Illinois coach Brad Underwood: No. 1 Tennessee 'can be in that national championship conversation'
When Rick Barnes and Brad Underwood started discussing a possible home and home between their Tennessee and Illinois basketball program, the Illini head coach jumped at the opportunity.
“I couldn’t wait,” Underwood said Tuesday night, “because I have known Rick for a long time.”
Underwood knew Barnes during this time at Texas, when Underwood was on staff as an assistant coach and later associate head coach at Kansas State. He faced Kevin Durant and all the other talent Barnes had with the Longhorns.
And he knew exactly what he’d be in for if he added two games against Tennessee to the Illinois schedule.
“I know how hard he gets his teams to play,” Underwood said. “I know how demanding he is as a coach. He’s won so many games, he’s won at every stop. So what better way to prepare my team?”
Vols beat Illinois in Knoxville last season
Tennessee started the home-and-home with an 86-79 win last December in front of a capacity crowd at Food City Center in Knoxville.
Dalton Knecht scored 21 points, Jonas Aidoo had 14 and Josiah-Jordan James and Santiago Vescovi scored 12 each, with Zakai Zeigler adding 11.
Illinois got 22 from both Terrence Shannon and Quincy Guerrier in the loss, while Coleman Hawkins scored 12.
“We went on the road there last year,” Underwood said. “It was a hard fought game. They won. And you know (Barnes) always going to have a team. He’s got resources, he’s got guys back. What better way than to help us?”
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No. 1 Tennessee at Illinois, Saturday. 5:30 p.m. ET
Now Tennessee (9-0) makes a return trip to Illinois (7-2) on Saturday (5:30 p.m. Eastern Time, FOX) with the No. 1 ranking next to its name. The Vols, who beat Miami 75-62 on Tuesday night in the Jimmy V Classic, moved up from No. 3 to No. 1 in both the Associated Press Top 25 and the Coaches Poll on Monday after four of the top-five teams lost last week.
Illinois beat Wisconsin 86-80 at home on Tuesday, bouncing back from a 70-66 overtime loss at Northwestern to open Big 10 play last week. The other loss for the Illini came against Alabama on November 30 in Birmingham.
“It just so happens now that they’re No. 1,” Underwood said of the Vols. “You knew they were always going to probably be top ten. But that’s the tremendous respect I have for Rick and the job he’s done.”
Tennessee is No. 1 in December. And Underwood said the Vols have shown enough early on to be considered a contender for the No. 1 ranking in April.
“And I think it’s a great opportunity for our basketball team to play against a great team who just happens to be No. 1,” Underwood said. “But they’re also a team that could can be in that national championship conversation.”
