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The SEC: who’s trending up, who’s trending down

By Blake DuDonis

KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 21: Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs guard Victoria Vivians (35) pushes the ball up the court during a game between the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs and the Tennessee Lady Volunteers on January 21, 2018, at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. Mississippi State defeated the Lady Vols 71-52. (Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 21: Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs guard Victoria Vivians (35) pushes the ball up the court during a game between the Mississippi State Lady Bulldogs and the Tennessee Lady Volunteers on January 21, 2018, at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. Mississippi State defeated the Lady Vols 71-52. (Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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COLUMBIA, MISSOURI- Robin Pingeton has turned Missouri into a legit SEC contender in recent years but have struggled this season to beat the better teams on their schedule. (Photo courtesy St. Louis Post-Dispatch)
COLUMBIA, MISSOURI- Robin Pingeton has turned Missouri into a legit SEC contender in recent years but have struggled this season to beat the better teams on their schedule. (Photo courtesy St. Louis Post-Dispatch) /

Missouri Tigers

A sexy pick by many to challenge for the SEC crown, Missouri has done well to stay up in the national rankings and SEC standings alike, but concern has to be now settling in. Their 83-74 win at home over South Carolina was a big one, no doubt, and they followed that up with three more wins over teams in the bottom of the conference. After that, however, is where the worry starts. A 12-point loss to Georgia. A 10-point loss to South Carolina. Then the aforementioned 4-point loss to Mississippi State. It’s not that any of those were bad losses (all of those teams are ranked in the top 20), but it makes you wonder if Missouri is on the same level as those teams. Take a look at their schedule. What is their best win besides South Carolina? It’s probably Cal, a team that is borderline Top 25 every week. After that? Nothing. I’ve seen this team play and I personally believe they will be a really tough out come March but with each loss to a top team, the doubt of if they are truly elite remains.

Ole Miss Rebels

Owners of six straight losses, the longest streak in the SEC, Ole Miss looks resigned to finish 10th or worse for the fourth time in five years under Matt Insell. It has to be noted that the Rebels have been unlucky with injuries, including losing talented guard Shandricka Sessom to an ACL tear during non-conference play, but this season really has taken a turn for the worse. Their lone SEC win is over Florida, a team who is tied with the second worst record in conference, and rank in the bottom half of the conference in every major statistical  other than three-point defense and blocked shots. One bright spot has been the play of Promise Taylor who has won multiple SEC freshman of the week honors and is in the conversation for SEC freshman of the year. Trips to Georgia and Texas A&M are next up on the schedule, so things look like they are going to get worse before they get better.

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