The big day has arrived for the Tennessee Vols basketball team. After a strong regular season and deep run in the SEC Tournament, Tennessee is all set to take on Wofford on Thursday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament - let the madness begin!
Before taking the floor for their Big Dance debut, plenty of Vols players have been listening to the outside noise surrounding the program. This includes senior leader Zakai Zeigler. He knows that Tennessee has plenty of doubters. If anything, he's using that as fuel for this team to make a ton of noise in the Midwest Region and push for a Final Four berth for the first time in Vols history:
Zakai Zeigler on the NCAA Tournament:
— Reece Van Haaften (@Reece_VH) March 19, 2025
"I feel like we've had a target on our back the whole year." #Vols pic.twitter.com/GGhN8pQHLq
Zakai Zeigler knows there are plenty of Tennessee Vols haters out there
"I mean, I feel like we've had a target on our back all year," Zeigler said. "We were the No. 1 team in the country for a few weeks and that's the biggest target you can get at that time in the regular season. Just us having a target on our back, I wouldn't say it's something that we worry about, but it's more so we want (it) because we want people to know we're good. We want people to come at us and give us their best shot."
Zeigler didn't mince words there. It's easy to forget that earlier this campaign Tennessee indeed was ranked No. 1 in the country. Unfortunately, that ranking didn't last long, as the Vols suffered a 30-point loss to the Gators. Florida is a No. 1 seed for March Madness and it's also poised to go on a deep run.
Taking a look at the bracket, should everything go to plan, Tennessee would potentially take on No. 1 Houston in the Elite Eight. A trip to the Final Four would be on the line in that showdown, which would make it even more of a must-see game. This is the last dance for Zeigler and the rest of the seniors. They want to go out with a bang and silence everyone doubting them.