Tennessee basketball is on a two-game winning streak, and they have a red-hot Auburn team that has won four straight. The Tigers have beaten Texas, Florida, Ole Miss, and South Carolina in their last four games, an impressive feat in a deadly conference like the SEC.
The Vols will look to extend their win streak, but it wont come easy. Let's hop into some bold predictions for the big showdown on Saturday evening.
1. Nate Ament scores 20 points
Nate Ament has been a force over the last month. He is averaging 21 points over the last five games, and I think that trend will continue. Auburn doesn't have the most physical frontcourt, so Ament can take advantage of this.
His length and versatility should give Auburn issues, similar to how other forwards have, like Dailyn Swain, Trey Kaufman-Renn, and Yaxel Lendeborg have taken advantage of this.
Ament contuinues hsi stroing play with another big game versus Auburn.
2. Troy Henderson hits a few big shots in his return
A missing piece for the Vols has been Troy Henderson, who hurt his shoulder last week and missed the Alabama and Georgia games. The good news is that Rick Barnes said, "He's coming back today. Because the game was Tuesday, he just felt like he needed a couple more days. But based on what I've been told, he'll be back today."
Henderson is no stranger to the big moment. He hit a massive shot to take the lead versus Texas A&M to take the lead late in the game. He likely won't play a ton of minutes, but don't be shocked if he knocks down a few big jumpers for the Vols.
This shot from the freshman Troy Henderson was so clutch pic.twitter.com/UFHxa7bTLp
— More Important Issues (@More_Issues) January 14, 2026
3. Tennessee picks up another win
Tennessee has no doubt been suseptible to falling abck into their old way, but this team has been diffrent as of late.
Rick Banes knows he needs to have the Vols ready to play, as he said in the press conference today, "They said they've won four in a row, and playing great basketball. And we've had two good road wins, hard-fought. And that doesn't mean anything if we come here and are not ready to play. Because believe me, Auburn's good enough to beat any team they play in the country."
Tennessee has been hot, and it's been on the back of their stars. The Vols win this one in a close contest, as this team has turned the corner into a contender. Tennessee knocks off Auburn 75-70.