March Madness: Lady Vols lucky to be hosting their first two games of NCAA Tournament

They stumbled badly down the stretch of the season, going from 18-1 and a unanimous No. 1 seed to finishing 23-8. However, the Tennessee Lady Vols still get the first two rounds of March Madness at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn., and that’s a big deal.

Rocky Top earned a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament, which was revealed on the ESPN women’s basketball Selection Sunday show. They will face the No. 13 seed Buffalo Bulls in the first round and either the No. 12 seed Belmont Bruins or No. 5 seed Oregon Ducks in the second round, all at home.

UT is in the Wichita Region, where the Louisville Cardinals are the No. 1 seed. After finishing third in the SEC regular season, behind the LSU Tigers and South Carolina Gamecocks, with an 11-5 record, the Lady Vols lost in the SEC Tournament semifinals to the eventual SEC Champion Kentucky Wildcats.

Outside of the RPI, all rankings had Kellie Harper’s team firmly in the No. 5 seed range. That’s why it’s a bit shocking that they still earned the No. 4 seed. However, that RPI had them in the top eight, giving them credibility to claim a No. 2 seed. As a result, entering March Madness a No. 4 seed isn’t crazy.

Sure, they struggled down the stretch, but they obviously have an excuse. They lost Keyen Green for the year and then Jordan Horston potentially for the year. Horston still may come back for the tournament. That follows Rae Burrell missing the first half of the year.

When you combine all of that with Marta Suárez suffering a season-ending injury before the year even started, the Selection Committee may have felt the Lady Vols deserved a sympathy nod at the 4-seed. On the other hand, they have the credibility for the seed.

The Lady Vols played two of the four No. 1 seeds in the South Carolina Gamecocks and Stanford Cardinal, and they played two of the No. 2 seeds in the UConn Huskies and Texas Longhorns. They actually beat Texas, so they didn’t run from competition, and they got quality wins in the process.

In fact, the Lady Vols have 10 wins against teams in the tournament, including Texas. They also beat the Virginia Tech Hokies, a No. 5 seed, the Kansas Jayhawks, UCF Knights, a No. 7  seed, the Kansas Jayhawks, a No. 8 seed and the USF Bulls, a No. 9 seed. That’s just non-conference play.

When it comes to the SEC, the Lady Vols did beat Kentucky, a No. 6 seed, in the regular season, along with the Georgia Bulldogs, another No. 6 seed. They also beat the Ole Miss Rebels, a No. 7 seed, and they swept the Arkansas Razorbacks, a No. 10 seed. Simply put, this team has a March Madness resume.

Making matters more interesting is the fact that Harper’s former team, the Missouri State Lady Bears, gave a play-in game for the No. 11 seed in the Spokane Region. Also, the N.C. State Wolfpack, where she coached from 2009 to 2013, are a No. 1 seed.

You have to go back to 2016 to find the last time the Lady Vols got out of the first weekend of March Madness. It’s been a drought, but playing the first two games at home this year should give them an advantage. They have to cash in on it, as they are lucky to be in that situation.