Tennessee basketball begins NCAA Tournament play on Thursday night where they’ll face Saint Peter’s in the tournament’s opening round in Charlotte.
The Vols are looking to make the Final Four for the first time in program history and the journey begins against a Saint Peter’s program that made it to the Elite Eight just two seasons ago.
Here’s everything to know about Tennessee basketball’s NCAA Tournament opener.
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How to Watch – No. 2 Tennessee (24-8, 14-4 SEC) vs No. 15 Saint Peter’s (19-13, 12-8 MEAC)
- Start Time: 9:20 p.m. ET/8:20 P.M. CT
- Location: Spectrum Center
- TV: TNT. PxP: Brian Anderson. CC: Jim Jackson, Sideline: Allie LaForce
- Online Streaming: Watch TNT Live
- Radio (Knoxville): The Vol Network/The Vol Network App
Betting Lines
- Tennessee -21.5 Saint Peter’s
- Over/under: 130
- Tennessee -19 Saint Peter’s
- Over/under: 129
What Tennessee HC Rick Barnes Said About Saint Peter’s
On his initial thoughts on Tennessee being a No. 2 in the Midwest Region, facing No. 15 Saint Peter’s
“I just told the team and really we’ve got to look at it like this is the Charlotte Invitational right now, us, Saint Peter’s and then we’ll go from there. But, one, I really, I congratulate our guys because you don’t ever take this time of year for granted. And the fact that they’ve worked hard all year to put themselves in a position again to earn the seed they’ve gotten. And I think they’ll be excited to play. There’s no doubt in my mind they’re going to be ready to play and excited to play, but you don’t take it for granted. And we’re blessed to have this opportunity. We’ve got to really try to make the most of it.”
On if Saint Peter’s gets the attention of Tennessee players because of the run it went on as a No. 15 seed two years ago, going to the Elite Eight
Well, that’s what I told our team. I said if I were at Saint Peter’s right now, it’d be the first thing I’d put up right there. Say look what happened, it can be done. And we know it can be done now at every level. I mean, No. 16 seeds beat a No. 1 or No. 15 beat a No. 2. It’s about our focus and getting ready. And you got to go out and play great basketball from here on out. Because if you’re playing this time of year, you’re playing good basketball and even teams like ourselves who lost two in a row. But you look at that board when they put it up, there’s no easy games for anybody. I don’t think anybody thinks it’s an easy one. Because if you’re playing now you’re playing good basketball.”
What Saint Peter’s HC Bashir Mason Said About Tennessee
On what stands out about Tennessee
“I’ve been telling my team we’re probably a version of them in terms of how we defend, how we rebound. But they’ve probably got a couple of NBA players on their team. Size, athleticism, everything is a little bit different. Dalton, we haven’t played against a guy like him. It will be the ultimate test for us, but I think we’ll be up for it.”
On how important tempo will be in this game
“Huge. Huge for us. I think Tennessee is probably averaging 15, 16 more points per game than we are. We’re coming off of a conference tournament run. We didn’t give up 70 points. I don’t even know if we gave up 65 points. We want to try to bring them down in scoring and do that by controlling the tempo offensively and defensively.”
On what challenges Dalton Knecht present
“For our conference, for our level, he’s a really, really big wing. I’ve watched multiple games. I’ve heard commentators say he’s from 6’7″, 6’8″, down to 6’6″. My wing players are around 6’3″, 6’4″. So instantly the size differences is huge.
But then just his confidence. That kid always has his foot on the gas, and he’s trying to score, putting pressure on the defense. You’ve got to be ready to defend him for 40 minutes, 30 seconds, the entire game.”
On if he wants to make Tennessee’s shooters beat him because of their inconsistencies
“They go so simple in terms of getting Dalton the ball, it will be tough to take him away. But we do want to load it up and make him have to play against our team defense and try to make those other guys make shots, specifically early into the game where I think it’s going to be thick. I don’t want him getting off to the greatest of starts and now everybody else sort of follow. I’d rather him play the takeover role for 40 minutes.”
Probable Starters
Tennessee (via Tennessee Game Notes)
Saint Peter’s (via Saint Peter’s Game Notes)
Team Statistics (via Sports Reference)
Tennessee:
Saint Peter’s:
