With the winningest regular season in school history in the rearview mirror the No. 4 ranked Tennessee Volunteers are now looking toward making some history in the postseason.
Tennessee clinched its first overall regular season Southeastern Conference championship since 1967 and the coveted No. 1 seed in this weekend’s SEC Tournament in Atlanta. Still, UT head coach Bruce Pearl is quick to acknowledge his team still has some tall mountains left to climb before it accomplishes all its goals.
Pearl said the Vols have already climbed their steepest mountain, though, when they accomplished what no UT team has done in 41 years—winning the undisputed Southeastern Conference Championship.
“I like ‘undisputed’, like a heavyweight champion,” said Pearl. “It’s like a heavyweight fight, 15 rounds or whatever it is, all the games you’ve got to play. Its grueling schedule, and I think winning the conference championship is more difficult than any of the championships you play in. The SEC tournament is three or four games. The NCAA Tournament is six games. So winning the SEC championship is something we can all be proud of.”
Indeed, the Vols 28-3 record is something to behold, considering Tennessee played what is considered one of the two or three toughest schedules in America.
The Vols also ended the regular season as the No. 1 ranked team in the RPI (Ratings Percentage Index) poll, which is heavily weighed on selection Sunday when the NCAA Tournament committee is deciding where teams will be seeded in the round of 65 that begins next week.
Pearl said Tennessee’s challenging schedule has definitely helped develop the team’s character and toughness, and should be a benefit when the postseason gets under way later this week. He stated that his squad’s rugged non-conference schedule set the stage for winning the SEC title.
“It was a huge advantage going to Chattanooga, playing at Xavier and then out to Seattle,” Pearl commented. “Just putting this team in harm’s way and then moving into the SEC race allowed us to go on the road and not be overwhelmed.”
With Tennessee’s lack of any recent success in the SEC Tournament, Pearl said it’s important to have a strong showing this weekend in Atlanta so the Vols can go into next week’s NCAA Tournament with momentum. Tennessee is considered by most to be a top candidate for a No. 1 seed when the round of 65 is released Sunday evening. The Vols’ chances of securing a coveted top seed could very well rest with how they perform this weekend in Atlanta.
“It’s very important to try to get the No. 1 seed,” said Pearl. “It may be ours to lose. We haven’t played on Saturday (in the SEC Tournament semifinals) in a long time. I can just imagine what I-75 is going to look like Saturday when fans come down to gobble up those tickets and see us play in the semifinal game.”
Tennessee’s SEC Tournament opener will be Friday at 1 p.m. against the winner of Thursday’s South Carolina-LSU first round game.