Tennessee basketball's final spot in the AP Top 25 is fully justified

Following the national title on Monday night, the epic 2024-25 college basketball season has come to a close. The Florida Gators, who the Tennessee basketball beat by 20 points earlier in the campaign, are your national champions.

With that, it didn't take long for the AP to come out with its final Top 25 of the season. So, where did the Vols land? That'd be the No. 5 spot, which was fully deserved. Tennessee missed out on the Final Four, losing to Houston in the Elite Eight. However, no one can argue with the fact that No. 5 is more than deserving for Rick Barnes and his players.

Tennessee basketball finished the season No. 5 in the last AP Top 25 poll

Did Houston dominate the Vols in the Elite Eight? Sure, we'll give the Cougars that. However, that doesn't take away from the fact that this was still a historic season for Barnes and his players. Zakai Zeigler, the SEC Defensive Player of the Year, and Chaz Lanier, the 2025 Jerry West Award winner, led the way.

However, people loved what they saw out of Jahmai Mashack, Jordan Gainey, Igor Milicic and others from start to finish this year too. Some of the memorable moments included the win over Florida in Knoxville, Mashack's buzzer-beater vs. Alabama and of course the Sweet Sixteen win over Kentucky.

That showdown with the Wildcats was pegged as one of the biggest games in program history and UT barely broke a sweat in posting a win and ending Mark Pope's season - goodness, it was a sweet victory for the Vols.

While things didn't end with that coveted trip to the Final Four, you've got to sit back and applaud Tennessee for what it was able to accomplish. Florida, Houston, Duke and Auburn were no question the Top 4 teams in the land, but props to the Vols for still landing in the Top 5 and recording a season that people are going to be cherishing for a long time.