Tennessee basketball is preparing for a gauntlet of SEC matchups throughout January, with five ranked conference matchups scheduled over the next four weeks. The Vols' SEC schedule begins with the No. 23-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks.
The new-look Razorbacks are led by former Kentucky head coach John Calipari and former Tennessee center Jonas Aidoo in the paint. Both coaches are very familiar with Rick Barnes and the Tennessee basketball program, so it could be an emotional battle as both programs look for a statement win in their SEC opener.
Tennessee is one of only four teams undefeated heading into conference play. SEC foes Florida and Oklahoma also remain undefeated, and Tennessee will soon have both of them on the schedule.
Tennessee is a 12.5-point favorite coming into this game. The over/under is set at 143.5 points, so Vegas believes that this shouldn't be much of a contest for the Vols in the SEC opener.
Rick Barnes vs John Calipari
This game is setting up another classic battle between legendary coaches and future Hall of Famer. Calipari is in his first season at Arkansas after putting together a legendary career at Kentucky, while Barnes is looking to continue his winning ways over Calipari's teams.
This could be another classic battle between the two coaches who know each other very well. Calipari also has former Tennessee center Jonas Aidoo on the roster, who joined the Razorbacks through the transfer portal this past offseason.
Look for Chaz Lanier to use this game as a launching pad into conference play. He's on pace to break the program's three-point season record, so don't be surprised if he knocks down a few three-point shots down the stretch in this game.
Lanier leads the team with 19.6 points per game on 45% shooting compared to Arkansas' leading scorer, Adou Thiero, who has 17.8 points per game on 62.1% shooting.
The Vols and Razorbacks are scheduled to tip off at 1 PM ET on ESPN. They will follow No. 6 Florida and No. 10 Kentucky to kick off a Saturday full of basketball on the Worldwide Leader of Sports family of programs.