Here’s the updated 2026 SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament schedule
With Kentucky’s 87-82 victory over LSU in the first game of the SEC Tournament on Wednesday, the Cats will keep on playing at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
Next up for Mark Pope’s team: a date with the Missouri Tigers at 12:30 p.m. ET Thursday. That game will be shown on SEC Network.
Game two of UK’s postseason will bring an opportunity to beat a team that defeated the Cats in Rupp Arena earlier this season. Missouri knocked off Kentucky 73-68 back on Jan. 7 in the first SEC game of the season in Lexington.
That also marked Jayden Quaintance’s last appearance for the Cats — he has not played since due to swelling in his knee — and the final full game for point guard Jaland Lowe, who suffered a season-ending injury against Mississippi State three days later.
Missouri will have plenty to play for Thursday. The Tigers entered the tournament as an 11 seed in ESPN bracketologist Joe Lunardi’s latest projections for Selection Sunday. Lunardi has the Tigers as the final team to get a “bye” into the round of 64 and avoid the First Four games in Dayton next week. That puts Mizzou close to the NCAA Tournament bubble.
Kentucky was a 7 seed on ESPN’s Bracketology board heading into this week.
If UK can beat Missouri — the 8 seed for the SEC Tournament — it would earn a rematch with top-seeded Florida in the quarterfinals Friday. That game would be played at 1 p.m. ET.
Kentucky has not won the SEC Tournament title since 2018, which was also the last time the Cats advanced to the championship game of league tourney.
2026 SEC Tournament schedule
Wednesday’s games
Game 1: (9) Kentucky 87, (16) LSU 82
Game 2: (12) Auburn 79, (13) Mississippi State 61
Game 3: (15) Ole Miss 76, (10) Texas 66
Game 4: (11) Oklahoma 86, (14) South Carolina 74
Thursday’s games
Game 5: (8) Missouri vs. (9) Kentucky, 12:30 p.m. on SEC Network
Game 6: (5) Tennessee vs. (12) Auburn, 3 p.m. on SEC Network
Game 7: (7) Georgia vs. (15) Ole Miss, 7 p.m. on SEC Network
Game 8: (6) Texas A&M vs. (11) Oklahoma, 9:30 p.m. on SEC Network
Friday’s games
Game 9: (1) Florida vs. Game 3 winner, 1 p.m. on ESPN
Game 10: (4) Vanderbilt vs. Game 4 winner, 3:30 p.m. on ESPN
Game 11: (2) Alabama vs. Game 5 winner, 7 p.m. on SEC Network
Game 12: (3) Arkansas vs. Game 6 winner, 9:30 p.m. on SEC Network
Saturday’s games
Game 13: Game 9 winner vs. Game 10 winner, 1 p.m. on ESPN
Game 14: Game 11 winner vs. Game 12 winner, 3:30 p.m. on ESPN
Sunday’s game
Championship: Game 13 winner vs. Game 14 winner, 1 p.m. on ESPN
(All times Eastern)
This story was originally published March 11, 2026 at 2:48 PM.
