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Tennessee basketball: Vols 5 best seasons without hanging any banners

By Caleb Calhoun

PROVIDENCE, RI - MARCH 18: The bench of the Tennessee Volunteers reacts in the closing minutes in a 62-59 win over the San Diego State Aztecs during the first round of the 2010 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Dunkin' Donuts Center on March 18, 2010 in Providence, Rhode Island. (Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
PROVIDENCE, RI - MARCH 18: The bench of the Tennessee Volunteers reacts in the closing minutes in a 62-59 win over the San Diego State Aztecs during the first round of the 2010 NCAA men's basketball tournament at Dunkin' Donuts Center on March 18, 2010 in Providence, Rhode Island. (Jim Rogash/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images /

5. 2013-2014

Record: 24-13 (11-7)

NCAA Tournament: Sweet 16 (Lost to Michigan Wolverines 73-71)

Tennessee basketball’s last Sweet 16 appearance before this year was 2014, and that was a wild ride on its own. This was the peak year of the Cuonzo Martin drama, and it’s safe to say things got a bit ugly.

With Jordan McRae and Jerronne Maymon seniors and Jarnell Stokes and Josh Richardson juniors, it’s safe to say Martin entered this year in make or break form after back to back NIT appearances. He already had a tough task of living up to Bruce Pearl’s success.

But for the second straight year, he lost a key player to injury, this time being five-star freshman Robert Hubbs III, a guy he meant to be a huge part of his offense. As a result, his team stumbled throughout much of the year.

Midway through February, they were 16-11 and 7-7 in the SEC, and Pearl’s show-cause was about to be up. So fans started a petition that reached over 37,000 signatures for people to fire Martin and bring back Pearl.

Well, Martin’s team just began to win. They closed out the regular season on a four-game winning streak and won a game in the SEC Tournament to get a play-in NCAA Tournament game. Meanwhile, Pearl got hired by the Auburn Tigers, a kick in the gut for Vols fans. Martin’s team responded in admirable fashion.

The Vols beat the Iowa Hawkeyes in overtime for the play-in game as a No. 11 seed and upset the UMASS Minutemen in the first round. They then beat the Mercer Bears to reach the Sweet 16 and were a missed charging call against the Michigan Wolverines from reaching the Elite 8.

Overall, the run was a thrilling ride for UT fans, even those who wanted Pearl back. With not title, it felt like a huge accomplishment anyway. However, it didn’t last. Martin was gone within the month, taking the California Golden Bears job, and Tennessee basketball had to rebuild. That led to the Donnie Tyndall fiasco and eventually got them Rick Barnes. But this year stood on its own in terms of excitement.

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