The SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament Facts and Info
The 14 SEC teams will be seeded 1-14 based on their regular season conference finish.
Atlanta has hosted the SEC Basketball Tournament on 12 previous occasions, and served as host of the inaugural SEC Tournament played following the 1932-33 season.
Kentucky has won the most SEC Tournament titles with 27. Alabama is next in line with 6. Since 1979, 21 of the SEC Tournament champions have advanced to at least the Sweet 16. Three of the last 15 SEC Tournament champions (Kentucky ‘12, Florida ‘06, ‘07) have gone on to win national championships.
Mark Fox’s Georgia Bulldogs have surprised many this year by posting a winning record in SEC Conference play.
The games begin at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, 1 p.m. Thursday - Saturday, and 3:15 p.m. on Sunday.
The Georgia Dome will be configured to seat 24,000 fans.
A $300 ticket book consists of seven tickets, one for each session, which allows 1 person to attend all 13 games.
Students of participating SEC schools may purchase $10 game tickets with valid student ID at the Georgia Dome Box Office windows.
March Madness 2014 resumes Wednesday where it left off in 2013, when the Louisville Cardinals cut down the nets at the Georgia Dome to claim NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship.
This year, that means the SEC Men's Basketball Championship, and more than 40,000 rabid hoop fans flocking to Atlanta and the Georgia Dome for a week's worth of buzzer beaters, slam dunks, fan activities, and seeing what Atlanta has to offer. The winner gets the SEC's automatic bid to the NCAA Basketball Championships.
The SEC tourney runs March 12-16, with “play in” games starting at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 12. It all wraps up, as a champion will be crowned on Sunday, March 16, at 3:15 p.m. in a nationally televised game on ESPN.
For fans of SEC “new bloods” in Texas A&M and Missouri, this may be their first trip to Atlanta for basketball.
“We always make sure it’s fun for those that don’t even have a ticket,” explains Dan Corso, Executive Director of the Atlanta Sports Council. “But we welcome those who want to experience Atlanta with all of our attractions, bars, and restaurants.”
Here’s what basketball fans might want to check out:
Georgia Aquarium
The world's largest aquarium, the Georgia Aquarium, features more than 100,000 animals housed in 8 million gallons of fresh and marine water that make up six permanent exhibit areas. Attractions include the AT&T Dolphin Tales show, and regular visitors know that Deepo's Undersea 3D Wondershow is both educational, and entertaining. Buy your tickets ahead of time; and the last ticket is sold 30 minutes before closing.
Georgia Aquarium, 225 Baker St., Atlanta; Open 9 a.m. - 9 p.m. daily during the SEC Tournament; www.georgiaaquarium.org
Inside CNN Studio Tour
If you have an hour or two before your team takes the court, CNN Center is a few hundred yards from the Georgia Dome. The 55-minute guided Inside CNN Studio Tour gives you behind-the-scenes access at CNN.
CNN, One CNN Center, Atlanta; Daily 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. $15, www.cnn.com/tour
Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site
Visit the home of one of America's great leaders of the 20th century. Historic Ebenezer Baptist Church has recorded sermons playing in the sanctuary, and a trip to the museum round out the tour. You can also take a few moments to sit quietly by the grave of the Nobel laureate and his wife Coretta Scott King a short distance east of the Georgia Dome on Auburn Avenue.
The park opens at 9 a.m. and closes at 5 p.m. The first tour of Dr. King’s Birth Home starts at 10 a.m. and the last tour is 4:30 p.m. Free. 450 Auburn Ave. NE. http://www.nps.gov/malu/contacts.htm
SkyView Atlanta
Atlanta's newest attraction is a 20-story high Ferris wheel that gives breathtaking views of the city of Atlanta. Located outside the southern entrance to Centennial Olympic Park, a relaxing ride on SkyView might ease the pain of your team's last-second defeat in the Georgia Dome.
SkyView Atlanta, Parking in LAZ parking deck off Luckie Street; $13.50 for adults and $8.50 for 12 and under, www.skyviewatlanta.com
Atlanta Movie Tours/Big Zombie Tours
Basketball fans, who also may be fans of the hit television show, The Walking Dead, can walk two blocks from the Georgia Dome to Castleberry Hill and catch a bus tour to filming locales of The Walking Dead. Tours run Saturday and Sunday, and there also is an additional tour that takes visitors to other locations, where famous movies were filmed in the Atlanta area.
Atlanta Movie Tours, Tickets are $65, Make reservations at www.atlantamovietours.com
Sunkist Soda SEC FanFare
The Sunkist Soda SEC FanFare will roll into town with the SEC Basketball Tournament. Basketball fans of all ages can experience interactive games, live entertainment, exhibits, autographs, and interaction with former SEC Basketball legends. Admission all weekend in free.
Sunkist Soda SEC FanFare, Between GWCC and Georgia Dome, Free, Thur/Fri 10 a.m. - 7 p.m. and Sat/Sun 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Blue Invasion
No team will be represented better in Atlanta than the Kentucky Wildcats. Even though they may not be a national title contender this year, UK fans will be wearing that Kentucky Blue and be seen in every corner of Downtown Atlanta.
Atlantan, Joey Campbell, 35, is the owner of the Kentucky sports fan site, Bigbluelowdown.com, and a veteran of many SEC Basketball Tournaments. He says UK fans flock to Atlanta because it's a short drive down I-75, the "big city" atmosphere and the hospitality.
“For visitors staying in the city center, everything is accessible,” said Campbell. “Also, the fact that no SEC school is based in Atlanta makes it sort of an open territory.”
Campbell says over the years, hundreds of thousands of fans from the Bluegrass State have come to Atlanta to watch SEC action featuring the Wildcats. In short, downtown Atlanta businesses want the UK fans to stay all week.
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