LEXINGTON, KY – JANUARY 21: The Kentucky Wildcats huddle against the South Carolina Gamecocks at Rupp Arena on January 21, 2017 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)

Despite a surprising loss to Tennessee, Kentucky faces no suitable challenger in the SEC.

In the grand ol’ Southeastern Conference, they love their football. SEC football has plenty to be proud of and it shows in their championships, attendance, budgets and television exposure. But basketball still seems like a neglected middle child. They tolerate it and root for it when it does well, but zone out immediately on national football signing day or when spring football starts.

We thought the recent influx of name-brand coaches might make a significant difference. Mississippi State has Ben Howland, who took UCLA to three straight Final Fours. Tennessee’s Rick Barnes got Texas to the Final Four. Auburn hired Bruce Pearl, who made Tennessee relevant before he got into NCAA trouble. Frank Martin had a solid track record at Kansas State before coming to South Carolina. Heck, Alabama’s Avery Johnson coached the Dallas Mavericks to the NBA Finals.

Perhaps we thought wrong.

Other leagues take their hoops more seriously: look at the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Big East, Big Ten, and Big 12. This year, you really have to wonder if any team will seriously challenge No. 4 Kentucky (17-3, 7-1)? Until surprisingly stumbling Tuesday at Tennessee — on a night that saw No. 1 Villanova and No. 2 Kansas also fall on the road — asking if anyone in the SEC would beat the Wildcats was a valid question.

Bad road losses happen occasionally in conference play. Still, does anyone seriously think the rest of the SEC has a chance?

The standings tell us that No. 23 South Carolina (16-4, 6-1), No. 25 Florida (14-5, 5-2), and Alabama (11-7, 4-2) are right there. Realistically, however, the gulf between Kentucky and the SEC wannabes is a chasm. John Calipari is laughing maniacally at the competition.

With possibly the most lethal freshmen backcourt possibly ever (De’Aaron Fox and Malik Monk), unless the Wildcats suffer a key injury or are distracted by boredom, this would seem to be an easy walk to the SEC title. It would be the fifth regular-season title in Calipari’s eight seasons.

If it seems like Kentucky is playing a different game than everyone else, it is because that is exactly what the Wildcats are doing. They are the highest ranked major conference team — eighth overall in the nation — in pace of play. This is – by far – the fastest pace of play by any of Calipari’s Kentucky teams. Even the John Wall-led squad of 2009-10 was only 50th overall in possessions per game (72.4). These Wildcats are at 78.6 and by having more possessions, they stack the odds in their favor thanks to their elite talent. The more times Fox, Monk and Bam Adebayo have the ball, the more likely that possession will end in points.

Kentucky is second in the nation in offensive efficiency and third in scoring (92.9).

What do all these overwhelming numbers mean? It’s quite possible that after a non-conference showdown versus No. 2 Kansas at Rupp Arena this Saturday (Jan. 28), the Wildcats may not be seriously challenged until the NCAA Tournament.

According to the Sagarin ratings, the SEC ranks fifth among the six major basketball-playing conferences. In order: the Big 12, ACC, Big East, Big Ten, SEC and Pac-12. Sagarin.com and kenpom.com have only three SEC teams among the top 40: Kentucky, Florida and South Carolina. The Pac-12 has four: Oregon, Arizona, UCLA and Utah. And remember, the SEC has 14 schools to the Pac-12’s 12. Half of the 10-team Big East is among the top 40.

When Selection Sunday comes around, there’s a good chance that only three SEC schools will make the 68-team field. It will be the second straight year that the conference will put only three in the NCAA Tournament.

Who can challenge Kentucky? Maybe these teams have a chance.

South Carolina

South Carolina was supposed to at least making Kentucky sweat a little last weekend. Instead the Gamecocks never led, falling behind 23-6. They couldn’t even take advantage of the absence of star freshman point guard De’Aaron Fox (sprained ankle) who sat out the second half. Yes, South Carolina was without sophomore guard P.J. Dozier (back spasms). Still, other than Sindarius Thornwell scoring a career-high 34 points, this wasn’t an encouraging showing from a South Carolina squad that had been 3-0 vs. ranked teams.

Frank Martin: “We are a high-powered offensive team, and they came at us. We didn’t do a very good job of defending the basketball early in the game and they just rolled us and kind of put us on our heels. By the time the time the game settled down, we were down 18, 17.”

Rematch: Lone regular-season meeting. Teams might meet in SEC tournament.

Florida

FAYETTEVILLE, AR - DECEMBER 29:  Head Coach Mike White talks with Kasey Hill #0 of the Florida Gators during a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bud Walton Arena on December 29, 2016 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.  The Gators defeated the Razorbacks 81-72.  (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)
FAYETTEVILLE, AR – DECEMBER 29: Head Coach Mike White talks with Kasey Hill #0 of the Florida Gators during a game against the Arkansas Razorbacks at Bud Walton Arena on December 29, 2016 in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The Gators defeated the Razorbacks 81-72. (Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images)

Florida entered last week looking like a viable threat because it has played one of the toughest schedules in the nation and arguably toughest in the non-conference. Even after the Gators lost at South Carolina, they could at least say that all of their defeats were against ranked teams. But it’s hard to take Florida seriously after it lost last weekend at home… to Vanderbilt (9-10, 3-4). Vanderbilt has lost to Bucknell and Middle Tennessee. Florida allowed the Commodores to shoot 56 percent in the second half.

Mike White: “I don’t know if you guys noticed, but in our timeouts we had some finger-pointing going on. A lot of immaturity,” White said. “Our culture has really improved, but today we had a lot of ugliness that showed back up.”

Rematch: The Gators will host Kentucky in Gainesville on Feb. 4 and travel to Lexington Feb. 25.

Alabama

So far, Avery Johnson has exceeded expectations with a team that was picked to finish seventh in the league. The Crimson Tide got off to a 4-1 conference start, but came down to earth with a loss at Auburn. Their record might be a product of their schedule because they have not beaten a single Top 50 team. Kenpom rates them No. 76 with Georgia, Arkansas, Vanderbilt and Texas A&M all rated higher. Last weekend, Alabama was crushed at Auburn 84-64.

Avery Johnson: “In our recent games, especially in SEC play, when things are closely contested, we have been the type of team that has the mental and physical stamina, and the team that makes the better decisions in the second half to give ourselves a chance to win. That didn’t happen today.”

Rematch: The Crimson Tide will host Kentucky on Feb. 11 in the lone regular-season meeting.

About Michael Grant

Born in Jamaica. Grew up in New York City. Lives in Louisville, Ky. Sports writer. Not related to Ulysses S. Grant, Anthony Grant, Amy Grant or Hugh Grant.