2017 SEC Baseball Tournament: South Carolina vs Kentucky Preview and How to Watch

SEC Tournament Day 3 Recap

#5 seed Mississippi State and #4 seed Arkansas started the action Thursday morning as they faced off in Game 8. The Bulldogs were victorious, sending Arkansas to an elimination game against Auburn. Mississippi State advanced to Game 12 to face #1 seed Florida at 12 p.m. ET today. The winner of Game 12 advances to the semifinals on Saturday, while the loser faces elimination tonight in Game 14.

The #11 seed Gamecocks emerged as the winners in Game 9 and sent the #10 seed Missouri Tigers home from Hoover. Carolina’s offense showed up in a big way, hitting four homers in the 10-2 victory. It was a fun win for Carolina, but they still probably need a couple more to get them into the NCAA Tournament. They’ll have a chance this afternoon against Kentucky to get a nice win from an RPI standpoint and boost their resume.

Game 10 between #4 seed Arkansas and #8 seed Auburn was shortened due to the run-rule, as the Hogs were up 12-0 over the Tigers after seven innings. It was a historic game for a couple of reasons, as Chad Spanberger set an SEC Tournament single-game record by hitting three homers and Arkansas pitchers combined for the first no-hitter in SEC Tournament history. The Tigers were eliminated with the loss, while Arkansas moves on to an elimination game in Game 14 tonight.

The late game on Thursday was a Game 11 matchup between #3 seed Kentucky and #2 seed LSU. This game was also shortened by the run-rule, as the Tigers beat the Wildcats 10-0 in seven innings. It was an impressive showing for LSU starter Alex Lange and the Tigers to be able to shut down the best offense in the SEC, and it earned the Tigers a spot in Saturday’s semifinal game.

(The field is down to six teams, but keeping track of the matchups and schedule can still be confusing, so go here to see it all listed out)

SEC Tournament Game 13 Preview: South Carolina vs Kentucky

The Gamecocks are 34-24 after their win against Missouri on Thursday. The Wildcats are 39-19 after their loss to LSU. Today’s matchup is an elimination game, so the loser heads home from Hoover while the winner advances to Saturday’s semifinal game to face LSU.

Despite the good offensive showing in yesterday’s game against Missouri, the Carolina defense was sloppy again and committed three errors. The Gamecocks will have to tighten up defensively if they want to have a chance against Kentucky’s potent offense. The Wildcats have outscored South Carolina 36-12 in four games this season and the Gamecocks will need to be clicking in all phases of the game to keep up with the Wildcat offense and have a chance to keep the season alive.

Carolina will send Adam Hill to the mound against the Wildcats. The sophomore RHP has a 3.30 ERA with 81 strikeouts and 36 walks this season. Kentucky has not announced a starter for the game.

(*Note: The stats in the table are through Day 2 of the SEC Tournament and do not include the Day 3 games)

When: 4 p.m. ET

How to Watch: On TV on the SEC Network or online via Watch ESPN

How to Listen: 107.5 The Game & The Gamecock Radio Network