Tennessee gets No. 4 seed in NCAA Tournament's East Region

Tennessee is a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament and will face No. 13 Louisiana on Thursday in Orlando in the East Region. The 68-team bracket was revealed Sunday evening on CBS.

The Vols (23-10) entered Selection Sunday as the No. 4 team in the NET ratings, with a 7-7 record in Quad 1 games and a 3-3 record in Quad 2 games. They were 6-0 in Quad 3 games and 7-0 in Quad 4 games. 

Tennessee started the season with 18 wins over its first 20 games, climbing as high as No. 2 in the rankings after the win over Texas in the Big 12-SEC Challenge on January 28 at Thompson-Boling Arena.

The Vols enter the NCAA Tournament with a 5-7 record over their last 13 games, though, including the 79-71 loss to Missouri Friday in the quarterfinal round of the SEC Tournament at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.

“The biggest prize that we want to go after is still out there,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said on Friday. “… This team has been very resilient. I told you guys I don’t know if I’ve been through in all my years in coaching what we’ve gone through with the injuries this year. Right when you think you’re getting it all back, it doesn’t happen.”

Injuries have been an issue for Tennessee all season. Josiah-Jordan James dealt with nagging knee soreness between October and January, keeping him out eight games, and had an ankle injury sideline him for four more games in February. Santiago Vescovi has missed three games with a shoulder injury, dating back to January, and Julian Phillips missed four games in February with a hip flexor injury. Tyreke Key has missed three games, two due to an ankle injury and another due to illness.

“We’re going to be fine,” Barnes said. “… These guys, great attitude, great work ethic. Again, as a coach, I couldn’t ask for any more from these guys because they really do want to win. Again, we got a chance. I’m telling you, I think we’ve got as much a chance as anybody.

“If you ask me what I’m thinking of right now, one word it would be this team has been very resilient. There’s a lot of teams that would like to be where we are right now. There’s a lot of teams that won’t look forward to a matchup with us.”

Tennessee as a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament

Tennessee has been a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament three times previously. The Vols in 1981, when the tournament had 48 teams, beat No. 5-seed VCU 58-56 in overtime, then lost to No. 1-seed Virginia 62-48 in the second round. 

In 1999, Tennessee beat No. 13 62-52 in the first round, then lost No. 12 Southwest Missouri State 81-51 in the second round. The Vols went to the Sweet Sixteen as a No. 4 seed in 2000, beating No. 13 Louisiana-Lafayette (63-58) in the first round and UConn (65-51) in the second round. No. 8 North Carolina beat Tennessee 74-69 in the round of sixteen.

The Vols in the NCAA Tournament

Tennessee has been to the NCAA Tournament 24 times in program history and has a 23-25 overall record in the tournament. The Vols have been to the Elite Eight once (2010) and the Sweet Sixteen eight times (1967, 1981, 2000, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2014 and 2019). There have been 17 appearances for Tennessee in the round of 32.

Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament under Rick Barnes

Rick Barnes has a 25-26 record in 26 previous trips to the NCAA Tournament, dating back to 1989. He’s taken the Vols to five straight tournaments after missing the postseason in his first two seasons at Tennessee and COVID cancelling the 2020 tournament. Barnes is 3-4 in NCAA Tournament games at Tennessee.

The Vols were a No. 3 seed in 2018, but lost to No. 11 Loyola-Chicago in the second round. Tennessee was a No. 2 seed in 2019, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to No. 3 Purdue, and was a No. 5 seed in 2021, losing to No. 12 Oregon State in the first round. The Vols were a No. 3 a year ago, losing to No. 11 Michigan in the second round.