And the award for deepest men’s basketball conference goes to: the SEC.

How else to explain two top five teams — No. 4 Alabama and No. 5 Florida — both losing Tuesday night at home to conference foes?

At least in the case of Alabama, the Tide lost to a ranked team, falling 74-64 to No. 21 Ole Miss. Meanwhile, the Gators shot an abysmal 21 of 31 from the free throw line in an 83-82 loss to unranked Missouri, which was not nearly as close as the final score indicates.

The best argument for the SEC’s depth isn’t just that Missouri won but that the Tigers led for almost 38 minutes on the road — at one point by as many as 19 points.

Turnovers played a crucial role in both Alabama and Florida faltering Tuesday night. The Tide threw it away a whopping 21 times, which Ole Miss turned into 19 points (the Rebels tallied only seven turnovers). Florida coughed it up 13 times to Missouri’s eight, allowing the Tigers to score 18 points.

Giving the ball to the other team usually doesn’t end well. What’s more surprising, though, is that this happened to both Alabama and Florida at home. Playing well on the road is tough. Playing well in front of a friendly, packed crowd shouldn’t be.

Certainly no one could have predicted that midway through January, the two undefeated teams in SEC play would be No. 1 Auburn (16-1, 4-0) and Ole Miss (15-2, 4-0). Given how tough this conference is, it’s unlikely anyone finishes with less than three losses — especially if Auburn star and national player of the year candidate Johni Broome is out for more than a week.

The SEC’s motto is “it just means more.” With the way this conference is beating itself up on as we inch closer to March, that line might need to change to “it just is more” — as in, more representation in the NCAA Tournament than anyone else. Because with the SEC’s depth, they’re likely to send a lot of teams dancing.

Required reading

(Photo: James Gilbert / Getty Images)

MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – The first match of the 2025 Alabama Hi-Q season kicked off today.

The academic quiz competition for high school students with categories such as mathematics, history, physics and fine art and more.

Mobile County public and private schools compete in teams of eight to 10 students. At the end of the 15 contests, the top three teams win cash awards for their schools. Individual awards are given out, as well.

FOX10’s Lenise Ligon was invited to be the quizmaster, maintaining the tradition of fox10’s involvement. Bob Grip was quizmaster for 38 years.

Students from Mary G. Montgomery High School, Blount High School, Theodore High School, St. Paul’s Episcopal School, Satsuma High School and Barton Academy For Advanced World Studies competed in today’s event.

Blount got the win for the first match. There’s a challenge though and the win could go to MGM

St. Paul’s won the second match.

The competition ends in March when the overall winner is declared.

Copyright 2025 WALA. All rights reserved.

Alabama extended its winning streak to eight games on Saturday by beating Texas A&M on the road but will face another tough out on Tuesday when Ole Miss comes to Tuscaloosa. 

The Rebels have been much improved in 2024 as Chris Beard continues to turn this program around and will look to score a signature win to propel the team to the NCAA Tournament by winning on the road as a big underdog. Ole Miss has been capable on both sides of the floor, will it be able to keep close to the Crimson Tide? 

Here’s our betting preview. 

Spread

Moneyline

Total: 153.5 (Over -110/Under -110)

Odds courtesy of FanDuel Sportsbook

Ole Miss

Sean Pedulla: The Virginia Tech transfer has provided some necessary floor spacing for the Rebels, shooting 40% from deep as the team has been able to take a big jump offensively. While his defense leaves some to be desired, he has proven he can hang on the floor with his sound playmaking, ball handling, and shooting. 

Alabama

Mark Sears: Sears hasn’t been able to replicate his scorching 2023, but he remains a high-value player on an elite offense for the Crimson Tide. Sears is averaging 19 points with more than four assists per game but is off of one of his best games of the season in which he closed out Texas A&M on the road with 27 points. 

Ole Miss will face its first top-20 team in terms of KenPom’s adjusted efficiency rating, so there could be a bit of a setback for what has been an impressive season to date for the Rebels. However, I believe the offense can put points on the board against Alabama’s defense that plays drop coverage, and turns opponents over at a bottom 60 rate in the country. 

The Rebels are a capable offense that has a bevy of players that can create off the dribble and attack Alabama in the paint, so I believe the visitors will be able to score at a healthy rate in this game. 

On the other end, Alabama may be able to tee off from the perimeter against Ole Miss’ no-middle defense that lends itself to players open from beyond the arc. Further, if Sears can win in isolation sets, the rim should be easy pickings for the Crimson Tide to score at will.

In an up-tempo affair, I think both offenses rule the day and this game goes over the total. 

PICK: OVER 153.5

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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