Kentucky plays Vanderbilt tonight in Rupp Arena and fans have become pretty confident that when the Cats are at home it is a W.
This is just the first step in trying to salvage a #2 seed and a first round bye in the SEC tournament.
The Cats will still need help from a couple of other teams to not play on the first day in Atlanta.
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Darrell Cartwright of Scout.com breaks down exactly what has to happen.
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In a two-team tie with either Vanderbilt or Georgia, [URL=”http://kentucky.scout.com/”]Kentucky[/URL] is in great shape. The first tie-breaker is head-to-head competition between the two teams. The Wildcats split with Georgia, and assuming they defeat Vanderbilt tonight and finish 10-6 with a win over Tennessee, they would split with Vanderbilt as well.
The 2nd tiebreaker is the division won-lost record of the two teams. This is where Kentucky would edge either Vanderbilt or Georgia, as they have a two game better record than either one in the SEC East, and in a two-way tie, Kentucky would obtain the SEC East # 2 seed.
All is good, then, right? Not so fast. Even if Kentucky defeats both Vanderbilt and Tennessee this week–a tall task, considering the quality of the teams, and that Tennessee will be fighting for NCAA lives, and playing at home on Senior Day–the Cats must hope for Vanderbilt to lose to Florida (after losing to Kentucky), or Georgia to lose at home to LSU, or on the road to Alabama. In a three-way tie, the SEC tiebreaker does Kentucky no favors.
In a three-way tie, the first tiebreaker is total won-lost record of games played among the tied teams. Vanderbilt swept Georgia this season, so they would be 2-0 versus Georgia, and 1-1 versus Kentucky, for a 3-1 mark. Kentucky split both series, so they would be 2-2, and Georgia be 1-1. Pursuant to the three (or more) way tiebreaker, Vanderbilt would get the SEC East # 2 bid, and Kentucky SEC East # 3.
So it’s simple. Root for Kentucky to defeat Vanderbilt and Tennessee, as always, and for Georgia to lose to either LSU in Athens, or Alabama, in Tuscaloosa. Or for Vanderbilt to lose to Florida in Nashville. Or both. The three-way tie is a killer for[SIZE=3] [/SIZE][SIZE=2]Kentucky to obtain the SEC East # 2 seed and the coveted bye.[/SIZE]
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[I][SIZE=1]Source: Kentucky.Scout.com[/SIZE][/I]
