Georgia broke a losing streak with a convincing win over South Carolina on Wednesday. They couldn’t turn it into a winning streak and came just short of upsetting #4 Tennessee in Athens. The Dawgs head out for consecutive road games at Kentucky and Vanderbilt this week. Given Georgia’s road woes, it could be a brutal two-game stretch, but Rupp Arena always seems to get Dennis Felton’s best shot.

Though the bottom half of the SEC West is a mess, Mississippi State did a lot to clear up things at the top with a win over Arkansas. The Bulldogs have a solid two-game lead, and the Razorbacks seem to be in control of the #2 position. In the East, Kentucky got drilled by Vanderbilt but hold a half-game lead over the Commodores. Florida is hanging on to postseason chances with a 6-5 conference mark, but they still have games left against Mississippi State, Tennessee, and at Kentucky. Do they need to win one of those to have a chance to defend their title?

SEC Men’s Basketball Power Rankings

1. Tennessee: Winning the close games builds valuable experience.
2. Miss. St.: Won a big battle over Arkansas
3. Vanderbilt: Solid at home over Kentucky and Florida.
4. Kentucky: Destroyed by Vandy and just hung on against LSU.
5. Arkansas: Missed a chance at West title in Starkville.
6. Florida: Are they on the bubble?
7. Georgia: Only one win to show for it, but playing much better.
8. South Carolina: Picked up 4th SEC win against Bama.
9. LSU: Playing inspired ball since coaching change.
10. Auburn: Wishes every game was against Ole Miss.
11. Ole Miss: Lost 6 of last 7.
12. Alabama: Stuck on two conference wins.

Lady Dogs

For the first time since late January, the Lady Dogs have put together consecutive wins. They completed a season sweep of Florida on Thursday, and they survived turnovers for a close win at Mississippi State to finish the week. The Lady Dogs stand at 6-5 in the SEC with a week of rest before a very important game with Auburn on Sunday. Auburn ran away with an easy win when the teams met in January, and Georgia’s NCAA Tournament chances might depend on winning the second meeting. A Georgia win could also move them into a tie with Auburn for 5th place.

After 14 points at Mississippi State, Tasha Humphrey is now tied with Kelly Miller as the #3 career scoring leader at Georgia. She is only 18 points behind Katrina McClain at the number 2 spot. With a 20-point performance against Auburn, Humphrey could become the program’s second-leading career scorer behind only Janet Harris. With over 2,600 career points, no one is catching Harris any time soon.

LSU left no doubt about the current best team in the league with a resounding win in Knoxville. Vanderbilt had a chance to force a tie for second place, but Tennessee held them off in Nashville.

SEC Women’s Basketball Power Rankings

1. LSU: Clear sailing to regular season title.
2. Tennessee: No 0.2 seconds to bail them out against LSU.
3. Vanderbilt: Six-game winning streak snapped against Tennessee.
4. Kentucky: Two of three remaining games should be wins.
5. Georgia: A week to rest before a revenge game against Auburn.
6. Auburn: A win at Georgia could wrap up the #5 seed.
7. Florida: Bounced back from Georgia loss to hold off Arkansas.
8. Miss. St.: Playing very tough over the past three games.
9. Ole Miss: Continue to look bad against good teams.
10. Arkansas: In bad shape.
11. South Carolina: Gave Auburn trouble.
12. Alabama: Two SEC wins in three years.