Tennessee basketball: Ranking Vols 10 homes wins vs. top 5 Kentucky teams

7. Jan. 9, 1982

When Tennessee basketball upsets the Kentucky Wildcats at home and they’re ranked No. 4, no postseason success comes from it. That could be bad news for Saturday, but the Vols are already a lock for the NCAA Tournament.

Anyway, the Kentucky Wildcats in this game were a different story. They started the year No. 3 and were 9-1 heading into this game. Meanwhile, Tennessee basketball was in its fourth year under Don DeVoe and had junior Dale Ellis leading the way. After a rocky start, they opened SEC play upsetting the Alabama Crimson Tide and winning at the Ole Miss Rebels to get to 8-3.

Enter the No. 3 ranked Wildcats. They largely controlled the first half and went ahead 32-26. But Ellis, who played for 40 minutes, had one of his elite games, scoring 23 points on field goal attempts while also grabbing 10 rebounds.

The Vols pulled away in the second half, and they held onto their lead in the final minute to win 70-66. The upset was a huge deal, but in a rare instance, fans did not storm the court for it. They acted like they’d been there.

The win became part of an eight-game winning streak. It also resulted in the Vols winning the SEC, and they made the NCAA Tournament Second Round as well, finishing 20-10. But the nature of the upset and championship resulting from it make this a memorable one.