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NCAA Tournament 2021: Tennessee basketball’s five toughest matchups in Midwest Region

By Caleb Calhoun

Mar 14, 2021; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Members of the Illinois Fighting Illini celebrate defeating the Ohio State Buckeyes at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 14, 2021; Indianapolis, Indiana, USA; Members of the Illinois Fighting Illini celebrate defeating the Ohio State Buckeyes at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports /
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Feb 27, 2021; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego State Aztecs players and coaches celebrate on the court after defeating the Boise State Broncos at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 27, 2021; San Diego, California, USA; San Diego State Aztecs players and coaches celebrate on the court after defeating the Boise State Broncos at Viejas Arena. Mandatory Credit: Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports /

 No. 6 seed

A hallmark of the Vols’ issues this year under rick Barnes has been struggling with teams that play up-tempo, shot lots of three-pointers and rely on pressure defense. If those team can rebound under the basket as well, then UT struggles severely.

Well, the San Diego State Aztecs can do all of those things. Fourth-year head coach Brian Dutcher won his second Mountain West Conference Tournament title and his second Mountain West Conference regular season title this year. He is able to go 10-deep with his rotation, as nobody averages more than 30 minutes a game, neutralizing a depth advantage the Vols have.

On top of that, six of the 10 players in that rotation, including four of five starters, are seniors. The fifth starter and two more rotational players overall are juniors. Simply put, they have experience. Then there is the talent. This team, ranked No. 16 in the AP Poll and No. 18 in the Coaches Poll, is No. 30 nationally in steals with over eight a game but also No. 37 in three-point percentage.

That means they play aggressive, generate turnovers and shoot the ball well from the outside. Other mid-major teams shoot well, like the Loyola-Chicago Ramblers and Liberty Flames, but they don’t play the aggressive defense San Diego State does. Two rotational players at 6’9″ and 6’10” give them the necessary size as well. This team can go deep in the NCAA Tournament.

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