With the completion of Saturday’s regular-season finale games across the conference, the 2026 SEC Tournament bracket is officially set and was revealed by the conference to cap off the night. The tournament will be played from Wednesday to Sunday of next week in Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena.
The Florida Gators are the 1-seed in the SEC Tournament after winning the conference by three full games. The Alabama Crimson Tide are the 2-seed in the tournament, while John Calipari’s Arkansas Razorbacks and Vanderbilt round out the top four seeds. Florida, Alabama, Arkansas, and Vanderbilt will all have a double-bye in the tournament and begin their games on Friday.
The Tennessee Volunteers come in as the 5-seed in the conference tournament, followed by Texas A&M, Georgia, and Missouri. These four teams have a single bye in the tournament and will begin their path to the championship game on Thursday during the second round of action.
The other eight teams in the conference, including the 9-seed Kentucky Wildcats, will all kick off the tournament with Wednesday games during the first round.
Here’s a look at the seeding and tournament bracket:
2026 SEC Tournament Bracket
2026 @SEC Tournament Bracket pic.twitter.com/DvVa4ejH29
— John Bateman (@mayorofmilledge) March 8, 2026
SEC Tournament Seeding
- Florida
- Alabama
- Arkansas
- Vanderbilt
- Tennessee
- Texas A&M
- Georgia
- Missouri
- Kentucky
- Texas
- Oklahoma
- Auburn
- Mississippi State
- South Carolina
- Ole Miss
- LSU
Tennessee Basketball’s Path to the SEC Championship Game
Tennessee’s first game of the tournament will come against 13-seed Mississippi State or 12-seed Auburn in the second round of action. That game will tip off at 3:30 p.m. ET on Thursday afternoon in Bridgestone Arena.
If Tennessee wins and advances to the quarterfinals, it’ll set up a rubber match between the rival Volunteers and Vanderbilt Commodores on Friday. Tennessee beat Vanderbilt in Nashville in late February, while Vanderbilt got revenge with a win in Knoxville during the regular-season finale on Saturday night. A potential game between the two in-state foes would be the third time that the two teams have squared off in less than three weeks.
If Tennessee then defeats Vanderbilt, they’ll likely have a showdown with 1-seed Florida in the semi-finals on Saturday. There is obviously a chance that 16-seed LSU, 9-seed Kentucky, or 8-seed Missouri could go on a run and beat Florida, but the Gators are playing a brand of basketball that makes them the favorites to make it to Saturday’s game. Still, though, we’ll have to wait and see.
A championship game would feature a matchup against the lower side of the bracket, which is headlined by 2-seed Alabama, 3-seed Arkansas, and 6-seed Texas A&M.
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee Basketball and tournament coverage moving forward.
