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Tennessee basketball moves up in both polls; Lady Vols still ranked in AP

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - FEBRUARY 2: Cheerleaders of the Tennessee Volunteers pregame against the Kentucky Wildcats in a game at Thompson-Boling Arena on February 2, 2016 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Patrick Murphy-Racey/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - FEBRUARY 2: Cheerleaders of the Tennessee Volunteers pregame against the Kentucky Wildcats in a game at Thompson-Boling Arena on February 2, 2016 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Patrick Murphy-Racey/Getty Images) /
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Last week wasn’t a perfect week for the men’s and women’s Tennessee basketball teams, but the Vols still managed to make a huge jump on one side and offset a loss on the other. In the process, they remain one of the premiere programs in the country.

Rocky Top jumped to No. 6 the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll on the men’s side, a four-spot jump in both of them. That came after playing only one game last week, a 20-point win over the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday.

At 10-1 and 4-1 in the SEC, Tennessee basketball was a No. 2 seed in Joe Lunardi’s NCAA bracketology projections. Lunardi had them facing the No. 15 seed Cleveland State Vikings in the first round and in a weekend-opening bracket with the No. 7 seed Louisville Cardinals and No. 10 seed Florida Gators. The Gonzaga Bulldogs were the No. 1 seed in that region.

Jerry Palm of CBS Sports had a similar projection. In that one, UT was also a No. 2 seed that would face the No. 15 seed Grand Canyon Antelopes in the first round and in an opening weekend bracket with the No. 7 seed Oregon Ducks and No. 10 seed Wichita State Shockers. The Baylor Bears were a No. 1 seed in that region.

Rick Barnes’ team was No. 4 in the NCAA NET Rankings on Monday, which is the most important metric for the NCAA Tournament. However, for what it’s worth, they were No. 23 in the RealTime RPI due to a strength of schedule that is still ranked No. 89.

Women’s basketball still ranked

Last Thursday marked the Tennessee Lady Vols’ first game as a ranked team this year, and they lost a heartbreaker to the Georgia Lady Bulldogs. However, three days later, they beat a one-loss Alabama Crimson Tide team on the road by 26, proving they could bounce back.

That bounce back kept them in the AP Poll right at No. 25, which was a drop of just one spot. In the NCAA NET Rankings, they actually jumped up to No. 19. However, they are still No. 33 in the RealTime Women’s RPI due to the No. 81 ranked strength of schedule with a 9-2 record and 3-1 SEC record.

Both Tennessee basketball programs have high quality wins, the men beating the Missouri Tigers and the women beating the Indiana Hoosiers and Arkansas Razorbacks. This week, with the men visiting the Florida Gators and the women facing the UConn Huskies, more such opportunities will arrive, and they could shoot up the rankings.

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