This weekend No. 10 Kentucky hosts No. 6 Florida in the first game of the SEC schedule for both teams.

SEC basketball has never been as strong as it appears to be right now, but what does that mean for a top-10 Kentucky team?

Cats Illustrated staff writers take turns going through Kentucky’s schedule, making predictions on each game.

Jeff Drummond: Admittedly, this is a fairly optimistic outlook for the Cats heading into a brutal gauntlet of league games. Every game on this schedule makes you think a little bit, which is something I don’t think we’ve ever seen with an SEC slate. There are really no “gimmes.” After a 2-0 start, I have UK losing on the road at Mississippi State, and that’s the first of six losses I think Pope & Co. will withstand away from home. I figure they’ll lose at least one home game, and you can probably take your pick from Tennessee, Alabama, and Auburn for that one. Nobody would be all that surprised if they lost all three, but I chose Alabama for where it was placed, cooling off a four-game win streak. The big letdown game is at Ole Miss following the most hyped game of the season against John Calipari’s Arkansas squad.

Travis Graf: The SEC is going to be a gauntlet this season, perhaps the best it’s ever been. I think Kentucky comes out of the gate strong in conference play, but struggles with physicality and athleticism along the way. I have a hard time seeing them beating Tennessee or Auburn despite the three tries. They match up well with Alabama in my opinion, and of course everyone is going to have the Arkansas game circled, and I believe they come out of that one victorious. There’s a lot of quad one games left on Kentucky’s schedule, and I think they’ll build a solid tournament resume.

Justin Rowland: I’m confident that Tennessee, Alabama, and Auburn are going to win a lot of games, even in a very strong SEC. But the league champ could end up with a number of losses the way this gauntlet sets up for everyone. I’m confident that Kentucky should win at least 50% of its league games, but night in, night out is going to be a battle. There are a lot more SEC teams capable of coming in to Rupp Arena and beating a good Kentucky team than there have ever been before. So, brace for an exciting, challenging schedule, the kind that has propelled tons of Big Ten and ACC or Big East teams to high seeds in years’ past, and don’t get too hung up on any one loss.