The Southeastern Conference is more than just No. 1 Kentucky. 
Entering this season, the national perception of the football-dominated league was that the uber-talented Wildcats would storm through the competition on their way to a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. 
Kentucky has lived up to the hype, but others in the SEC have awoken, giving the once-dormant basketball conference new life and relevance.  
Entering Tuesday’s round of games, Kentucky sat atop the SEC at 8-0. Just behind the Wildcats was surprising Texas A&M, but following the Aggies was a cluster of teams — six squads were tied for third in the SEC at 5-3, including LSU. 
With nearly half the conference season over, it’s time to see how the top teams in the SEC have performed this season. 
Kentucky (21-0, 8-0 SEC): 
Kentucky coach John Calipari has pieced together one of the most talented teams in recent memory — nine former McDonald’s All-Americans on a 16-man roster. The result has been the nation’s most intimidating defense. With enough length and athletic ability to make any NBA scout drool, the Wildcats lead the nation in field goal percentage defense at 32.6 percent and are second in points allowed per game with 50.7. Kentucky also leads the nation in scoring margin at plus-23.4 points per game. 
Texas A&M (15-5, 6-2 SEC): 
The Aggies may be as hot as any team in the SEC. Since losing a double-overtime thriller, 70-64, to Kentucky on Jan. 10, Texas A&M reeled off six consecutive wins going into its tilt against Ole Miss on Tuesday. One of those victories came against LSU, which lost despite holding a 13-point, second-half lead against the Aggies. But Texas A&M will be tested plenty down the stretch. Six of the Aggies’ last 10 opponents had a 5-3 record after eight SEC games. 
Arkansas (16-5, 5-3 SEC): 
Arkansas leads the SEC and ranks 12th in the nation in points per game at 80.4. However, the Razorbacks have cooled off recently. In its last three games, Arkansas has failed to crack the 70-point mark, including a 57-56 loss to Florida on Jan. 31. But the Razorbacks still sit behind Kentucky as the SEC’s second-highest RPI team (No. 22) with three top-50 RPI wins against SMU, Dayton and Georgia.  
LSU (16-5, 5-3 SEC): 
The Tigers are still trying to put the pieces together, but they’ve enjoyed some success along the way. LSU is second behind Kentucky in the SEC with four top-50 RPI wins, including a 74-73 victory at No. 15 West Virginia in early December. But two crushing losses to lowly Missouri (No. 153 in RPI) and Mississippi State (No. 183) could prove fatal to the Tigers’ tournament hopes if they can’t string together some wins before the end of SEC play. 
Georgia (14-6, 5-3 SEC): 
After five straight league wins, Mark Fox’s club took a step backward in a 17-point road loss to once-sliding South Carolina on Jan. 31.  Despite an experienced roster and a No. 27 RPI ranking, the Bulldogs are currently without senior leading-scorer Marcus Thornton, who is battling concussion symptoms. With an unranked Seton Hall being the most quality nonconference win, there’s not much room for error in Athens during SEC
play. 
Ole Miss (14-7, 5-3 SEC): 
Much like the rest of the conference, the Rebels are a difficult team to figure out. Ole Miss coach Andy Kennedy has the best free throw shooting team in the nation to go with an experienced roster. Still, Ole Miss’ only top-50 RPI wins were against unranked Cincinnati and Arkansas, but it does get four of its toughest remaining games — Texas A&M, Arkansas, Tennessee and Georgia — at home.
Tennessee (13-7, 5-3 SEC): 
The Volunteers have one bad loss — an eight-point defeat to a Marquette with a 10-11 record — on their resume, but they also have a signature win against No. 22 Butler. But after a promising 4-1 start in league play, Tennessee has dropped two of its last three games. With a home-and-home against LSU, trips to Ole Miss and Georgia and a home matchup with Kentucky still on the horizon, the Vols have their work cut out the rest of
the way.
Florida (12-9, 5-3 SEC): 
This isn’t one of Billy Donovan’s championship teams of old, but a top-20 strength of schedule could have a lot to do with early-season struggles. But the Gators have rebounded from losses to Georgia, LSU and Ole Miss by collecting wins at Alabama and against Arkansas. However, Florida still plays both Kentucky and Texas A&M twice and LSU once more before the SEC
Tournament. 
You can reach James Bewers on Twitter @JamesBewers_TDR. You can reach David Gray on Twitter @dgray_TDR. 

Gallery • 1 Photos

James Crisp

Kentucky head coach John Calipari questions a call during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Alabama, Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015, in Lexington, Ky. Kentucky won 70-55. (AP Photo/James Crisp)