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Tennessee basketball: Vols haven’t fared well against No.1 ranked teams in the past

By Billy Williford

LEXINGTON, KY - FEBRUARY 06: Admiral Schofield #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates during the 61-59 win against the Kentucky Wildcats in the game at Rupp Arena on February 6, 2018 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
LEXINGTON, KY - FEBRUARY 06: Admiral Schofield #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers celebrates during the 61-59 win against the Kentucky Wildcats in the game at Rupp Arena on February 6, 2018 in Lexington, Kentucky. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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DALLAS, TX – MARCH 17: Members of the Tennessee Volunteers team huddle before the game against the Loyola Ramblers during the second round of the 2018 NCAA Tournament at the American Airlines Center on March 17, 2018, in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /

Tennessee basketball is heading into a matchup against the No.1 ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs. Here is how the Vols have fared in the past against top-ranked teams.

Rick Barnes and the Tennessee basketball team has the opportunity to play spoiler against the No.1 ranked team in the land, the Gonzaga Bulldogs. This game will mark the second top-five opponent the Vols have played this season, losing to Kansas in the Championship Game of the NIT Season Tip-Off.

Tennessee hasn’t had much recent success beating the best teams in the nation. Looking back on the past ten years the Vols have just two wins with a couple of blowout losses to Kentucky. Maybe, that isn’t fair to compare considering the Wildcats were at their peak, and Tennessee was having some of the worst years in program history.

The Vols have played the No.1 ranked team 17 times in program history according to the AP Poll. They are just 4-13 in those games, so beating Gonzaga would be one of the best wins in program history even if it’s just December.

In this post, we are going to highlight the five times the Vols have faced off against the top-rated team in the land the past ten years. Before 2007, Tennessee only played two teams ranked No.1 in the nation. Of course, the Kentucky Wildcats and the other team was the South Carolina Gamecocks in 1969.

Tennessee hasn’t played against a number one ranked team since Kentucky in 2015, and that’s where we start our slideshow.

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