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NCAA Tournament 2021: Tennessee basketball fans’ rooting guide

By Caleb Calhoun

LYNCHBURG, VA - FEBRUARY 22: Darius McGhee #2 of the Liberty Flames dribbles the ball during a college basketball game against the North Alabama Lions at Vines Center on February 22, 2021 in Lynchburg, Virginia. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
LYNCHBURG, VA - FEBRUARY 22: Darius McGhee #2 of the Liberty Flames dribbles the ball during a college basketball game against the North Alabama Lions at Vines Center on February 22, 2021 in Lynchburg, Virginia. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) /
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INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 09: Algevon Eichelberger #12 of the Cleveland State Vikings celebrates winning the Horizon League championship after defeating the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at Indiana Farmers Coliseum on March 09, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA – MARCH 09: Algevon Eichelberger #12 of the Cleveland State Vikings celebrates winning the Horizon League championship after defeating the Oakland Golden Grizzlies at Indiana Farmers Coliseum on March 09, 2021 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Justin Casterline/Getty Images) /

5. Cleveland State Vikings over Houston Cougars

Friday at 7:15 p.m. ET; truTV

Sticking with the teams who wouldn’t face Tennessee basketball until the Elite Eight, this one is obvious. If Vol fans wanted a shot to go to the Final Four by the time they got that far, they’d obviously like to avoid Kelvin Sampson and the Houston Cougars, who are the No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament after winning the American Athletic Conference Championship.

To be fair, this is another one where either matchup would be okay. After all, Sampson’s track record in the Big Dance is not great. Like Rick Barnes, he has one Final Four appearance in his career, and it came in the early 2000s with a Big 12 school.

Anyway, nobody could deny that the Cleveland State Vikings, a No. 15 seed in the tourney, would be a more favorable matchup. At 19-7 under second-year head coach Dennis Gates, this team doesn’t really do anything special despite winning the Horizon League regular season and tournament championships.

Still, this is somewhat of an irrelevant take. Cleveland State wouldn’t make the Elite Eight even if it did upset Houston. A No. 15 seed has never made it that far. However, eliminating Houston could open the door for a more favorable opponent, provided it’s not the Syracuse Orange or the San Diego State Aztecs.

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