Jay Wright: Tennessee passed the 'eye test' to be No. 2 seed, 'could be a Final Four team'
Former Villanova coach Jay Wright on Saturday sounded like he believes Tennessee basketball has elite potential this season. If the Vols might have been seeded too high for his liking in the NCAA March Madness Bracket preview show on CBS.
The NCAA Tournament Selection Committee released their current top 16 seeds for the tournament a month out from Selection Sunday, with Tennessee coming in as the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region and the No. 6 overall seed.
“I like Tennessee,” Wright said why providing analysis during the show. “I’m thinking this is a little of an eye test by the committee, because they could be a Final Four team. They’re rated high here. But Marquette has six road wins and six Quad 1 wins. I thought they might have been a little bit higher.
“But I feel you on Tennessee. I think they’re a possible Final Four team. They are rated high here.”
Vols ranked No. 7 in NET with four Quad 1 wins
Tennessee is No. 7 in the NET, three spots ahead of Marquette. The Golden Eagles were the No. 7 overall seed and the No. 2 seed in the South Region, paired with No. 1 Houston.
The Vols have a 4-5 Quad 1 record, are 6-1 in Quad 2 games and a combined 8-0 in Quad 2 and Quad 3 games. Marquette is 6-4 in Quad 1, 4-1 in Quad 2 and a combined 9-0 in Quad 3 and Quad 4.
Tennessee has four Quad 1 opportunities left on schedule, hosting Auburn and Kentucky and going to South Carolina and Alabama, all in the final two weeks of the season.
“Tennessee is definitely strong,” Charles McClelland, the SWAC commissioner and NCAA Tournament Selection Committee Chairperson, said during the show, “and we’ll continue to look at them as we go through this process.”
Up Next: No. 9 Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt, Saturday, 6 p.m. ET, SEC Network
Tennessee (18-6, 8-3 SEC) hosts Vanderbilt (7-17, 2-9) on Saturday, the start of three home games over the next four on schedule. They go to Missouri on Tuesday, then host Texas A&M next Saturday and Auburn on February 28.
The Vols go to South Carolina on March 2 and to Alabama on March 6 before ending the regular-season schedule at home against Kentucky on March 9.
KenPom.com has Tennessee at No. 6 overall in the current ratings. The Vols are ranked No. 6 in adjusted defensive efficiency, giving up 92.6 points per 100 possessions, and No. 15 in adjusted offensive efficiency, scoring 118.9 points per possession.
ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi on Thursday projected Tennessee to be the No. 2 seed in the Midwest Region. The Vols were tied as the No. 8 overall seed with Kansas in Lunardi’s seed list and was in the Midwest Region with No. 1-seed Purdue, the top overall seed, No. 3-seed Iowa State and No. 4-seed Creighton.
Lunarid’s No. 1 seeds alongside Purdue were UConn (East Region), Houston (South Region) and Arizona (West Region), in that order. The No. 2 seeds were Marquette, the No. 5 overall seed, No. 7 North Carolina and then Tennessee and Kansas.
