SEC Tournament 2016: Full Schedule and Complete Bracket Predictions

As the calendar turns to March, the madness that is the college basketball postseason draws closer.

Some conference tournaments (Patriot and Atlantic Sun) begin on Tuesday, with the other 30 to follow in the coming days. The Power Five tournaments start next week, which include the competitive SEC.

The top 10 teams are all within three games of each other heading into Tuesday, but with just two games remaining, only the top five teams (Texas A&M Aggies, Kentucky Wildcats, South Carolina Gamecocks, Vanderbilt Commodores and LSU Tigers) have a chance at the regular-season crown.

Where each team finishes after its final games this weekend will determine the seeds for the conference tournament that runs March 9-13 at the Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee.

Here's a look at the projected bracket, results of each game and some analysis on which team will bring home the hardware.

Note: the Missouri Tigers are ineligible for postseason play due to a self-imposed postseason ban.

DATE	TIME (CT)	TV	GAME	Winner
First Round: March 9	7 p.m.	SEC Network	Game 1 - No. 12 Mississippi State vs. No. 13 Auburn	Auburn
Second Round: March 10	Noon	SEC Network	Game 2 - No. 9 Arkansas vs. No. 8 Ole Miss	Ole Miss
	TBA	SEC Network	Game 3 - No. 13 Auburn vs. No. 5 LSU	LSU
	6 p.m.	SEC Network	Game 4 - No. 10 Georgia vs. No. 7 Florida	Florida
	TBA	SEC Network	Game 5 - No. 11 Tennessee vs. No. 6 Alabama	Alabama
Third Round: March 11	Noon	SEC Network	Game 6 - No. 8 Ole Miss vs. No. 1 Texas A&M	Texas A&M
		SEC Network	Game 7 - No. 5 LSU vs. No. 4 South Carolina	LSU
	6 p.m.	SEC Network	Game 8 - No. 7 Florida vs. No. 2 Kentucky	Kentucky
		SEC Network	Game 9 - No. 6 Alabama vs. No. 3 Vanderbilt	Alabama
Semis: March 12	Noon	ESPN	Game 10 - No. 5 LSU vs. No. 1 Texas A&M	LSU
		ESPN	Game 11 - No. 6 Alabama vs. No. 2 Kentucky	Kentucky
Finals: March 13	Noon	ESPN	Game 12 - No. 5 LSU vs. No. 2 Kentucky	Kentucky

I'm going with projected No. 2 seed Kentucky on this one. Sure, the Wildcats have dropped eight more games so far during the regular season than last year, but that doesn't mean this team is devoid of talent.

In fact, there is plenty of talent and athleticism on head coach John Calipari's squad, via the SEC Network:

Per usual, Kentucky is young, and not per usual—even for the Wildcats—they had to replace their top seven players from last season.

That would cause any team to experience growing pains, and Kentucky certainly has. However, Calipari knows how to prepare a team for the big stage as well as any coach, and this tournament is his for the taking.

As of Monday, Kentucky's RPI of 15 ranked better than any other SEC team, and it boasted seven Top 50 RPI wins, including three away from home. The Wildcats have just one loss outside the RPI Top 100—at Tennessee.

Even so, college basketball is anything if unpredictable, and there is no guarantee the Wildcats will walk away with a second straight trophy. Let's take a look at three factors that could keep them from bringing home the trophy.

Simmons Can Put LSU on His Back

The LSU Tiger is unquestionably the best freshman in the country and could quite possibly be the best player in all the land.

The 19-year-old Australian ranks first in the SEC in rebounds (11.8), third in field-goal percentage (56.2), fourth in points (19.6) and fourth in assists (5.0) per game.

He's had 11 20-point, 10-rebounds games, including a 43-point, 14-rebound, seven-assist, five-steal effort in a win over the North Florida Ospreys on Dec. 2.

Doug Gottlieb of CBS Sports Radio shared his thoughts in late February on Simmons:

The problem he is referring to is the fact LSU most likely will not make the NCAA tournament unless it wins the SEC tournament. That is certainly a possibility considering if a player like Simmons gets in a groove, it's easily conceivable he can carry the Tigers to three straight wins and the SEC title.

Aggies Upperclassmen Proving Worth

With a road game against the Auburn Tigers and a home game against Vanderbilt as the only remaining contests left for the Aggies, there is a solid chance they remain at the top of the standings and earn the tournament's No. 1 seed.

Senior guards Jalen Jones (15.7 PPG) and Danuel House (15.4 PPG) are two big reasons the Aggies are where they are. In addition, the solid play of freshman Tyler Davis (11.0 PPG and 6.0 RPG) has made Texas A&M a threat to go deep in the NCAA tournament.

This buzzer-beater from Davis against Kentucky on Feb. 20 could be the difference in the Aggies winning the regular-season title instead of the Wildcats, via the SEC Network:

The Aggies, who hold an upperclassmen advantage over Kentucky, may be the most complete team in the SEC. If they are firing on all cylinders, they pose the biggest threat to the Wildcats.

Inexperience Could Be a Factor

Although the Wildcats are not relying on as much youth as in the past, three of their top four scorers are underclassmen. Freshman Jamal Murray leads the team with 19.9 points per game, and sophomore point guard Tyler Ulis is the unquestioned floor leader.

Senior Alex Poythress and juniors Derek Willis and Marcus Lee play pivotal roles for the team, but it's still the younger players in Murray, Ulis and freshmen Isaiah Briscoe and Skal Labissiere who will be called upon in the tournament.

John Clay of the Lexington Herald-Leader wondered in a Feb. 27 column if Ulis is starting to run out of gas:

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Over his last four games, however, Ulis has made just 20 of 60 shots for 33 percent. The last two games, he's 10-for-33 from the floor and 0-for-10 from three-point range. On Feb. 18 against Tennessee, he made three of 15 shots. In Tuesday's win over Alabama, Ulis was 5-for-13.

True, his assist totals continue to be high. Before Saturday, Ulis had double-digit assists in four of his previous six games. He's turned the ball over just three times in the last three games.

Still, this late in the year, you wonder about all that floor time. Six games this year Ulis has played every minute. He's played 39-or-more — including Saturday — in 11 games; 38-or-more in 17; 37-or-more in 18.

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If that is in fact true and any of the first-year players hit a "freshman wall" come tournament time, Kentucky becomes a much more beatable team.

Prediction: Even with plenty of possibilities for a loss, Kentucky still is the team to beat with a Hall of Fame coach and a nice blend of talent across all four classes. Count on the Wildcats cutting down the SEC nets for the second year in a row.