Later this week Kentucky will begin its quest for an SEC Tournament championship against either Oklahoma or Georgia.

We don't know how the path will play out, but we have a decent idea of what the first couple of games would look like.

Here Cats Illustrated staff members share takes and predictions on UK's path and how far the team will go.

David Sisk: Most of the Kentucky fans I have spoken with were fine with getting a possible quarterfinal matchup with Alabama instead of Tennessee just because of the law of averages. They also didn’t have a problem with being across from Auburn. It certainly isn’t an easy road but there is a path. I think Georgia will beat Oklahoma, and Kentucky will have a revenge factor in that game. Alabama is also Final Four good, and Nate Oats has proven he’s all in with the SEC Tournament. But if there is a game that isn’t chalk among the top four seeds, this is it. I’m taking the Cats to pull this upset and get to the semi-finals. I feel that Alabama and Florida back-to-back is too much. The prediction is that Kentucky will win two games and make it till Saturday before losing to Florida who is as good as anybody in the country.

Jeff Drummond: It took a lot to get there after a brutal run through the SEC regular-season gauntlet, but I think the Cats landed in a good spot with the No. 6 seed. None of the matchups will be "easy" in the classic sense of the SEC Tourney, but Oklahoma or Georgia on a neutral court should be a decent situation for UK. Alabama would be waiting next, and I kinda like the psychological aspect of the Tide beating them twice. I subscribe to the "due theory," and I think it would be hard for someone to beat a team as good as Kentucky three times in a season. If the Cats were in the upper part of the bracket, I think this could have worked in reverse with Tennessee. If UK can get to the semis, they will likely lock in a 3 seed for the NCAA Tournament and possibly position itself for a 2 depending on how the dominos fall. They would need two or three teams ahead of them to be upset early in their conference tourneys, but stranger things have happened. Mark Pope is saying all the right things about wanting to win this event, but I think everyone across BBN would be impressed if they reach the semis. Florida is playing as well as anyone in the league right now -- the Gators might have as much balance and fewer weaknesses than anyone in the country -- and for that reason, I'm picking them to claim the title in Nashville. My darkhorse would be Texas A&M, although that might be a stretch. They are the 5 seed, but I think darkhorse probably includes anyone that doesn't have a double-bye.

Justin Rowland: There's really no way this tournament could have been seeded that would have made it something you feel good about. As I mentioned yesterday, you're going to have to win four straight games against tournament teams and, very possibly, three straight against legit national championship contenders. Drawing Alabama in your potential second game is a challenge because the Tide has been a tough matchup for Kentucky this year. I do think Kentucky should be in good shape for its first game. They won at OU, one of only four road wins this year, and you have to think they'd be locked in against UGA after that loss in Athens. My pick is for Kentucky to defeat either Georgia or Oklahoma and lose to Alabama for a third time this year. Mark Pope's most common outcome in conference tournaments has been a win followed by a loss so I'll roll with history. The best thing about Kentucky's position is they seem locked into a good seed regardless of how it goes after that win at Missouri.