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Tennessee basketball bracketology: Vols move up one spot in all projections

By Caleb Calhoun

Tennessee forward Uros Plavsic (33) reacts to a teammates shot during a basketball game between Tennessee and Vanderbilt held at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, Feb. 12, 2022. Tennessee defeated Vanderbilt 73-64.Volsvandy0212 1116
Tennessee forward Uros Plavsic (33) reacts to a teammates shot during a basketball game between Tennessee and Vanderbilt held at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., on Saturday, Feb. 12, 2022. Tennessee defeated Vanderbilt 73-64.Volsvandy0212 1116 /
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Last week, being on a five-game SEC winning streak and having won five of six moved Tennessee basketball up to the cursed No. 5 seed across all NCAA Tournament bracketology projections. More success since then has moved them up and out of that spot.

The Vols won a crucial road game last week at the Mississippi State Bulldogs and then controlled the Vanderbilt Commodores at home on Saturday, extending their SEC win streak to seven and having won seven of eight. In terms of standard rankings, this moved them up to No. 16 in the AP Poll and No. 13 in the Coaches Poll.

At 18-6 overall and 9-3 in the SEC, Tennessee basketball’s play has moved it up across all the analytical rankings too. They are No. 13 in the RealTime RPI, No. 7 in the ESPN BPI and No. 10 in the NCAA NET Rankings, the most important metric used by the selection committed.

A No. 12 ranked RPI strength of schedule, No. 6 ranked BPI strength of schedule and No. 11 ranked BPI strength of record has helped them in those two categories. Mississippi State was another Quadrant 1 win in the NET Rankings, moving them to 4-6 there while they remain undefeated across all other quadrants.

This resume now has the Vols as a No. 4 seed across the board in NCAA Tournament projections.  Joe Lunardi of ESPN has UT in the South Region facing the No. 13 seed Iona Gaels in the first round. The Arizona Cardinals, whom UT beat, would be the top seed in this region.

Meanwhile, the Vols would be in a weekend-opening bracket with the No. 5 seed Ohio State Buckeyes and the winner of a play-in game for the No. 12 seed. Lunardi has the Iowa State Cyclones and BYU Cougars currently facing off in that play-in game.

Jerry Palm of CBS Sports has almost the same bracket, with UT in the South Region, where Arizona is a top seed, and in a weekend-opening bracket with No. 5 seed Ohio State and Ohio State a No. 12 seed play-in game winner. UT would face the No. 13 seed Wagner Seahawks in this bracket, and the play-in game would feature the SMU Mustangs and West Virginia Mountaineers.

Mike DeCourcy of FOX Sports also has Tennessee basketball as a No. 4 seed in the South Region with Arizona as a top seed. He has the Vols facing the No. 13 seed Vermont Catamounts in the first round and in a weekend opening bracket with the No. 5 seed Michigan State Spartans and No. 12 seed North Texas Mean Green.

Obviously, after moving up last week, the Vols could move up even further with their two games this week. Both are Quadrant 1 matchups in the NET rankings, and if UT wins both of them, they should be looking as high as a No. 2 seed in some scenarios.

Five Vols who won the most. dark. Next

Things start with the Kentucky Wildcats at home tonight, which is a top 10 matchup across all rankings, but the Arkansas Razorbacks on the road Saturday could be just as tough. Simply put, there are some major opportunities about to come for Tennessee basketball, and Rick Barnes’ team needs to take advantage.

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