Where Tennessee is seeded in ESPN's latest bracketology update
Tennessee basketball is surrounded by some familiar company in Joe Lunardi’s latest ESPN Bracketology update. Lunardi on Tuesday had the Vols as a No. 3 seed in the South Region, facing former LSU coach Will Wade’s McNeese State team as the No. 14 seed.
Opposite of Tennessee-McNeese State is No. 6-seed Duke, the team the Vols beat in the second round of the NCAA Tournament last March, with the Blue Devils facing either No. 11 New Mexico or No. 11 Cincinnati, two First Four teams.
Kansas was the No. 1 seed in the South Region, with Marquette as the No. 2. Illinois was the No. 4 and Alabama was the No. 5. Tennessee was a No. 1 seed in the East Region in Lunardi’s bracket a month ago.
The Vols (7-3) have won three straight games at home, beating George Mason (87-66), Illinois (86-79) and Georgia Southern (74-56), after losing three straight away from home, against Purdue (71-67), Kansas (69-60) and North Carolina (100-92).
Tennessee started the season 4-0, including an 80-70 win at Wisconsin on November 10 and a 73-56 win over Syracuse if the first round of the Maui Invitational on November 20.
On Saturday Tennessee is back on the road facing North Carolina State in a neutral-site game at the AT&T Center in San Antonio. Tipoff is scheduled for 10 p.m. Eastern Time with ESPN2 carrying the game broadcast.
Where the Vols are ranked
Tennessee dropped one spot to No. 11 in the NET rankings after the win over Georgia Southern on Tuesday. The Vols are 2-3 in Quad 1 games, 2-0 in Quad 2 and 3-0 in Quad 4. They have not yet played any Quad 3 games.
Tennessee currently has two wins over top-20 NET teams, with Wisconsin ranked No. 19 and Illinois ranked No. 20. The Vols’ three losses came against Purdue, Kansas and North Carolina, teams ranked No. 4, No. 15 and No. 36 in the NET, respectively.
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On Monday Tennessee moved up five spots in the Associated Press Top 25 to No. 12. The Vols moved up three spots in the USA Coaches Poll to No. 10.
Tennessee is No. 9 overall in the KenPom.com ratings, ranked No. 4 in adjusted defensive efficiency and No. 34 in adjusted offensive efficiency.
Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament under Rick Barnes
Tennessee under head coach Rick Barnes has been a No. 2 seed, a No. 3 seed (twice), a No. 4 seed and a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Last season the Vols beat Louisiana 58-55 in the first round and beat No. 5-seed Duke 65-52 in the second round before losing to No. 9-seed Florida Atlantic during FAU’s run to the Final Four.
Two years ago, No. 3-seed Tennessee lost to No. 11-seed Michigan in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in Indianapolis. The Vols lost as a No. 5 seed to Oregon State in Indianapolis in 2021 and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen as a No. 2 seed in 2019, before losing to No. 3-seed Purdue in overtime in Louisville.
No. 11-seed Loyola Chicago, the NCAA Tournament’s Cinderella team, made a run to the Final Four in the 2018, taking out No. 3-seed Tennessee in the second round.
