Kentucky received 20 first-place votes and was the preseason pick by a panel of SEC and national media members to win the SEC women's basketball championship.
Tennessee, under first-year head coach Holly Warlick, received two first-place votes but were picked to finish fourth. The Lady Vols, who lost five seniors from last year's team, were shut out on the All-SEC first team. Junior guard Meighan Simmons made the second team.
As the reigning conference regular season champions, Kentucky returns 10 letterwinners and four starters from last season's NCAA Elite Eight squad, including SEC Player of the Year A'dia Mathies, SEC Freshman of the Year Bria Goss and NCAA Tournament Kingston All-Region team member Samarie Walker. The Wildcats also welcome back sophomore guard Jennifer O'Neill, who sat out the 2011-12 season due to injury, and junior forward DeNesha Stallworth, an All-Pac-10 selection, will see her first action after sitting out last season due to transfer regulations.
Kentucky tops the order of finish with 376 points, with Georgia (352), Vanderbilt (336), Tennessee (316), Texas A&M (284), LSU (251) and South Carolina (194) rounding out the top half of the league. Arkansas (168), Florida (144), Auburn (124), Mississippi State (116), Ole Miss (47), Missouri (39) and Alabama (36) round out the bottom half.
Kentucky's A'dia Mathies was the overwhelming choice of the media for SEC Women's Basketball Player of the Year with 20 votes, the remaining votes were for Vanderbilt's Christina Foggie, Florida's Jennifer George and Georgia's Anne Marie Armstrong.
Joining Mathies on the All-SEC First Team are Jennifer George, Florida; Anne Marie Armstrong, Georgia; Kelsey Bone, Texas A&M; and Christina Foggie, Vanderbilt.
SEC Basketball Media Day is Thursday in Hoover, Alabama. The coaches poll will be released on Nov. 6.
SEC preseason media poll
Order of Finish (first place votes) votes
1. Kentucky (20), 376
2. Georgia (1), 352
3. Vanderbilt (2), 336
4. Tennessee (2), 316
5. Texas A&M (1), 284
6. LSU, 251
7. South Carolina, 194
8. Arkansas, 168
9. Florida, 144
10. Auburn, 124
11. Mississippi State, 116
12. Ole Miss, 47
13. Missouri, 39
14. Alabama, 36
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 18
rclarkvols#224537 writes:
Fourth. Be Serious. I guess Holly will win coach of the year in her first season as head couch because there is no way Tennessee finishes fourth.
KennyGVolsFan writes:
Fourth is a bit absurd, don't you think??
I do agree that if we win the regular season and the tournament that Holly will be named coach of the year. I see a couple of players making the first team selection and us having the SEC player of the year in Jasmine Phillips!!!
Tennessee has a lot to prove. It appears that the SEC along with national media is no longer going to take Tennessee seriously!! Lets prove them WRONG!!! Go Lady VOLS!!!!
volboy81 writes:
Guess we will have to show them, huh!
can't wait til Alabama's football team is picked to be where their women's basketball team is now!
OrangeBloodFlood writes:
I love Pat Summit and wish her all the best but the above poll result is a result of her letting the game pass her by,just as Phil Fulmer did.Winning nowdays is about getting the best players and putting them in a good system and we have not done that for a while.Better hope Mercedes Russell decides to be a Vol.
vettefool writes:
I often wonder what last years team would have accomplished if coach summit had been healthy. they so underachieved it seemed, except for Glory. we will never know for sure. I hope Holly will be sucessful, but I do have my doubts. hope to be proven wrong.
BruisedOrange writes:
As a fan, I like the exceedingly rare opportunity for the LVs to be a surprise team.
But then I wonder... how many of those All-America Lady Vols have EVER entered a season being doubted by their opponents, and being asked by their coaches to over-achieve? Who knows if they've got that inside them?
budd#207344 writes:
Over the past six years there have been four teams that have won a NC.
Baylor 1 NC, six year total wins = 181
Uconn 2 NC, six year total wins = 215
Texas A&M 1 NC six year total wins = 164
UT 2 NC , six year total wins = 185.
There are approx. 120 D1 women's basketball teams. Lat year may have been down but there is nothing in the record to suggest Pat Summitt was passed by in coaching or recruiting. The above poll is by the same people who picked the men to finish fourth. The men are retuning 85% of last years scoring and a first team SEC player who will be better than last year. so don't put too much stock in what these guys say.
ladivolfan writes:
Pre-season 4th will make them work even harder. I'd rather see them go in 4th with something to prove than 1st and watch them play like they think they've got it in the bag.
snowpeapod#263184 writes:
Please don't post like a moron. Take a deep breath and think about what you said. The game didn't pass Pat but instead she passed the game several years ago and that's why so many teams are competing on a National Championship level. Pat has done more for women's basketball than any person on the planet, period!!!
rtrchatt writes:
Pigs will fly before that happens volboy...
6 in row and more on the way for rocky flop, the home away from home of ALABAMA FB.
Theo writes:
Good God don't you have anything else to do than show your a... about Alabama football? Why don't you tell us about something of interest like whose trial will be up first the tree killer or the guy who sexually assaulted an LSU fan? We had a Gump in our section on Saturday and I don't know what he was more excited about - running water in the bathrooms or his new tooth. Anyway, Saban will leave soon and this worm will turn.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
That's for sure..I guess they think life after Pat will be disastrous.
BIVOLAR_BEARE writes:
Have you noticed wings sprouting out from your shoulders?
62vol writes:
So, lets go to Walmart and simply get a bunch of great players as if were so easy to do.
Really? That simple?
So a top 4 program is not a good system? Really?
SoddyVol writes:
Soon we get to see just how good Holly is as Head Coach. With all the new players and her being in total control, she will be able to mold them into her own team. By the time they play Kentucky on March 3, I will be surprised if they don't improve and start playing like leaders of the Conference. The Ky. crowd shouldn't bother them too much after the very tough non-conference schedule.
volsgirl writes:
Will see poll mean nothing !!!!!! Go Vols
maxvolfan#217855 writes:
Ok I can maybe see KY but Ga and Vandy ahead of us ? No way !
madrigal writes:
The pollsters are disrespecting Holly because she's not Pat and this is her first year. They don't seem to understand that she's been in the system her whole career and bought into it. I think they'll be surprised.
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