Monday afternoon saw Tennessee basketball slip in the Coaches Poll and the AP rankings after splitting its opening two conference
road games the previous week.
After losing their first SEC game of the season at Mississippi State last Wednesday, the Vols fell one position to No. 6 in the AP Poll
before winning at Georgia on Saturday.
The only other SEC teams rated are Ole Miss (No. 22), Auburn (No. 13), and Kentucky (No. 8).
To maintain its program record, Tennessee has now been ranked among the AP Top 25 for 48 weeks running. They have been in the
top 10 for the twenty-first time in that period.
Furthermore, during the previous seven seasons, Rick Barnes has ranked Tennessee 103 times. Before Barnes became the head coach,
UT had been ranked 74 times in the previous 14 years.
Additionally, Tennessee is rated in the AP top six for the sixth time in the previous six seasons, including the fourth consecutive year.
The Volunteers enjoyed six seasons in school history with an AP rating in the top six before Barnes arrived.
After their performance last week, Tennessee fell two spots to No. 7 in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll. The only other SEC teams
ranked by the coaches are Ole Miss (No. 21), Auburn (No. 11), and Kentucky (No. 10).
The return is insufficient
Tennessee’s first SEC road game of the season ended in a 77-72 loss to Mississippi State on hump day due to a subpar first-half effort
inside the hump.
The Vols mounted a heroic rally in the second half, led by Dalton Knecht, who scored 26 of his game-high 28 points in the last quarter
to equalize the score several times after the Bulldogs had taken a 15-point lead late in the first half.
With 34 seconds left, Knecht knotted the score once more, but with 14 seconds left, Mississippi State’s standout forward Tolu Smith
made an and-1 to give the Bulldogs a three-point advantage. In order to end the game, State then forced the Vols to commit an error on
their last possession.
Rick Barnes, the coach of the Vols, stated, “That’s the most disappointing thing, just so inconsistent.” “And just when you think you’re
close, you take a few strides ahead before taking another step back. However, I have no desire to detract from Mississippi State in any way.
manner. “Coach Chris Jans had his team prepared for the game.”
Vols are led by Knecht past Georgia.
Knecht led Tennessee to a thrilling 85-79 victory over Georgia in the Stegeman Coliseum on Saturday, thanks to his 36 points. He
finished with 16 of UT’s last 25 points and two clutch free throws to end the game. just after he made the game’s greatest shot.
With poise, Tennessee’s rising star dribbled the ball down the court, dribbled to his left, then dribbled to his right behind a screen
from Jonas Aidoo and finished with a basket to put the Vols ahead. Knecht’s three-pointer proved to be the winning difference. With
With 1:56 left in the game, it gave Tennessee an 81-79 lead and served as the culmination of the Vols’ 15-1 run to win the game.
Knecht remarked, “My assistant Rod Clark and I discussed how they weren’t sure if they should go over or under.” “They both lost
their lives. I simply exuded confidence. RC and I have been practicing it together, falling and making a deep three. I simply felt cozy.
Knecht scored the second-most points of his career with those 36. He shot 12-of-20 from the field, going 5-of-8 from beyond the three
point arc and 7-of-9 from the charity stripe. In 33 minutes, he pulled down four rebounds, had three assists, stopped a shot, and stole
a steal.
Next Up
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After two straight away games, Tennessee is headed back home to play Florida on Tuesday night inside Thompson-Boling Arena at
Food City Center. ESPN’s kickoff time is set for 7 p.m. ET.
The Vols will then play Alabama on ESPN2 the following Saturday at 2:00 p.m.
“In this league, I think you can expect this pretty much every night,” Barnes stated. “I’m just incredibly proud of how the guys wrapped
up the match.”
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