Hoops Central: #5/4 Tennessee vs. Vanderbilt

Knoxville, Tenn. And No. 5/4 Tennessee Men’s Basketball team is ready to meet Vanderbilt in a match in the state on Saturday afternoon at the Food City Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. 13 et.

Fans can capture Saturday’s games between the volunteers (20-5, 7-5 sec) and Commodores (17-7, 5-6 sec) on SEC Network. Dave Neal (Play-by-play) and Pat Bradley (analyst) will have the call.

Fans can also listen live on their local Volit Network -attached to hear Bob Kesling and Bert Bertel match that describes the action.

In Tennessee’s latest excursion, after no. 15/18 Kentucky with nine in the last minute of the first half and with seven with under 14 minutes to play, it roared back to take a three-point lead, but could not hold on to the stretch in a 75-64 setback.

Senior guard Zakai Zeiglerthat went into the top 25 on the school’s scoring list at all times and the top six on SEC’s career helps Leaderboard, had game heights in points (17) and help (six) to No. 5/4 Tennessee (20-5, 7-5 sec ) in Rupp Arena

Matchup
• UTS 131 wins over the waterbox are its most versus every enemy. Georgia (100) is the only other school it has defeated triple-digit times.
• Since the Food City Center opened in 1987-88, Tennessee is 28-9 at home against Commodres, including 15-4 in the last 19 affairs.
• UT has seven equal home gains over Vanderbilt an average of 13.4 ppg. Last year it won by 35.
• The volunteers are 13-2 in their last 15 competitions against Vanderbilt since 1/9/18. Both defeats were setback at one point (66-65 on 2/8/23 and 76-75 on 1/18/25).
• This is 14. time in the last 16 series meetings, also dated to 1/9/18, Tennessee is ranked and Vanderbilt is not. It’s the ninth time in that stretch, including the sixth in a row, UT is in the top 10.
• Ranked UT teams are 23-9 all the time against non-migrated Vanderbilt troops, including 15-3-all three losses are of one-side 2/3/01.
• After a 9-23 (4-14) campaign in 2023-24, Vanderbilt no. 16 placed in Sec Preseason Poll.
• Junior guard Jason Edwards leads Vanderbilt with 17.4 ppg.

News and notes
• Vanderbilt is the only team the volunteers play at home in a five-game, 23-day stretch (6-28 February).
• Commodores is the first undeveloped SEC team to visit UT since 2/24/24, where he breaks an eight-game line over two seasons.
• During the last eight campaigns, all in Rick Barnes Era, UT is 27-9 (.750) in the second part of the regular season-and-home series.
• Tennessee is 34-7 (.829) against opposition in the state during Rick BarnesIncluding 17-2 (.895) in the last 19 such games.
• The volunteers have earned a top-10 position in 31 of the 36 AP vote releases in the past two seasons, including a top-eight place in 27 of the last 30 releases.
• Igor Miličić Jr., is one of only five SEC players in the last 15 years (2010-25) to place at least 19 points, nine rebounds and four assists in a game of three-plus times in a single season. The others are Auburns Johni Broome (2024- 25), Texas A & M’s Tire Radford (2023-24), Tennessee’s Grant Williams (2018-19) and LSU’s Ben Simmons (2015-16).
• UT’s eight Quad 1 wins are tied to the second most in the country with Alabama and Kentucky. Only Auburn (13) has more.
• Zakai Zeigler Has 651 assists, sixth most in the SEC story. He is five rear of Georgia/Kentucky’s Sahvir Wheeler (656 from 2019-23) for fifth and 13 behind Alabama’s Terry Coner (664 from 1983-87) for the fourth.
• Jahmai Mashack and Zakai Zeigler Is each win away from being the seventh and eighth players to win 100 games in Tennessee.
• Felix Okpara (46) are four blocks away from the 13th 50-block season in the UT story while Chaz Lanier (84) are five manufactured 3-Pointers from No. 10 on the program’s leaderboard for a season (89).
• Tennessee’s 191 wins in the last eight seasons (2017-25) ranks ninth in DI. Gonzaga (231), Houston (228), Kansas (208), Duke (206), Purdue (201), Saint Mary’s (193), San Diego State (193) and Auburn (192) possess more. Drake (190) and Liberty (190) bind to finish the top 10.

Racking up ranked victories
• Top 25: In the last four years (2021-25) Tennessee’s 26 AP is leading the top-25 wins the nation. Only Connecticut (25), Kansas (25), Iowa State (24) and Purdue (23) are even within three, while the closest SEC school is four behind (Alabama with 22).
• Top 20: Tennessee possesses a sec-high 22 AP-Top-20 triumphs over this span, co-second-most of any DI school, tied with Kansas (22) and rear only Connecticut (23). Just Purdue (19), Alabama (closest SEC team with 18) and Iowa State (18) are even within five of the volunteers.
• Top 15: The volunteers own a sec-best 19 AP top-15 decisions during these four years, which are good at second in the country, behind only Kansas (20). Only Alabama (closest SEC team with 16), Iowa State (15) and Kentucky (15) are even within four of UT.
• Top 10: Since 2021-22, Tennessee owns nine AP Top-10 wins, Co-Second in SEC and Co-Sixth National, both with Alabama. Only Connecticut (12), Iowa State (12), Kansas (12), Kentucky (11) and Purdue (10) have more. The nine such wins in that time are against No. 1 Alabama (2/15/23), #3 Kansas (11/25/22), #3 Auburn (2/26/22), #4 Kentucky (2/15 /15/15/15/15/22), #5 Kentucky (3/12/22), #6 Arizona (12/22/21), #10 Texas (1/28/23), on #10 Kentucky ( 2/3/24) and #5 Florida (2/1/25).
• Top five: For the same four-year period, UT six AP-FEM has wins, tied with Arizona for the most in the country. Only six other schools even have four: Alabama (five), Iowa State (Five), Florida (Fire), Gonzaga (Fire), Kentucky (Fire) and Purdue (Four).

Business with high caliber
• Tennessee and Kansas are the only two schools earning an AP-Top-Fem location in each of the last four seasons (2021-25). Only two others, Arizona and Purdue, went into 2024-25 with a three-year stripe.
• The volunteers are one of only four teams to reach AP Top Six in each of the last five seasons with Alabama, Houston and Kansas.
• UT is one of only five programs to reach AP Top Six for at least six of the last seven seasons (2018- 25) with Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Kentucky. These are also the only five schools that come in on AP Top Five for at least five different years in this stretch.
• VOLS is among only eight teams reaching No. 1 place in the AP vote for at least two of the last seven seasons (2018-25) joining Auburn, Baylor, Duke, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and Purdue.
• During the same seven-year stretch (2018-25), UT is also one of seven teams to demand an AP-Top-to-position for at least three seasons along with Baylor, Connecticut, Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Purdue .
• UT is one of seven schools with an AP Top-20 location in each of the last eight years (2017-25) with Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State and North Carolina. Just two other-Houston and Purdue-have even been AP Top-25 each season.
• In addition, in the last three years (2022-25), VOLS is one of only six teams to reach AP Top Two in several seasons joining Alabama, Connecticut, Duke, Kansas and Purdue.

Especially potent at home
• Under Rick BarnesTennessee is 22-8 (.733) Versus AP Top-25 teams in the Food City Center, including 17-2 (.895) in its last 19 such games (since 1/30/21).
• The volunteers are 17-7 (.708) at home against AP Top-20 teams in the Barnes era, including 13-2 (.867) in their last 15 such competitions (since 1/30/21).
• UT has a 14-5 (.737) brand when he hosts AP Top-15 troops under Barnes, including a 12-2 (.857) record in his last 14 such affairs (since 1/30/ 21).
• Barnes has led Vols to an 8-1 (.889) headbok at the Food City Center against AP Top-10 teams with seven consecutive wins (since 3/2/19).
• UT is a perfect 6-0 when hosting AP top-five teams in the Barnes era (all since 1/24/17). The six equal wins are a SEC record per ESPN, which surpasses the mark of five of Kentucky in 1978-84 and 1956-59.
• Vols won 12 straight home matches against AP Top-25 enemies from 1/30/21 to 28/24/24. It is a SEC record per CBS SPORTS and the longest in DI, since Kansas had 17 from 1/11/14 to 2/13/17. Nine of these wins were versus top-15 enemies, with five against the top 10 and three over top-five teams.
• Tennessee is 19-5 (.792) in AP Top-25 Home Matchups under Barnes, including 13-5 (.722) with both teams in top 20, 8-2 (.800) with both in top 15 and 4 -0 (1,000) with both in the top 10.

1.3k Club
• Tennessee, Alabama (Five), Ole Miss and Xavier-Alle but one in Sec-is the only schools with at least four 1,300-point scores. Just 11 other programs even have three.
• In total, it is only 27 teams 10 in sec- has four-Plus players with even 1,000 collegial points.
• Jordan Gainey Possess 1,441 points in 125 competitions, an average of 11.5 ppg over four years.
• Darlinstone Dubar Has 1,431 points in 136 excursions, good for 10.5 ppg across five seasons.
• Chaz LanierThe only member of the quartet who entered the season under 1K now has 1,373 points in 129 excursions, a 10.6 ppg headbok across five campaigns.
• Zakai Zeigler owns 1,365 points in 125 appearances, giving him an average of 10.9 ppg for four seasons.

Top-level triumphs
• Tennessee is 40-41 (.494) against AP Top-25 enemies under Rick BarnesIncluding 24-14 (.632) in its last 38 such games (since 1/22/22).
• The volunteers are 34-33 (.507) versus AP Top-20 team in Barnes’ mandate, including 20-10 (.667) in their last 30 such affairs (since 1/22/22).
• UT is 26-26 (.500) against AP Top-15 teams in the Barnes era, including 19-9 (.679) in its last 28 such games (since 12/22/21).
• Vols owns a 14-15 (.483) record versus AP Top-10 enemies under Barnes, including a 12-9 (.571) mark in their last 21 such competitions (since 3/2/19) and a 9- 9- 6 (.600) match in their last 15 (since 12/22/21).
• UT is 10-9 (.526) against AP top-five opponents in Barnes’ tenure, including 6-4 (.600) in its last 10 such affairs (since 2/15/22). It is 8-2 (.800) versus AP top-five SEC team, including 7-1 (.875) in the last seven such excursions (since 3/2/19).

20,000 strong
• i Rick Barnes10 seasons Tennessee has played in front of a home crowd of at least 20,000 on 44 apartments (34-10), with 31 sale (24-7).
• By 2022-23, the volunteers had five sale crowds, at that time to tie an arena one-season record.
• Tennessee well darkened the field last season by selling eight home matches – including seven of nine in SEC games – good for its most ever at the Food City Center. Four of them were crowds over capacity with the last three over 22,000.
• This season Tennessee has already clucked six sales: Syracuse (12/3/24), Arkansas (1/5/25), Mississippi State (1/21/25), Kentucky (1/28/25), Florida (2 /1/25) and Alabama (3/1/25).

Happy at home
• Over the past four seasons (2021-25), Vols’ .919 (57-5) is home-containing percentage ninth in DI (Co-Sjette in power five, number two in SEC).
• In the last eight years (2017-25) is out of .875 (112-16), No. 11 in DI (sixth in power five, number two in SEC).
• Total is UT 135-25 (.844) at the Food City Center in Rick Barnes10 years and has twice gone undefeated at home (18-0 in 2018-19 and 16-0 in 2021-22).