This stinks. That's the best way to sum things up after the No. 4 Tennessee Vols suffered a heartbreaking loss on the road to Ole Miss on Wednesday night. This was a see-saw battle, with the Vols hoping to close things out late.
Instead, the Rebels pulled off the monster upset, taking down Tennessee 78-76. This came right after the Vols beat Alabama in thrilling fashion over the weekend thanks to Jahmai Mashack and his epic buzzer-beater. With the loss to Ole Miss, is the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tourney gone?
Final from Oxford. pic.twitter.com/5Ix21VndKv
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) March 6, 2025
Tennessee's loss to Ole Miss will have huge implications for NCAA Tourney seeding
This was a game the Vols had no business losing. To make matters worse, Florida traveled to Tuscaloosa and ruined senior night for Alabama, taking down the Tide in style. With that win for Florida and the loss for UT, the Gators no question have the upper hand for a No. 1 seed.
"I told our team, I thought Ole Miss wanted the game more, which is always disappointing - and we didn't have the focus that they had," Barnes said via 247Sports. " We came out and they took a shot, missed it, had a chance to get the defensive rebound and go down and maybe win the game. We didn't."
The lack of focus and execution from the Vols down the stretch was disappointing to see, especially after the opposite was the case in the win over Alabama. Is it possible the team was still riding high from that win and looked past Ole Miss? Who knows.
What we do know is that this was a game Tennessee was expected to cruise in, but that didn't happen. Now, the Vols must regroup and get ready for the last game of the regular season, as South Carolina will visit Knoxville on Saturday. There are zero excuses for the players in that one, as a win over the Gamecocks simply must be recorded.