Rick Barnes breaks down if playing top teams is advantage heading into SEC Tournament

Tennessee men’s basketball put together a successful regular season – compiling a 23-7 overall record with a 14-4 mark in SEC play to earn the No. 2 seed for the SEC Tournament. Coming into the postseason with nine wins in their last 10 outings, the Volunteers look to be a legitimate postseason contender.

While Tennessee is on a row heading into March Madness, the Volunteers’ wins to close the regular season didn’t come against weak opponents by any means. Instead, Rick Barnes’ club had to face off with teams such as Kentucky, Auburn and Arkansas – and they were able to find ways to win.

With the regular season in the books, Tennessee’s full attention is now on making a run this postseason – and Barnes made that clear. During his postgame press conference Saturday following the Volunteers’ win over Arkansas, the head coach was asked if playing the top teams in the SEC late in the regular season is an advantage heading into tournament time.

“It seems like it’s been forever since we’ve played Arkansas, and it was just a few weeks ago, I think,” Barnes said. “The season runs together so much and you really are just thinking day-to-day with it. I think if you go back and look, the way that we started the season – we had to go to LSU and Alabama, two teams that were picked up there. Then, Auburn puts together a great season and Arkansas, they’ve done a terrific job. It’s been hard – I can tell you. I think we’ll learn a lot – and we need to.”

Although it’s been a tough stretch for Tennessee, the Volunteers have been able to find ways to come out on top – and they’re hoping they can continue to do so.

“Now, you’re in tournament play,” Barnes said. “If you have let-ups and keep throwing lifelines at the wrong time, it ends your season. I hope our guys can realize they’ve had a really nice regular season and they should be complimented for that, but we have to get better.”

Tennessee will open play in the SEC Tournament in Friday’s quarterfinal round against the winner of No. 7 South Carolina and No. 10 Mississippi State. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET on the SEC Network.