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2025 SEC Tournament Predictions and Betting Odds

by Robert Ferringo - 3/11/2025

SEC Tournament predictions Johni Broome Auburn Tigers

Best, ever?

Jay Bilas and other media bobbleheads have crowned the 2024-25 SEC as the best basketball conference ever. I’m not sure that I’m buying it. But there is no doubting that this league has been a juggernaut this winter.

The SEC has designs on sending as many as 12 teams to the NCAA Tournament this year. The league is clearly the beneficiary of conference expansion as well as down seasons from the normally dominant ACC and Big Ten. That still doesn’t change the fact that the SEC is loaded with top coaches, star freshmen, and future NBA All-Stars.

The league’s depth should make for one of the most entertaining and unpredictable conference tournaments in the country this week. If the SEC is really as good as everyone thinks it is, then there should be plenty of challengers to the Big Four favorites of Auburn, Florida, Alabama and Tennessee.

The SEC Tournament will take place at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. It starts on Wednesday, March 12, and will conclude Sunday afternoon.

Here is Doc’s Sports 2025 SEC Tournament preview and predictions:

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The Favorite: Auburn (+150)

The Tigers have been the best team in the best conference all season long, and they are in line to be the No. 1 overall seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament. However, they enter the postseason off back-to-back losses, including a gutting 93-91 home loss to hated rival Alabama last Saturday. Auburn is led by big man Johni Broome, a point center that can dominate a game scoring, passing, rebounding or defending. The Tigers have five players averaging 10 points per game or more, and they have – incredibly – had seven different guys go off for 20 or more points in a game this season. This team is big, strong, physical and athletic, and they bully teams on both ends of the court. They have been banged up down the stretch, with both Broome and guard Denver Jones nursing injuries. This is still the best team in the field, though.

The Contender: Florida (+270)

If Auburn is No. 1 in the SEC, then Florida is right there as No. 1A. The Gators matched Auburn’s 27-4 regular season mark (albeit against a significantly easier schedule), and Florida has won its games by an average of 16.3 points per game. Perhaps more impressively, the Gators have been one of the best bets in the country, going 9-1 against the spread in their last 10 games and 23-8 ATS on the season. Gator big men Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu dominate the post on both ends of the court. And veteran guards Walter Clayton and Alijah Martin, formerly of FAU, comprise one of the nation’s best backcourts. This team has already beaten Auburn (by 9 on the road), Alabama (by 5 on the road) and Tennessee (by 30 at home), and they are more than capable of putting together a run to win this title.

The Sleeper: Tennessee (+600)

With all the attention on No. 1 Auburn, its rival Alabama, and surging Florida, Tennessee has been kind of the forgotten team in the SEC. Rick Barnes has the No. 1 field goal defense and the No. 2 3-point defense in the country, and the Volunteers just choke the life out of opponents. They have a stud go-to scorer in Chaz Lanier (17.9 points per game) as well as veteran winner Zakai Zeigler (13.1 PPG, 7.5 APG). Depth is an issue for the Vols, with just seven players averaging 14 minutes per game or more. But their deliberate pace is meant for March. The Vols won the SEC Tournament three years ago. But they have failed to win more than one game in this tourney in their other three attempts so far this decade.

The Spoiler: Kentucky (+1900)

It’s been an up-and-down year for the Wildcats, who vaulted out to a 10-1 start to the season with wins over Duke, Gonzaga and Louisville. They are just 11-10 since then, though, and have battled injuries to key players throughout SEC play. Stud guard Jaxson Robinson is out for the year. But Kentucky managed to go on the road and beat Missouri last Saturday and took out Tennessee on Feb. 11, both without Robinson in the lineup. The Wildcats take (and make) a ton of 3-pointers, making them a boom-or-bust option this time of the year. A win in their first game would set up a potential barn burner between Kentucky and Alabama, a team the Wildcats already lost to twice this season.

Bubble Team To Watch: Georgia (+11000)

Georgia has been playing as well as anyone in the country over the past two weeks. First, they blitzed Florida at home. Then they went on the road and manhandled Texas (by 16) and South Carolina (by 9) before closing the year with an easy win over fellow bubble team Vanderbilt. The young inside-out duo of Silas Demary (sophomore) and Asa Newell (freshman) lead the way, with cagey Blue Cain making winning plays in support. The Bulldogs haven’t done much on the road this year. We will see if they can trump their poor away form with their recent momentum.

Potential Early Round Matchups To Watch:

No. 12 Vanderbilt (-1) vs. No. 13 Texas (3:30, Wednesday, March 12)

Vanderbilt has surprisingly played its way onto the NCAA Tournament bubble, posting wins over Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas, Ole Miss, A&M and Missouri over the last two months. They still need at least one or two wins to solidify their argument for inclusion and will try to stave off a Longhorns team playing with revenge. Texas is just 3-8 in its last 11 games, and the Longhorns are kind of a mess. They do boast one of the nation’s best freshmen, Tre Johnson, and have some veterans that will be looking to extend their careers. I would be stunned if this isn’t a close game Wednesday afternoon.

No. 11 Georgia (-1) vs. No. 14 Oklahoma (8:30, Wednesday, March 12)

I don’t know that this is a must-win for Georgia, but it certainly would help their NCAA Tournament case. Oklahoma is kind of a sneaky opponent in this spot, though. They are coming off back-to-back wins, and three of their last four losses since Valentine’s Day have come by three points or less. This OU team beat Arizona, Louisville and Michigan while starting the season 13-0 and playing their way into the Top 15. It’s been all downhill since then (6-12 SU), but they are more than capable of jumping up to bite the Bulldogs.

2025 SEC Conference Tournament Predictions: This league is simply too close to call. Auburn has the best team. But they aren’t 100 percent right now, and there are rumblings that it might be in their best interest to lose early in this tournament to set up a potential NCAA Tournament march. If Auburn beats Tennessee in the semifinals, I have a hard time seeing them lose to anyone in the finals. There is no way that I would bet on Auburn to win the conference at their current modest odds, though. And if you’re looking for value, I think the Gators are the most likely non-Auburn squad to cut down the nets.

Robert Ferringo is a member of the Basketball Writer's Association of America and a professional sports handicapper for Doc's Sports. He is considered one of the best college basketball handicappers in the country and has posted 13 of 16 winning seasons. He is looking for a monster March run and you can sign up for his college basketball picks and get more information here.

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