Look: SEC Tournament bracket set with Tennessee as the No. 4 seed
Tennessee will face either Texas A&M, Vanderbilt or Texas in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals on Friday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. The Vols are the No. 4 seed, awaiting No. 5 Texas A&M, No. 12 Vanderbilt or No. 13 Texas.
The SEC Tournament bracket was officially set Saturday night, with Tennessee scheduled to play at approximately 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time Friday on ESPN.
No. 12 Vanderbilt and No. 13 Texas play Wednesday at approximately 3:30 p.m. Eastern Time on SEC Network. The winner advances to face No. 5 Texas A&M at the same time Thursday on SEC Network.
Tennessee beat Texas 74-70 at Texas on January 11, won 77-69 at Texas A&M on February 22 and split the regular-season series with Vanderbilt, losing 76-75 in Nashville on January 18 and winning 81-76 in Knoxville on February 15.
Tennessee clinched the No. 4 seed with the 75-65 Senior Day win over South Carolina at Food City Center on Saturday and with No. 7 Alabama beating No. 1 Auburn in overtime at Neville Arena in Auburn.
Auburn is the No. 1 seed and will face either No. 8 Ole Miss, No. 9 Arkansas or No. 16 South Carolina. Florida is the No. 2 seed on the bottom half of the bracket and will play No. 7 Missouri, No. 10 Mississippi State or No. 15 LSU. Alabama is the No. 3 seed and will play either No. 6 Kentucky, No. 11 Georgia or No. 14 Oklahoma.
Vols finished 12-6 in SEC play, won eight of final 10
Tennessee finished 12-6 in SEC play, winning eight of its final 10 games of the regular season, dating back to the 64-44 win over Florida on February 1.
The only losses over the last five weeks were at Kentucky on February 11 and at Ole Miss on Wednesday. Tennessee lost three road games in conference play by a combined five points, falling 76-75 at Vanderbilt, 53-51 at Auburn and the two-point loss at Ole Miss.
Top 10
- 1Breaking
Kevin Keatts
NC State fires head coach
- 2
ACC Tournament
Bracket set for ACC men's hoops
- 3
Chad Baker-Mazara
Claps back at Bama on Instagram
- 4Hot
SEC Tournament
Bracket set for SEC men's hoops
- 5Trending
Bruce Pearl
Defends Baker-Mazara after ejection
Get the On3 Top 10 to your inbox every morning
By clicking "Subscribe to Newsletter", I agree to On3's Privacy Notice, Terms, and use of my personal information described therein.
Tennessee started the season by tying a program record with a 14-0 start, including a 76-52 win over Arkansas to start SEC play on January 4. The Vols lost four of their next four of their next seven over three weeks.
Tennessee’s history in the SEC Tournament under Rick Barnes
Tennessee won the SEC Tournament in 2022 — the program’s first conference tournament championship since 1979 — after beating Mississippi State, Kentucky and Texas A&M over three days in Tampa.
The Vols played for the SEC Tournament title in both 2018 and 2019, losing to Kentucky in 2018 in St. Louis and to Auburn a year later in Nashville.
Tennessee was one-and-done in the SEC Tournament a year ago, losing 73-56 to Mississippi State before going on an NCAA Tournament run to the Elite Eight.
The Vols lost in the quarterfinals to Missouri in 2023, after beating Ole Miss a day earlier, and went to the semifinals in 2021 before losing to Alabama.
Tennessee played three games in the 2016 SEC Tournament, in the first year under Rick Barnes, beating Auburn and Vanderbilt before losing to LSU in the quarterfinals as the No. 12 seed. The Vols were one-and-done in 2017 after a loss to Georgia in the No. 8 vs. No. 9 seed game.
