Tennessee basketball is off to its first 8-0 start to the season with the 2000-01 season and now the Vols are on the cusp of the nation’s No. 1 ranking for just the third time in program history.
The third ranked Vols played just one game this week, eviscerating Syracuse 96-70 in the SEC-ACC Challenge on Tuesday night. It was a strong performance against a bad power five team but it’s what’s happened around Tennessee this week that’s set the stage for them to ascend to the top spot.
Tennessee is the only team in the top five of the AP Poll that hasn’t lost during the first three days of the week.
No. 1 Kansas dropped its first game of the season 76-63 at Creighton on Wednesday night. Bruce Pearl and No. 2 Auburn followed suit shortly after dropping a thriller 84-78 against No. 9 Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
The results of those two games would have likely set Tennessee up to ascend to the top spot but there was more action behind the Vols that makes it almost a certainty.
No. 4 Kentucky dropped its first game of the season 70-66 at Clemson on Tuesday night while No. 5 Marquette dropped its first game of the season at No. 6 Iowa State 81-70 on Wednesday night.
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Tennessee is now one of nine teams nationally and four power five teams that remain unbeaten alongside Oregon (No. 12), Florida (No. 13) and Oklahoma (No. 21). With the Vols currently ranked ahead of all three teams and none earning monumental victories this week it is unlikely that they would jump Tennessee.
No. 6 Iowa State is the highest ranked team behind Tennessee that hasn’t lost this week. The Cyclones do have one loss this season, however, falling against Auburn in the Maui Championship last week. They also have wins over Dayton and Colorado to go along with Marquette.
Tennessee entered the season as the No. 12 team in the AP Poll ahead of its undefeated first month. The Vols don’t yet have a true marquee win but have four victories over power five teams. While Syracuse and Virginia are both poised for a bad season, Baylor is currently ranked in the top 25 and Louisville is projected to make the NCAA Tournament at the moment.
The Vols have not only won this season but have pounded their opponents. Tennessee is winning by an average of 27 points per game and 21 points per game in its four power five matchups.
The analytics sites also back up ranking Tennessee as the nation’s top team. KenPom currently has Tennessee No. 2, BartTorvik has them No. 3 and EvanMiya has them No. 2. Ironically, the three sites have four different teams ranked ahead of Tennessee— Auburn, Duke, Houston and Gonzaga.
If Tennessee ascends to the top spot in the rankings, they’ll immediately be challenged next week. They’ll face Miami in New York City on Tuesday before traveling to Champaign to face Illinois on Saturday.
