9-0 run early in the period, UT did not hold a lead for the final six and a half minutes. They went into the half trailing just 31-27, though, so they were by no means out of the game.

Unfortunately for the guys from Rocky Top, they never held a lead in the entire second half, either. The Volunteers did pull within three points midway through the half, but two different attempts at a game-tying shot missed. After scoring six unanswered points, the Crimson Tide did go three minutes without scoring, but Tennessee wasn’t able to close the gap (and then went on a three minute scoreless streak of their own).

Josh Richardson had 16 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two steals to lead the Tigers. Nick Jacobs led the Tide with six points, 12 rebounds, an assist, and three blocks. Bama outshot UT 41.3 percent to 32.1 percent and both teams had 35 rebounds.

Tennesee drops to 20-12 overall and was 11-7 in regular season SEC play. Alabama is now 21-11 overall and went 12-6 in conference play. They’ll face off against No. 13 Florida Saturday at 1 ET. The game will be televised on ABC.

» Continue reading “Two Teams Each From East & West Advance To SEC Tournament Semifinals”

The SEC East fared better than the West on the second day of the SEC men’s basketball tournament, as Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Missouri all notched wins and the right to advance to the next round. LSU was the lone team from the West to stay alive.

LSU 68, Georgia 63

If you only looked at the halftime score from this game, you’d be amazed at how close the final score was. The Dawgs, down 39-19 heading into the locker rooms, had only one first half lead (and it lasted approximately 20 seconds) and trailed by as many as 23 points.

Georgia closed the gap in the second half, though, and went on a 12-3 run, which pulled them within three points of the Tigers with about half a minute remaining in the game. The score was still 66-63 with as few as seven seconds left, but LSU hit a couple of key free throws to extend their lead just enough.

Shavon Coleman had 24 points, six rebounds, two steals, and a block to lead the Tigers. Kentavious Caldwell-Pope led the Bulldogs with 32 points, 13 rebounds, and an assist. LSU outshot UGA 43.4 percent to 28.6 percent, but the Dawgs outrebounded the Tigers 48-34.

Georgia finishes the season 15-17 overall and 9-9 in regular season SEC play. LSU is now 19-11 overall and was also .500 in conference play. They’ll face off against No. 13 Florida (24-6, 14-4) Friday at 1 ET. The game will be televised on ESPNU/WatchESPN.

Tennessee 69, Mississippi State 53

Fresh off their first round defeat of South Carolina, the Bulldogs couldn’t keep their season alive against the superior Vols. MSU took a 4-0 lead, but it quickly disappeared as UT went on a 12-0 run. The Bulldogs trailed by as many as 19 points and by halftime, they were down 35-19 and the Volunteers were clearly in control of the game.

Things got better for Mississippi State in the second half, as they found some fight and Tennessee seemed content to rest on their lead. The Bulldogs came with nine points with under five minutes left in the game, but the Vols didn’t let them get any closer. UT’s Jordan McRae even got fancy at the end, doing a 360 spin and dunk move.

Craig Sword had 19 points, three rebounds, two assists, and four steals to lead the Bulldogs. Jarnell Stokes led the Vols with 10 points, nine rebounds, two assists, and three steals. MSU was outshot 51.8 percent to 34.5 percent and outrebounded 34-32.

Mississippi State finishes the season 10-22 overall and 4-14 in regular season SEC play. Tennessee improves to 20-11 overall and went 11-7 in conference play. They’ll take on Alabama (20-11, 12-6) Friday at 3 ET. The game will be broadcast on ESPNU/WatchESPN.

» Continue reading “Vols, ‘Dores, And Two Teams Of Tigers Advance To SEC Tourney Quarterfinals”

Well, SEC fans, this is it. Football season has come and gone for another year, so it’s time for a final SEC summary. The conference is again home to the BCS national champion (for the seventh year in a row) and can also claim this year’s Heisman winner, Johnny Manziel. The SEC sent nine teams to bowls and came away with a record of 6-3. Five teams didn’t make it to the postseason: Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Auburn. Of those five, Missouri is the only one who won’t have a new coach next season. None of them finished with more than two wins in the conference or more than five wins overall, and both Auburn and Kentucky went winless in SEC play.

Vanderbilt 38, North Carolina State 24

The Commodores capped off a fantastic season by topping the Wolfpack in the 2012 Music City Bowl. Vandy got the scoring started in the first quarter, as QB Jordan Rodgers hit Chris Boyd with a 5-yard TD pass just over five minutes into the game. The ‘Dores took a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter, when Zac Stacy ran six yards to the end zone, but NC State got on the board with a touchdown of their own with just over six minutes remaining in the quarter. Vanderbilt went back up by two scores on their next possession, but then the Wolfpack’s Tobais Palmer took a kickoff 94 yards to cut the lead. Rodgers found Jordan Matthews for an 18-yard TD with less than a minute remaining in the half, though, to put the Commodores up 28-14 heading into the locker rooms. The Commodores tacked on a field goal in the third quarter before NC State added one of their own to open the fourth quarter. Each team scored once more, both touchdowns, but it wasn’t enough for the Wolfpack to overcome the deficit.

Rodgers went 16-of-25 for 108 yards and two touchdowns. NC State QB Mike Glennon was 35-of-53 for 383 yards, a TD, and three interceptions. Stacy had 25 carries for 107 yards and a touchdown and Matthews had seven catches for 61 yards and a TD to lead the Commodores. Creecy had nine carries for 43 yards and a touchdown and Palmer had eight receptions for 111 yards to lead the Wolfpack. NCSU racked up 24 first downs compared to Vandy’s 17 and outgained the ‘Dores 424-225 in total yardage, but managed only 41 yards on the ground and turned the ball over five times.

Vanderbilt finishes the season 9-4 overall and 5-3 in the SEC. North Carolina State finishes 7-6 overall and 4-4 in the ACC.

» Continue reading “SEC Summary: Bowl Game/2012 Wrap Up Edition”

Though it feels like we just got started, the final week of the regular season has now come and gone. Of the 14 SEC teams, there are three who have only one loss overall and in the conference (Alabama, Georgia, and Florida) and two who went winless in the SEC (Auburn and Kentucky). Nine teams are bowl eligible, with the two 0-fer teams plus Arkansas, Missouri, and Tennessee failing to reach the necessary number of wins. Three coaches are out, too, as Joker Phillips of Kentucky, Derek Dooley of Tennessee, and Gene Chizik of Auburn, have coached their last game at those schools. Read on for recaps of all the action from the final games of the regular season.

(7) LSU 20, Arkansas 13

It was closer than the Tigers would have liked, but they managed to do just enough to beat the Razorbacks Friday afternoon. LSU put up a first quarter field goal and a second quarter TD on a 22-yard pass from Zach Mettenberger to Jarvis Jones to take a 10-0 lead at the half, but Arkansas had three chances to score themselves in the first half. Their first opportunity came on the game’s opening drive, when they got all the way down the field before Dennis Johnson fumbled at the goal line. Kicker Zach Hocker also missed two field goals. The Hogs finally got on the board early in the third quarter, when John Henson hit a 25-yard field goal. The Tigers answered with a TD a minute and a half later, but Arkansas found the end zone themselves before the quarter was over to pull within one score. Each team scored once, both, more field
goals, in the fourth quarter. LSU’s came with just a minute and a half left, and though the Razorbacks tried to rally in the final seconds of the game, Wilson’s pass fell incomplete as time expired.

Mettenberger finished the day 16-of-29 for 217 yards and a touchdown. Wilson went 31-of-52 for 359 yards, a TD, and an interception. Jeremy Hill had 17 carries for 88 yards and a touchdown and Odell Beckham had four receptions for 112 yards to lead the Tigers. Wilson had 38 yards on nine carries and Cobi Hamilton had 10 catches for 98 yards to lead the Hogs. Arkansas turned the ball over twice (LSU didn’t do it at all), but the Razorbacks also had more first downs (24) than the Tigers (16), allowed them only 89 yards on the ground, and outgained them in total yardage 462-306.

LSU finishes the regular season 10-2 overall and 6-2 in conference play. They will await a bowl bid. Arkansas finishes 4-8 overall and 2-6 in the SEC. They will not be eligible for a bowl game.

» Continue reading “SEC Summary – Week Thirteen”

It’s hard to believe how quickly this season has passed. With only one week left of the regular season, there were a few conference match-ups taking place, while most teams took time off from SEC competition this week. There are still three one-loss teams in the conference (Alabama, Georgia, and Florida), and eight teams are currently bowl eligible. Ole Miss and Missouri must win next week to become bowl eligible, while Auburn, Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky will not be going to bowls this year. Georgia is still waiting to find out who they’ll play – either Alabama or LSU – in the SEC title game in Atlanta. Read on for recaps of this weekend’s football action.

(4) Alabama 49, Western Carolina 0

After being handed their first loss against Texas A& last week, the Tide took out their frustrations on the visiting Catamounts Saturday afternoon. Bama got the scoring started early, taking a 7-0 lead less than three minutes in when Eddie Lacy scored his first TD of the day. T.J. Yeldon found the end zone four minutes later, then Lacy scored again with just over four minutes left in the quarter to give the Crimson Tide a 21-0 lead after just one quarter. They added three more touchdowns in the second quarter, including another from Lacy and one on a Deion Blue 57-yard fumble return. Alabama tacked on one more score in the third quarter, this time on a run by backup QB Blake Sims. Western Carolina had a chance to finally get on the board in the third quarter, but they were stopped on fourth down and came away empty-handed.

Tide starting QB AJ McCarron finished the day 6-of-6 for 133 yards and a TD and Sims was 2-of-6 for 27 yards, plus 70 yards rushing and his touchdown. Their WCU counterparts, Eddie Sullivan and Troy Mitchell, combined to go 8-of-20 for 93 yards. Lacy had 10 carries for 99 yards and three touchdowns and Amari Cooper had two catches for 50 yards to lead Bama. Sullivan had 28 yards on four carries and Jamil James had one reception for 30 yards to lead the Catamounts. The Crimson Tide had 22 first downs, almost tripling Western Carolina’s total (8). WCU didn’t get 100 yards on the ground or through the air, and were outgained 460-163 in total yardage.

Alabama is now 10-1 overall and 6-1 in conference play. They’ll be on the road against Auburn next weekend. Western Carolina’s season is over. They finish 1-10 overall and 0-8 in the Southern Conference.

» Continue reading “SEC Summary – Week Twelve”

It was a wild weekend for the SEC, as top-ranked Alabama finally fell, losing against conference newcomer Texas A&M. That means there are no longer any undefeated teams in the SEC, though there are three one-loss teams (Alabama, Georgia, and Florida). There are also three teams who are still winless in conference play (Tennessee, Kentucky, and Auburn). UT and UK play each other to close out the season in two weeks, so at least one will not finish the season without any SEC wins. Eight of the conference’s teams are bowl eligible, and six of them are in the BCS Top 10. Georgia has also clinched the SEC East, while the winner of the SEC West has yet to be determined. Read on for recaps of all this weekend’s action.

(8) South Carolina 38, Arkansas 20

It’s been a tough season for the Razorbacks, and they continued to struggle Saturday against the Gamecocks. Arkansas’ bowl hopes are still alive, but they now must win their final two games in order to be eligible. USC got the scoring started with just over five minutes remaining in the first quarter, when Jerell Adams caught his first career TD pass. The Hogs found the end zone themselves midway through he second quarter, but the Cocks responded with another touchdown this time on a 10-yard run by QB Connor Shaw. Each team scored once more before the half, a field goal for Arkansas and a 42-yard touchdown for Carolina. The Cocks scored three times in the third quarter, including on a 69-yard interception return by D.J. Swearinger. The Razorbacks scored only twice in the second half and were never able to overcome the deficit.

Shaw finished the day 14-of-22 for 272 yards, two TDs, and an interception. He also had a rushing touchdown. Wilson went 26-of-41 for 277 yards, two TDs, and two picks. Davis had 13 carries for 51 yards and a touchdown and Ellington had five receptions for 104 yards and a TD to lead the Cocks. Jonathan Williams had 61 yards on 7 carries and Cobi Hamilton had four catches for 72 yards to lead the Razorbacks. Arkansas had 22 first downs compared to USC’s 20, but the Hogs managed only 83 yards on the ground and were outgained in total yardage 383-360.

South Carolina improves to 8-2 overall and 6-2 in the SEC. They’ll host Wofford next weekend. Arkansas drops to 4-6 overall and 2-4 in conference play. They’ll be on the road against No. 21 Mississippi State next Saturday.

» Continue reading “SEC Summary – Week Eleven”

It feels like just yesterday that the college football season started, but we’re somehow already through 10 weeks of games. The SEC now has just one remaining undefeated team: Alabama. There are two teams with only one loss, Florida and Georgia, and three teams who have at least one victory outside the conference, but have yet to win a conference game: Kentucky, Tennessee, and Auburn. At this point, half of the SEC’s teams are bowl eligible (those teams: Alabama, Texas A&M, LSU, Mississippi State, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina). Read on for a recap of this weekend’s games.

(7) Florida 14, Missouri 7

Little has gone right for the Tigers in their first season as an SEC team, and that trend continued Saturday afternoon in Gainesville. Mizzou QB James Franklin tossed four interceptions and the Gators were able to come away with a victory, keeping them in the hunt for the conference title game. Both teams were held scoreless in the first quarter, but the Tigers found the end zone with just over six minutes remaining in the half for their only score of the day. UF scored one time each in the third and fourth quarters, first on a 36-yard run by Omarius Hines and then on a 45-yard pass to Mike Gillislee from QB Jeff Driskel. Missouri had plenty of time to tie things up in the fourth quarter and looked to be on their way to a last-second score, but Franklin was picked in the end zone with only five seconds left in the game.

Driskel finished the day 12-of-23 for just over 100 yards and a touchdown. Franklin went 24-of-51 for 236 yards and four interceptions. Gillislee had 68 yards on 16 carries and one catch for 45 yards and the TD to lead the Gators. Kendial Lawrence had 18 carries for 34 yards and a touchdown and Dorial Green-Beckham had six receptions for 73 yards to lead the Tigers. Even though they lost, Mizzou racked up 23 first downs compared to UF’s 11 and they also turned the ball over four times. The Tigers managed just under 100 yards on the ground, but outgained the Gators in total yardage 335-276.

Florida improves to 8-1 overall and 7-1 in the SEC. They’ll host the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin’ Cajuns next weekend. Missouri drops to 4-5 overall and 1-5 in conference play. They’ll travel to Knoxville to take on the Vols next Saturday.

» Continue reading “SEC Summary – Week Ten”

Yikes. Seems like the Honey Badger still doesn’t give a you-know-what.

Four former LSU football players, Tyrann “Honey Badger” Mathieu, Jordan Jefferson, Karnell Hatcher, and Derrick Bryant, were arrested today on varying drug charges. Mathieu and Jefferson were charged with simple possession of marijuana, Hatcher was charged with his second offense for possession, and Bryant was charged with possession with intent to distribute. All four guys were booked into the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison.

Tyrann Mathieu

Here’s how things went down, according to the police:

• Around 3:30 p.m., officers were dispatched to an apartment building at 262 West State in Baton Rouge following a complaint about a man attempting to force his way through security gate
• A maintenance worker confronted the man, before he was let in by a resident and went to an apartment.
• That resident was Mathieu and the apartment was his, which the police discovered when they knocked on the door
• Officers smelled weed and Mathieu let them search the apartment, where there were three guys (Jefferson, Hatcher, and Bryant) in addition to Mathieu
• Jefferson was ID’ed as the guy who tried to force his way in
  

  Jordan Jefferson

• The search of the apartment led to the discovery of a marijuana grinder, digital scale and 10 bags of high-grade marijuana. Seven of those bags were in Bryant’s backpack
• The former players were arrested

While he’s still at LSU, Mathieu is no longer on the team because he failed one too many drug tests and was dismissed. Mathieu received counseling and completed a rehab assignment to work on treating his apparent drug problem, but it seems that may not have worked. He also wanted to try and return to the team next year. This arrest can’t be good for his chances of making that happen.

Jefferson, who went undrafted following the 2011 season, was linked to a Baton Rouge bar brawl during which he kicked a marine in the head. He was not dismissed from the team.

It’s  hard to believe that we’re already two-thirds of the way through the college football season, but here we are. After eight weeks, three undefeated teams remain in the SEC. The East has one, Florida, and the other two, Alabama and Mississippi State, are in the West. The Tide being unbeaten isn’t too much of a surprise, but the Gators and Bulldogs still being perfect is more unexpected. Four teams, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri in the East and Auburn in the West, are still winless in conference play. The Wildcats and Tigers each only have one win outside of the conference, too. UK has also already been eliminated from postseason play, and AU isn’t far behind. Read on for recaps of all the conference football action this weekend.

(6) LSU 24, (18) Texas A&M 19

Johnny Football may lead the SEC in total yardage, but he couldn’t quite get it done against the Tigers’ bruising defense Saturday in College Station. The Aggies got out to an early lead, scoring a touchdown (minus the extra point) less than five minutes into the game and adding a field goal five minutes later. Taylor Bertolet banged home a 50-yard field goal midway through the second quarter to give Texas A&M a 12-0 lead. LSU answered with two TDs in the final two minutes of the half to take a 14-12 lead going into the locker room. Both teams were scoreless in the third quarter, but the Tigers added a field goal and a touchdown in the fourth quarter before the Aggies found the end zone one last time. It wasn’t enough for a victory, though, Texas A&M suffered their first conference loss since the first week of the season, against Florida.

Tigers QB Zach Mettenberger finished the day 11-of-29 for just under 100 yards and a touchdown. Manziel went 29-of-56 for 276 yards and three picks. Jeremy Hill had 18 carries for 127 yards and a touchdown and Kadron Boone had four catches for 49 yards and a TD to lead LSU. Ben Malena had 12 carries for 82 yards and a touchdown and Ryan Swope had 10 receptions for 81 yards to lead Texas A&M. The Aggies turned the ball over five times, but had 26 first downs compared to the Tigers’ 18. LSU had 13 penalties for over 100 yards and the Tigers were outgained in total yardage 410 to 316.

LSU improves to 7-1 overall and 3-1 in the SEC. They’ll be off next weekend before hosting No. 1 Alabama in two weeks. Texas A&M drops to 5-2 overall and 2-2 in conference play. They’ll be on the road at Auburn next Saturday.

» Continue reading “SEC Summary – Week Eight”

Because why not! (Screenshots via ESPN3)

Sixth ranked LSU was able to come from behind and hold on to get the win against 20th ranked Texas A&M Saturday in College Station.

The Aggies jumped out to a 12-0 lead in the first half. But a Michael Ford rushing touchdown, followed by a Zach Mettenberger 29-yard touchdown pass, both within the final minutes of the half, put the Tigers in the lead at halftime 14-12.

Texas A&M had opportunities to keep close and even take the lead during the second half, however Taylor Bertolet missed two field goals.

Drew Alleman kicked a field goal of 28-yards early in the fourth quarter to give LSU a 17-12 lead. Jeremy Hill provided a cushion with a 47-yard touchdown run with 3:32 left in the game to give LSU a 24-12 lead.

Ben Malena was able to get a five-yard touchdown run late in the game to cut the LSU lead to five points.

It was a rough day for the LSU offense as they had 313 yards in the game. The Aggies outgained the Tigers by 103 yards, however they turned the ball over four times.

Johnny Manziel had 282 yards passing, but was picked off three times in the loss to LSU. Mettenberger didn’t have much of a better day as he was 11-for-29 for 97 yards with just the touchdown.

The Tigers will now have a bye week with the benefit of a two-game winning streak. They’ll have plenty of time to prepare for No. 1-ranked Alabama, which takes place Nov. 3.

Texas A&M’s loss Saturday to LSU snapped a five-game winning streak. They lost to Florida on Sept. 8.

Fortunately for the Aggies, they head to Auburn next week and will try to get back in the win column, before taking on Mississippi State and Alabama in the weeks following.