SEC Basketball to be 12 Team League with NO Divisions

The SEC will be one 12-team basketball league beginning in the 2011-12 season.
The conference's athletic directors approved a recommendation from SEC coaches Wednesday that they scrap the current, football-based two-division, six-team East-West split at the league's annual spring meetings in Destin, Fla.

Kentucky coach John Calipari, who chaired Wednesday's meeting, told ESPN.com that the coaches were hoping the divisional re-alignment would help get "eight teams in the discussion for NCAA bids.'' 

Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley said the athletic directors also passed the coaches' plan for the four teams with the best overall conference records to recieve byes in the SEC tournament.

Florida's Billy Donovan, Georgia's Mark Fox and Ole Miss' Andy Kennedy said there was a lot of discussion about 18-game schedules and Calipari said even a 22-game schedule.
Foley said a task force will be put together to consider the benefits of a 16 or 18-game schedule for 2013. That means after next season, Kentucky could play Alabama twice during the season instead of once or Florida could play Mississippi State two times rather than just once.