The SEC enjoyed a historic number of participants in this year’s NCAA tournament / Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The 2025 NCAA tournament is underway, and there are many eyes on how this year’s SEC teams perform.
On Selection Sunday the conference set a men’s record for most teams chosen to participate in the NCAA tournament field, with a whopping 14 schools making it onto the bracket. The selections ranged from squads that have dominated all year, such as Auburn and Florida, to less sure bets like Arkansas and Texas.
The SEC is clearly well-represented in March Madness. How those teams perform is a different matter entirely. As every fan knows, anything can happen in the NCAA tournament. This year could very well end up an SEC palooza in the late rounds— or the conference’s representation could end before the Sweet 16. The sports world has no idea what’s in store, and that’s why March Madness is so beloved.
With NCAA tournament play underway, here’s how the SEC teams are faring.
The SEC’s overall record is 8-6 after the first round. It’s a pretty disappointing showing after the committee thought so highly of the conference across the board. Texas didn’t even make it out of the first four, while Georgia and Missouri were thoroughly beaten down by their opponents.
It wasn’t all bad, though. The powerhouse schools of the conference expected to make a deep run, like Auburn, Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee all handled business without too much trouble.
The teams who made it to the second round of the tourney this year are Auburn, Alabama, Florida, Kentucky, Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Arkansas. Below are those teams’ second-round schedules.
GAME
DATE
TIME
No. 10 Arkansas vs. No. 2 St. John’s
Saturday, March 22
2:40 p.m. ET
No. 4 Texas A&M vs. No. 5 Michigan
Saturday, March 22
5:15 p.m .ET
No. 1 Auburn vs. No. 9 Creighton
Saturday, March 22
7:10 p.m. ET
No. 2 Tennessee vs. No. 7 UCLA
Saturday, March 22
9:40 p.m. ET
No. 1 Florida vs. No. 8 UConn
Sunday, March 23
12:10 p.m. ET
No. 3 Kentucky vs. No. 6 Illinois
Sunday, March 23
5:15 p.m. ET
No. 2 Alabama vs. No. 7 St. Mary’s
Sunday, March 23
6:10 p.m. ET
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 3 Iowa State
Sunday, March 23
7:45 p.m. ET
Georgia’s loss certainly qualifies as one of the most disappointing. Few expected the Bulldogs to make a serious run at a title, especially with Gonzaga as its first-round draw, but they got absolutely smoked by the ‘Zags. Texas’s defeat at the hands of Xavier stung, too. And while there weren’t the same level of expectations as other top SEC teams, Oklahoma’s narrow loss to UConn was a missed opportunity to upset the defending champs and Vanderbilt came awfully close
On the winning side of things, Auburn and Alabama both let their No. 16 matchups hang around for longer than they should’ve but snapped into focus in the second half and won by a comfortable margin. Arkansas defeating Kansas for their first NCAA tournament victory in a quarter-century was great for the program and a cool moment for John Calipari. Otherwise, SEC fans can take confidence in the end-to-end wins by Florida, Tennessee, and Ole MIss.
The SEC entered the tournament with more representatives than any other roster. Now multiple have been wiped away. It’s a poor showing in comparison to the Big Ten, whose eight teams went undefeated in the first round, and the Big 12, which exited the first round with a 6-1 record. The SEC kept pace percentage-wise compared to the Big East, which went 4-2, and definitely performed better than the ACC, clocking in at 2-3 after Round 1.
The SEC still has more teams left alive than any other conference.
There were 14 teams from the Southeastern Conference named to the 2025 NCAA tournament. Below you’ll find which teams were selected, as well as what seed they were entering play.
Team
Region
Seed
Auburn
South
No. 1
Florida
West
No. 1
Tennessee
Midwest
No. 2
Alabama
East
No. 2
Kentucky
Midwest
No. 3
Texas A&M
South
No. 4
Ole Miss
South
No. 6
Missouri
West
No. 6
Mississippi State
East
No. 8
Oklahoma
West
No. 9
Georgia
Midwest
No. 9
Vanderbilt
East
No. 10
Arkansas
Midwest
No. 10
Texas
Midwest
No. 11
