Are The Vols Making The NCAA Tournament This Season?
By Zach Ragan
Jan 29, 2014; Knoxville, TN, USA; Mississippi Rebels forward Anthony Perez (13) falls into the Tennessee Volunteers bench as Tennessee Volunteers guard Jordan McRae (52) looks to pass the ball during the second half against the Mississippi Rebels at Thompson-Boling Arena. Tennessee won 86 to 70. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports
The latest CBS bracketology update has the Tennessee Volunteers making the NCAA tournament as an 11 seed.
The Vols have won their past two games convincingly, but they are still stuck in a strange Dr Jekyll and Mr Hide act that has fans constantly trying to figure out which team will show up on a given night.
Tennessee lost badly on the road to #6 Florida, but rebounded with strong performances against Ole Miss and Alabama, both of which were wins.
The Vols, at 14-7, are traveling down the same road they did a season ago. Although last season at this time they were 11-9, so things have improved a bit, at least in the win-loss column.
Despite the improved record, the Vols still have a lot of work to do if they want to lock down an NCAA tournament bid. Tennessee narrowly missed out on a bid last season as a 20-12 team.
I think the Vols need to have no more than 10 or 11 losses to guarantee a bid. They also need to win at least a game in the SEC tournament.
The Vols have 10 games left on their schedule, but there are some tough ones left, including a game against Florida in Knoxville and a pair of games against 16-5 Missouri. They also have two games against Vanderbilt remaining and a rematch against Texas A&M (the Vols lost to the Aggies 57-56 in Knoxville on January 11).
Best case scenario, the Vols finish 6-4 in their last 10 games and win a game in the SEC tournament, leaving them with an almost identical to 2012 record of 21-12.
If it plays out like that, the Vols will once again be squarely on the bubble and the seat under Cuonzo Martin will be scorching.
The Vols take on Vanderbilt on Wednesday night in a game that’s more important than most folks probably realize.
If Tennessee doesn’t make the tournament this season, you’ve got to believe there will be big changes coming to Knoxville.