The 2018 installment of the SEC basketball tournament kicks off Wednesday night in St. Louis, Mo., a decidedly peculiar location to host the decisive basketball tournament for the Southeastern Conference. Whatever.
The SEC has emerged as one of the premier conferences in college basketball this season, which is remarkable given perennial power Kentucky’s struggles down the stretch. Last season’s Final Four club Florida remains strong with a No. 3 tournament seed, and Auburn and Tennessee have ascended, but the Wildcats have waned following the exodus of a number of standouts from last year’s club for the NBA.