Tennessee basketball jumped two spots from No. 9 to No. 7 in this week’s AP Poll after starting the season 2-0 including a 10-point win at Wisconsin.
The Vols are the highest of five SEC teams ranked in the Nov. 13 AP Poll. Tennessee comes in ahead of No. 13 Texas A&M, No. 14 Arkansas, No. 17 Kentucky and No. 22 Alabama.
Rick Barnes’ ninth Tennessee team had one of the most impressive opening weeks of any team in college basketball. The Vols earned a season-opening blowout win over Tennessee Tech before going on the road and leading wire-to-wire against a strong Wisconsin team.
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Tennessee found the consistent offensive production it’s been looking for in recent seasons despite jump shots not falling. The Vols made only 28% of their three-point shots and still won 80-70 thanks in large part due to Dalton Knecht’s game-high 24 points.
The Vols impressed some college basketball pundits even more than the AP Poll voters. Both Andy Katz’ Power 36 and The Athletic’s top 25 had Tennessee at the top spot after its impressive win at Wisconsin.
Tennessee returns to the court for just one-game this week— a Tuesday night matchup against Wofford at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center. The Vols’ schedule ratchets back up next week when they’ll play three-games in the Maui Invitational.
Tennessee plays Syracuse in game one, either No. 2 Purdue or No. 11 Gonzaga in game two and No. 1 Kansas, No. 4 Marquette, UCLA or Chaminade in its final game.
