Before the focus fully shifts to the 2025-26 men's college basketball season, we're evaluating how this past season went.
With grades for the ACC, Big East, Big Ten and Big 12 already in, we're moving on to the SEC -- our final report card of this series. With a record-setting 14 NCAA tournament bids in 2024-25, it's no surprise the SEC earned the most A grades of the five conferences we've covered, and only the second without a single F.
Part of this process is straightforward: A good team that played like a good team will earn a strong grade, and a good team that played like a bad team will not. But it will be complicated for certain teams. Some had championship dreams. Others hoped to win just one game. Either way, we are judging each squad's season based on preseason expectations while offering grace on a case-by-case basis for any unfortunate midseason events.
Note: Teams listed in alphabetical order under each grading tier.
Jump to a team: Alabama | Arkansas | Auburn | Florida | Georgia | Kentucky | LSU | Mississippi State | Missouri | Oklahoma | Ole Miss | South Carolina | Tennessee | Texas A&M | Texas | Vanderbilt
A grades
Alabama Crimson Tide
Grade: A
Grant Nelson and Mark Sears -- two starters from the team that lost to UConn in Alabama's first trip to the Final Four in 2023-24 -- returned to help the Crimson Tide compete for the SEC crown, making Alabama the easy pick to win the conference title in the SEC's preseason poll. While the Crimson Tide ultimately finished third behind rival Auburn and Florida, they still boasted the best offense in the nation's strongest conference. Sears, an AP first-team All-American, led their electric scoring attack to the Elite Eight, where Alabama lost to Duke.
Auburn Tigers
Grade: A
From Jan. 13 to March 3, Bruce Pearl's program was ranked No. 1 in the AP top 25 while on a 20-1 run. Led by Wooden Award contender Johni Broome, the Tigers won the conference championship in the No. 1 league on KenPom. Although they lost to eventual champion and SEC rival Florida in the Final Four, Auburn -- which had just three NCAA tournament appearances in 30 years before Pearl's arrival in 2014 -- had a remarkable season, with the most wins (32) in program history.
Florida Gators
Grade: A
Last summer, Walter Clayton Jr. withdrew from the NBA draft to return to Florida after a season worthy of an All-SEC first-team selection. He wanted to prepare for the pros while helping the Gators win at the highest level in college basketball. Todd Golden had the solution: He moved Clayton to point guard and added talent like Florida Atlantic transfer Alijah Martin, which helped the Gators capture their third national championship (and their first since 2007).
The Most Outstanding Player of the NCAA tournament, Clayton also put himself in position for a potential first-round selection in this summer's draft -- he is projected to go 29th overall in ESPN's latest mock.
Kentucky Wildcats
Grade: A
There will always be a "what if?" element to this season, Mark Pope's first as the head coach of his alma mater, with top transfers Kerr Kriisa, Lamont Butler and Jaxson Robinson all missing significant time due to injuries. But the Wildcats never made excuses on their way to securing one of the country's most impressive résumés; wins over Duke, Florida and Tennessee (twice) stamped a season that featured eight top-30 KenPom wins.
It was a dominant debut for Pope, who had to build the roster from scratch following John Calipari's departure to Arkansas and took the Wildcats all the way to the Sweet 16, where they lost to rival Tennessee. One of America's top offenses also matured into a respectable defensive team, clocking in at 51st nationally in defensive efficiency.
Missouri Tigers
Grade: A
After a win over Wichita State on Dec. 23, 2023, Missouri recorded just one victory for the rest of that season. As a result, coach Dennis Gates, who had led the team to the NCAA tournament the previous year, faced questions about his future. But those questions were answered during this past season as Gates helped the Tigers orchestrate one of the greatest turnarounds in college basketball history (a 22-12 record after going 8-24 in 2023-24).
Duke transfer Mark Mitchell and veteran Caleb Grill were anchors of a program that beat Kansas, Florida and Alabama. The Tigers stumbled late and lost to Drake in the first round of the NCAA tournament but ended the season tied for sixth place in a loaded SEC after being picked to finish 13th in the preseason.
Tennessee Volunteers
Grade: A
In the final seconds of Tennessee's win over Illinois in December, Rick Barnes drew up a play that he had learned from legendary high school coach Morgan Wootten in 1980, when he was a Division I assistant. Barnes' experience gave him and the Vols an edge, winning 30 games for the third time in program history and the second time under him. They ran into a great Houston team in the Elite Eight and fell short against the eventual national runners-up, but that doesn't take away from how Zakai Zeigler and Chaz Lanier led one of the top teams in the country.
Vanderbilt Commodores
Grade: A
Considering how new coach Mark Byington was charged with rebuilding a program that lacked a tradition of success, it was not surprising when Vanderbilt was picked to finish last in the SEC's preseason poll. But the Commodores had other plans. Jason Edwards (17.0 PPG) was the centerpiece for a program that exceeded the odds by finishing in a four-way tie for seventh in the conference standings and reaching the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2017.
B grades
Arkansas Razorbacks
Grade: B
John Calipari's move from Kentucky to Arkansas was the biggest story of last offseason. With the help of financial backers like Tyson Foods chairman John Tyson, Calipari hand-selected the top recruits and transfers in the country. But a series of injuries ultimately affected the Razorbacks with Boogie Fland and Adou Thiero, their top two scorers, missing significant time. And while their 0-5 start to SEC play garnered headlines, a run to the Sweet 16 -- where they had a late lead over Texas Tech before losing 85-83 in overtime -- helped salvage an imbalanced season.
Georgia Bulldogs
Grade: B
Georgia's season only strengthens the SEC's case as one of the greatest conferences in recent NCAA men's basketball history. The Bulldogs earned a 9-seed as one of the league's 14 teams to have their names called on Selection Sunday, going 8-10 in conference play with wins over Texas, Kentucky and Florida. Considering their nonconference slate was anchored by a victory over St. John's, a Georgia team that was largely considered to be an afterthought entering the season -- the Bulldogs were picked to finished 12th in the preseason poll -- ended its campaign with wins over the Big East champion Red Storm and national champion Gators.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
Grade: B
Josh Hubbard, who averaged 18.9 PPG, helped the Bulldogs survive in the SEC to earn a trip to the NCAA tournament as an 8-seed. They finished ninth in the conference standings after being picked to finish 10th in the preseason poll, but their 8-10 record in league play was good enough for the selection committee, which is the only thing that matters. Chris Jans coached a team that did just enough in a stacked conference.
Oklahoma Sooners
Grade: B
It was a rocky year for the Sooners. After winning their first 13 games of the season, they went 0-4 to open SEC play before finishing 7-14 in their final 21 games. They still managed to earn their first trip to the NCAA tournament under Porter Moser, though, thanks to that undefeated start. Projected NBA draft lottery pick Jeremiah Fears was the young star of an Oklahoma squad that had wins over Louisville, Arizona and Michigan.
Ole Miss Rebels
Grade: B
Chris Beard had his most talented and balanced teams taking over at Ole Miss in 2023 -- the Rebels were top-25 in adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency on KenPom -- and he made the most of that with the program's first run to the Sweet 16 in 24 years. The Rebels managed to finish 10-8 in conference play with wins over Alabama, Kentucky and Tennessee. Sean Pedulla (15.4 PPG, 39.2% from beyond the arc) was an all-SEC third-team selection and one of six players who averaged double figures for the Rebels.
Texas A&M Aggies
Grade: B
Buzz Williams' squad finished 10th in KenPom's adjusted defensive efficiency, the first top-10 finish of his career. Texas A&M was picked to finish fifth in the SEC's preseason poll, which is exactly where it landed in the final standings. But with the conference's collective strength and a midseason injury to Wade Taylor IV (15.7 PPG), nothing came easy for the Aggies, who accrued nonconference wins over Creighton, Texas Tech and Purdue. A loss to Michigan in the second round of the NCAA tournament capped a subpar finish to the season (3-6 in their last nine games).
D grades
LSU Tigers
Grade: D
The Tigers finished 15th, just one slot below their predicted spot in the SEC's preseason poll. Matt McMahon enjoyed a successful run at Murray State, where he helped future NBA superstar Ja Morant develop his game before arriving at LSU in 2022. But McMahon has had no such luck with the Tigers, who missed the NCAA tournament for the third straight season and finished below .500 for the second time in his three years.
It wasn't a good season to be a mediocre team in the SEC.
South Carolina Gamecocks
Grade: D
The 2023-24 campaign was a dream for Lamont Paris and South Carolina -- the Gamecocks won 26 games, finished in a four-way tie for second place in the SEC and earned a 6-seed in the NCAA tournament. But 2024-25 was a nightmare, with only two conference wins. Still, the SEC's worst team managed to beat three NCAA tournament squads (Clemson, Texas and Arkansas).
Texas Longhorns
Grade: D
It seemed the Longhorns had everything a team could want. Tre Johnson, a projected top-10 pick in the 2025 NBA draft, averaged 19.9 PPG and had one of the best freshman debuts of the NIL and transfer portal era. They also had high-level transfers like Arthur Kaluma (Kansas State) and Tramon Mark (Arkansas) on the roster. But Rodney Terry was fired after they finished 19-16 (6-12 in SEC play) and barely made the NCAA tournament, where they lost a First Four game to Xavier. In an interesting offseason twist, the Longhorns then replaced Terry with Xavier coach Sean Miller.