# 2011–12 Southeastern Conference men's basketball season

The 2011–12 Southeastern Conference men's basketball season began with practices on October 15, 2011, and ended with the SEC Tournament on March 8–11, 2012 at the New Orleans Arena in New Orleans.
This was the first season for the SEC's one-division alignment in men's basketball. The league's head coaches voted at the league's annual meeting on June 1, 2011, to eliminate the divisional format, starting with the 2011–12 season.

## Pre-season polls and teams

Pre-Season Poll:
| | SEC Media |
| 1. | Kentucky (18) |
| 2. | Vanderbilt (4) |
| 3. | Florida (1) |
| 4. | Alabama |
| 5. | Mississippi State |
| 6. | Arkansas |
| 7. | Ole Miss |
| 8. | Georgia |
| 9. | LSU |
| 10. | Auburn |
| 11. | Tennessee |
| 12. | South Carolina |
Pre-Season All-SEC Teams
| SEC Media | SEC Coaches |
| Dee Bost Mississippi State JaMychal Green Alabama John Jenkins Vanderbilt Terrence Jones Kentucky Jeffery Taylor Vanderbilt | |
* SEC Coaches select 8 players
* Players in bold are choices for SEC Player of the Year

## Rankings

Legend :
* Increase in ranking
* Decrease in ranking
* Not ranked previous week
| | | Pre | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Wk 16 | Wk 17 | Wk 18 | Wk 19 | Final |
| Alabama | AP | 17 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 16 | 23 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | | | | | | | | | |
| Alabama | C | 15 | 21 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Arkansas | AP | | | | | | | | | | RV | | | | | | | | | | |
| Arkansas | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Auburn | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Auburn | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Florida | AP | 8 | 7 | 10 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 19 | 17 | 14 | 12 | 8 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 22 | 25 | |
| Florida | C | 10 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 14 | 19 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 7 | 12 | 11 | 13 | 19 | 21 | 9 |
| Georgia | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Georgia | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Kentucky | AP | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| Kentucky | C | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| LSU | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| LSU | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Mississippi State | AP | | | 24 | 21 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 15 | 15 | 20 | 18 | 18 | 22 | 20 | RV | | | | | |
| Mississippi State | C | | | RV | 24 | 18 | 16 | 17 | 14 | 16 | 20 | 15 | 16 | 19 | 18 | 23 | | RV | RV | | |
| Ole Miss | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Ole Miss | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| South Carolina | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| South Carolina | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Tennessee | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Tennessee | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Vanderbilt | AP | 7 | 18 | 18 | 20 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 20 | |
| Vanderbilt | C | 7 | 20 | 22 | 19 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | | RV | RV | RV | 24 | 19 |

## Conference schedules
### Composite matrix

This table summarizes the head-to-head results between teams in conference play. (x) indicates games remaining this season.
| | Alabama | Arkansas | Auburn | Florida | Georgia | Kentucky | LSU | Mississippi State | Ole Miss | South Carolina | Tennessee | Vanderbilt |
| vs. Alabama | – | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 |
| vs. Arkansas | 2–0 | – | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 |
| vs. Auburn | 2–0 | 2–0 | – | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| vs. Florida | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | – | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| vs. Georgia | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | – | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 |
| vs. Kentucky | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | – | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 |
| vs. LSU | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | – | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| vs. Mississippi State | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | – | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 |
| vs. Ole Miss | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | – | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| vs. South Carolina | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | – | 2–0 | 2–0 |
| vs. Tennessee | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | – | 1–1 |
| vs. Vanderbilt | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | – |
| Total | 9–7 | 6–10 | 5–11 | 10–6 | 5–11 | 16–0 | 7–9 | 8–8 | 8–8 | 2–14 | 10–6 | 10–6 |

## Postseason
### SEC tournament

| Session | Game | Time* | Matchup$^#$ | Television |
| First Round - Thursday, March 8 ||||||
| 1 | 1 | 12:00 PM | #8 LSU vs. #9 Arkansas | SEC Network |
| 1 | 2 | 2:30 PM | #5 Alabama vs. #12 South Carolina | SEC Network |
| 2 | 3 | 6:30 PM | #7 Ole Miss vs. #10 Auburn | SEC Network |
| 2 | 4 | 9:00 PM | #6 Mississippi State vs. #11 Georgia | SEC Network |
| Quarterfinals - Friday, March 9 ||||||
| 3 | 5 | 12:00 PM | #1 Kentucky vs. #8 LSU | SEC Network |
| 3 | 6 | 2:30 PM | #4 Florida vs. #5 Alabama | SEC Network |
| 4 | 7 | 6:30 PM | #2 Tennessee vs. #7 Ole Miss | SEC Network |
| 4 | 8 | 9:00 PM | #3 Vanderbilt vs. #11 Georgia | SEC Network |
| Semifinals - Saturday, March 10 ||||||
| 5 | 9 | 12:00 PM | #1 Kentucky vs. #4 Florida | ABC |
| 5 | 10 | 2:30 PM | #7 Ole Miss vs. #3 Vanderbilt | ABC |
| Championship Game - Sunday, March 11 ||||||
| 6 | 11 | 12:00 PM | #1 Kentucky vs. #3 Vanderbilt | ABC |
| *Game Times in CT. #-Rankings denote tournament seeding. ||||||

### NCAA tournament

| Seed | Region | School | Second round | Third round | Sweet 16 | Elite Eight | Final Four | Championship |
| 1 | South | Kentucky | #16 WKU - W, 81–66 | #8 Iowa State - W, 87–71 | #4 Indiana - W, 102–90 | #3 Baylor - W, 82–70 | #4 Louisville – W, 69-61 | #2 Kansas - W, 67-59 |
| 7 | West | Florida | #10 Virginia – W, 71-45 | #15 Norfolk State – W, 84-50 | #3 Marquette - W, 68-58 | #4 Louisville - L, 68-72 | | |
| 5 | East | Vanderbilt | #12 Harvard – W, 79–70 | #4 Wisconsin – L, 57-60 | | | | |
| 9 | Midwest | Alabama | #8 Creighton – L, 57-58 | | | | | |

### National Invitation Tournament

| # of Bids | Record | Win % | R2 | R3 | SF | CG |
| 4 | 1–4 | .200 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Team | Bid Type | Seed | Results |
| Tennessee | At-large | 1 | W 65-51 vs. 8 Savannah State L 64-71 vs. 4 Middle Tennessee |
| Ole Miss | At-large | 2 | L 93-96 (OT) vs. 7 Illinois State |
| Mississippi State | At-large | 4 | L 96-101 (2OT) vs. 5 UMass |
| LSU | At-large | 6 | L 74-96 vs. 3 Oregon |

### 2012 NBA draft

    The following 1st & 2nd team All-SEC performers were listed as seniors: Dee Bost, Jeffery Taylor, JaMychal Green, Erving Walker, Terrance Henry. The deadline for entering the NBA draft is April 29, but once one has declared, the deadline for withdrawing the declaration and retaining NCAA eligibility is April 10. The deadline for submitting information to the NBA Advisory Committee for a 72-hour response is April 3.
    The following SEC underclassmen have sought the advice of the NBA's undergraduate advisory committee to determine his draft prospects:
    The following SEC underclassmen declared early for the 2011 draft: Renardo Sidney, Justin Hamilton Arnett Moultrie, B. J. Young, John Jenkins, Bradley Beal, Anthony Davis, Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Marquis Teague, Terrence Jones and Doron Lamb
    The following SEC underclassmen entered their name in the draft but who did not hire agents and opted to return to college: B. J. Young
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | Team | School/club team |
| 1 | 1 | Anthony Davis | PF | United States | New Orleans Hornets | Kentucky (Fr.) |
| 1 | 2 | Michael Kidd-Gilchrist | SF | United States | Charlotte Bobcats | Kentucky (Fr.) |
| 1 | 3 | Bradley Beal | SG | United States | Washington Wizards | Florida (Fr.) |
| 1 | 18 | Terrence Jones | PF | United States | Houston Rockets | Kentucky (So.) |
| 1 | 23 | John Jenkins | SG | United States | Atlanta Hawks | Vanderbilt (Jr.) |
| 1 | 27 | Arnett Moultrie | PF | United States | Miami Heat | Mississippi St. (Jr.) |
| 1 | 29 | Marquis Teague | PG | United States | Chicago Bulls | Kentucky (Fr.) |
| 1 | 30 | Festus Ezeli | C | Nigeria | Golden State Warriors | Vanderbilt (Sr.) |
| 2 | 31 | Jeffery Taylor | SF | Sweden | Charlotte Bobcats | Vanderbilt (Sr.) |
| 2 | 42 | Doron Lamb | SG | United States | Milwaukee Bucks | Kentucky (So.) |
| 2 | 45 | Justin Hamilton | C | United States | Philadelphia 76ers | LSU (Jr.) |
| 2 | 46 | Darius Miller | SF | United States | New Orleans Hornets | Kentucky (Sr.) |

## Awards and honors
### All-Americans

Starting on March 6, the 2012 NCAA Men's Basketball All-Americans were released for 2011–12 season, based upon selections by the four major syndicates. The four syndicates include the Associated Press, USBWA, NABC, and Sporting News

### All-SEC awards and teams

Voting was by conference coaches:
2012 SEC Men's Basketball Individual Awards :
| Award | Recipient(s) |
| Player of the Year | Anthony Davis, C., KENTUCKY |
| Coach of the Year | John Calipari, KENTUCKY |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Anthony Davis, C., KENTUCKY |
| Rookie of the Year | Anthony Davis, C., KENTUCKY |
| Scholar-Athlete of the Year | Patric Young, F., FLORIDA |
| Sixth Man Award | Darius Miller, F., KENTUCKY |
2012 All-SEC Men's Basketball Teams :
| First Team | Second Team | All-Freshman Team | All-Defensive Team |
| Bradley Beal Fr., G, FLORIDA Dee Bost Sr., G, MISS STATE Kenny Boynton Jr., G, FLORIDA Anthony Davis Fr., C, KENTUCKY John Jenkins Jr., G, VANDERBILT Michael Kidd-Gilchrist Fr., F, KENTUCKY Arnett Moultrie Sr., F, MISSISSIPPI STATE Jeffery Taylor Sr., F, VANDERBILT | JaMychal Green Sr., F, ALABAMA Justin Hamilton Jr., F, LSU Terrance Henry Jr., F, OLE MISS Terrence Jones So., F, KENTUCKY Doron Lamb So., G, KENTUCKY Jeronne Maymon So., F, TENNESSEE Trevor Releford So., G, ALABAMA Erving Walker Sr., G, FLORIDA B. J. Young Fr., G, ARKANSAS | Bradley Beal, G., FLORIDA Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, G., GEORGIA Anthony Davis, F., KENTUCKY Anthony Hickey, G., LSU Rodney Hood, F., MISS STATE Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, F., KENTUCKY Jarnell Stokes, F., TENNESSEE B. J. Young, G., ARKANSAS | Reginald Buckner, F., OLE MISS Anthony Davis, F., KENTUCKY Damontre Harris, F., SOUTH CAROLINA Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, F., KENTUCKY Jeffery Taylor, F., VANDERBILT |
| † - denotes unanimous selection |||||

### All-Academic

First Team:
| Player, School | Year | GPA | Major |
Second Team:
| Player, School | Year | GPA | Major |

### USBWA All-District team

On March 6, the U.S. Basketball Writers Association released its 2011–12 Men's All-District Teams, based on voting from its national membership. There were nine regions from coast to coast, and a player and coach of the year were selected in each. The following lists all the SEC representatives selected within their respective regions. (Note bold represents player of the year within that district)
* Bradley Beal, Florida
* Kenny Boynton, Florida
* Anthony Davis, Kentucky
* John Jenkins, Vanderbilt
* Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Kentucky
* Arnett Moultrie, Mississippi State
* Jeffery Taylor, Vanderbilt