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Tennessee basketball: Vols inside Top 20, Lady Vols out of Top 10

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 21: Tennessee Volunteers fans cheer during the game against the Connecticut Huskies at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 21, 2012 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Connecticut 60-57. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 21: Tennessee Volunteers fans cheer during the game against the Connecticut Huskies at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 21, 2012 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Connecticut 60-57. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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The men’s Tennessee basketball team moved into the Top 20 of both the AP and Coaches Polls. Meanwhile, the Lady Volunteers fell out of the AP Top 10.

There are very rare moments in Tennessee basketball history when the men were ranked higher than the women. In fact, it almost never happens. But if the trends of this year continue, that could be coming closer than you think.

The men’s Tennessee Vols moved inside the Top 20 this week of the AP and Coaches Polls after wins over the Vanderbilt Commodores and Iowa State Cyclones. With the wins, they improved to 15-5 overall and 5-3 in the SEC.

As a result, they jumped to No. 18 in the AP Poll. The Auburn Tigers are the only SEC team ranked ahead of them at No. 11. And one of their losses is to the No. 1 team in the poll, the Villanova Wildcats, while they also beat the Purdue Boilermakers, another Top 5 team.

Tennessee basketball is No. 19 in the Coaches Poll. That’s because that specific poll had them  behind the North Carolina Tar Heels, a team that beat them in Knoxville earlier this year. It’s fair to keep the Vols below them for now.

Either way, though, the Vols are moving up when it comes to these rankings. The Lady Vols, however, have a different story to tell.

Their ugly win over the Ole Miss Rebels was followed by their fourth loss in six games, this time on the road against the LSU Tigers. As a result, they dropped out of the Top 10 to No. 12 in the women’s AP Poll. 17-4. Tennessee came in at No. 12.

Two SEC teams, the South Carolina Gamecocks and Mississippi State Bulldogs, are ranked ahead of them. Meanwhile, the Texas Longhorns join South Carolina as two teams the Lady Vols beat to be ranked ahead of them.

While their schedule strength continues to rise,the losses continue to pile up. They are now only one game better than the men’s Vols. And with the Texas A&M Aggies facing them this week while the men have two easy home games, don’t be surprised if Rick Barnes’s team is ranked higher than Holly Warlick’s team next week.

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