The SEC/Big 12 Challenge is a major tentpole event in the college basketball calendar, with high-profile nonconference matchups in late January serving as a brief reprieve from the grind of conference play. Between them, these leagues feature nine of the 25 teams currently ranked in the AP poll, including three of the top five teams and seven of the top 12. Here’s a look at the best matchups in Saturday’s event and what will decide each game.
1. No. 10 Texas at No. 4 Tennessee, 6 p.m. ET
This matchup has the feel of an Elite Eight or Final Four game, and could have major implications on the race for No. 1 seeds in the NCAA tournament come March. It pits Tennessee’s vaunted defense that ranks as the best unit nationally based on KenPom against a Texas team loaded with veteran weapons on the offensive end.
