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SEC Tournament Championship: Florida, Tennessee set for rematch
By Sydney Hunte
Published:
The SEC Tournament championship game is set. Florida and Tennessee will meet for the third time this season, this time with a conference title on the line.
Tennessee, the No. 4 seed, got past No. 1 seed Auburn 70-65 in Saturday’s first semifinal. Then, in the second semifinal, second-seeded Florida ripped third-seeded Alabama 104-82, pulling away thanks to 57 second-half points after leading by just 47-45 at the break.
The Gators and Volunteers split their regular-season meetings, with both games ending in blowouts.
On Jan. 7, the Gators romped past the Vols 73-43 in Gainesville, outrebounding Tennessee 56-37. Less than a month later on Feb. 1, the Vols got revenge in Knoxville, scoring 40 second-half points to turn a 24-21 halftime lead into a 64-44 victory despite dressing just 7 players.
Both teams will be at-large selections in the NCAA Tournament; it’s just a matter of where they’ll be seeded. Per ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, Florida “should be the fourth and final No. 1 seed” thanks to their win over the Crimson Tide. Tennessee is currently projected by Lunardi as a No. 2 seed in the East region.
Tipoff from Bridgestone Arena in Nashville is set for 1 p.m. ET. The game will be televised on ESPN.
Sydney is an Atlanta-based journalist who has covered everything from SEC and ACC football to MLS, the U.S. men's national soccer team and professional tennis. His work has appeared on such platforms as SB Nation, Cox Media Group and FanSided.
