History of SEC men's basketball tournament in Timeline
The SEC Men's Basketball Tournament is a single-elimination tournament featuring all teams from the Southeastern Conference. Seeding is determined by regular-season performance, and the tournament champion earns an automatic bid to the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. Notably, the official SEC championship is awarded based on regular-season records, not tournament results.
1933: Official SEC Champion Determined
From 1933, the official SEC Champion was determined by a tournament.
1950: Official SEC Champion Determined
Until 1950, the official SEC Champion was determined by a tournament.
1951: Round-Robin Schedule Introduced
Beginning in 1951, the SEC title was awarded to the team with the highest regular season in-conference winning percentage.
1964: Round-Robin Consisted of 14 Games
From 1951 to 1964, the round-robin schedule consisted of 14 games.
1965: Round-Robin Expansion
In 1965, the round-robin schedule was expanded to 16 games due to Georgia Tech's departure from the league.
1966: Round-Robin Expansion
In 1966, the round-robin schedule was expanded to 16 games due to Georgia Tech's departure from the league.
1967: Round-Robin Changes
From 1967, the round-robin schedule was 18 games due to Tulane's departure.
1979: Tournament Renewal
In 1979, the SEC tournament was renewed, with the winner receiving the SEC's automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
1991: Round-Robin Changes
Until 1991, the round-robin schedule was 18 games due to Tulane's departure.
1992: League Expansion
In 2000, the Arkansas Razorbacks became the first team since the league expansion in 1992 to win the conference tournament by playing all four days.
1992: SEC Split into Divisions
Starting with the 1992 season, the SEC split into Eastern and Western Division and began awarding division championships.
2000: Arkansas Razorbacks Win Conference Tournament
In 2000, the Arkansas Razorbacks became the first team since the league expansion in 1992 to win the conference tournament by playing all four days.
2008: Georgia Wins Conference Tournament
In 2008, Georgia win Conference Tournament.
2008: Tornado Impacts Tournament
In 2008, during overtime of a game between Mississippi State and Alabama, a tornado struck the downtown Atlanta area, damaging the Georgia Dome and forcing the remaining games of the tournament to be moved to Alexander Memorial Coliseum at Georgia Tech.
2008: Emergency Relocation
In 2008, the SEC tournament championship game was held at Alexander Memorial Coliseum at Georgia Tech due to an emergency relocation.
2009: Mississippi State Win Conference Tournament
In 2009, Mississippi State repeated that feat, defeating Georgia, South Carolina, LSU, and Tennessee to receive the conference's automatic bid to the NCAA Basketball Championships.
2011: Abandonment of Divisions
In 2011, the SEC men's basketball abandoned divisions, giving the top four teams in the conference standings first-round byes in the tournament. The bracketing became identical to the SEC women's basketball tournament.
2011: Divisions Eliminated
Starting with the 2011-2012 season, the SEC split into Eastern and Western Division will be eliminated.
2012: Old Tournament Format
Before 2012, the top two teams in both the Eastern and Western Divisions received byes in the first round.
2012: SEC Expansion
In 2012, the SEC expanded to 14 schools with the arrival of Missouri and Texas A&M.
2013: New Tournament Format
In 2013, the SEC men's basketball tournament introduced a new format where the bottom four seeds played opening-round games, and the top four seeds received a double-bye into the quarterfinals.
2019: Auburn wins Conference Tournament
In 2019, Auburn achieved the feat a second time, defeating Missouri, South Carolina, Florida and Tennessee.
March 2020: 2020 Tournament Cancelled Due to COVID-19
In March 2020, the SEC tournament was canceled after the first round due to concerns over the spread of COVID-19.
2020: Tournament canceled
The Tournament was canceled after the first round in 2020 and no MVP selection was made.
