Upon further review... (1/31/08)

No song and dance routine could
save Auburn from a BAD loss last night
A look at the box scores and key stats from this week’s SEC action…

* Tennessee @ Alabama
Alabama continued its hot shooting from the floor (50%) but apparently decided to not guard the perimeter (UT had 12 3s) or rebound the ball. With the girth the Tide big men have, there’s no excuse for ‘Bama being outrebounded by the Vols. The Tide’s poor FT shooting loomed large again, as they hit less than 60%.


* Mississippi State @ Auburn
The SEC West stays wide open thanks to a resounding Hog victory last night. Arkansas forced the Bulldogs into a horrid 5/22 Assist/Turnover ratio. And though they hit just 36.1% of their FGs, they hit 83.3% of their FTs (see how that works Bama) and crashed the glass to dominate MSU.


* Vanderbilt @ Ole Miss
Vandy’s road woes continued, as they shot just 34.9% from the floor and continued to settle for 3s, despite a cold shooting night (10-30). Only getting to the FT line 4 times against a team without its best post defender and foul-prone big men is inexcusable, particularly when this was as close to a must-win as a game can be this early in the season.


* LSU @ Auburn
I won’t even get into how BAD a loss this is for Auburn. I will ask how it’s even possible to lose a home game to a team like LSU when you shoot 50.9% from the floor, 43.5% from the arc, 93.3% from the FT line and commit less than 10 turnovers. This was apparently the perfect balance of mediocrity on both sides of the court.


* Georgia @ South Carolina
Great win for South Carolina who probably thought they would stand no chance with Devan Downey struggling like he did. But when your opponent shoots 14.8% from the arc, it makes up for one player’s struggles. Seriously though, 4-27 on 3s? Really? Get the ball inside.