Player of the Week
Dru Smith (Missouri) — The 6-foot-3, 200-pound senior guard has proven himself repeatedly that he is the leader of this Tiger squad. In their last two matches—both conference games— he averaged 17 points, four rebounds and 2.5 assists while committing only two combined turnovers in back-to-back victories over South Carolina and at No. 6 Tennessee. Smith dialed in on just six field goal attempts, racking up 16 points against the Gamecocks. This effort marked him as the fifth different Tiger to do so in a game since 2010. He matched that performance with an SEC-high 18 points against the Vols, concluding the game with zero turnovers and two assists.
Who’s Hot?
Joshua Primo (Alabama) — The long 6-foot-6, 190-pound freshman guard from Canada, averaged 19 points, five threes made and 3.5 rebounds per game in wins against LSU and Mississippi State. His field goal percentage was stellar (73.7%) in a 14-of-19 effort from the floor, in addition to shooting 76.9% from 3-point land.
Florida — Currently sitting at 3rd in the SEC, the Gators are definitely turning heads as they continue to stay in the conference title hunt after coming off two massive wins against No. 6 Tennessee and Georgia. After dropping a 75-49 onslaught against the Vols, Tennessee moved 12 spots to No. 18 in the polls. They followed up with an eight-point win over the Bulldogs where Tre Mann went off for 24 points, six boards, and four assists. As a team, they also out-rebounded Georgia 41-27.
Who’s Not?
Emmanuel Miller (Texas A&M) — Miller has been the focal point that the Aggies have based their strategy off, as he leads the team in minutes (30.9), points (15 PPG) , and rebounds (7.9 RPG). But something clearly went wrong in their matchup with LSU. Miller gathered four personal fouls and resulted in his playing time being cut in half. Due to that, he was never able to find his rhythm and scored just two points as well as turning the ball over three times. It appears if the Aggies want to have a shot in games, they need this kid on the floor for 20+ minutes at least per game.
Vanderbilt — Well, the Commodores cannot find a way to snap this losing streak which sits at five in a row now. Their last two games at No.10 Tennessee and against Arkansas resulted in 20-point losses for Vandy. They rank Bottom 5 in the SEC for essentially every statistic aside from free throw percentage and 3-point percentage. It’s a very, very dark road for this team right now and it most certainly isn’t looking brighter as they face Florida in their next matchup.
Top Upcoming Games To Watch:
No. 9 Alabama @ No. 24 Oklahoma – Jan. 30th – Not an in-conference matchup for the Tide but a huge fate game where they will have the opportunity to prove they’ve got what it takes to stay as a Top 10 team.
Florida @ No. 11 West Virginia – Jan. 30th – Another big test game in an out-of-conference matchup for the Gators. I think they actually matchup fairly well with this Mountaineers squad and that we’re in for a good one here.
No. 15 Kansas @ No. 18 Tennessee – Jan. 30th -The Vols have shown clear signs that they’re capable of winning big games and contending with a majority of Top 25 teams. Yet, we’ve seen nearly one too many slip ups from them: I feel like this game will either be very close or the Vols will get blown out.
No. 5 Texas @ Kentucky – Jan 30th – I think it’s safe to say that the SEC/Big 12 Challenge has a ton of action in store for us including some seriously competitive teams. Despite all the troubles of this Wildcats organization this season, I believe that they’ve got the potential to take down a Top 5 powerhouse in Texas.