University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics
Vols to Begin NCAA Tournament Ranked Sixth Nationally
March 17, 2025 | Men's Basketball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – For the 17th straight week, the University of Tennessee men's basketball team is ranked in the top eight of both major polls, placing sixth in each.
Tennessee (27-7, 12-6 SEC) ascended two spots in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, as announced Monday afternoon, and held steady—it is no longer tied with Michigan State—in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll, as released Sunday evening.
The Volunteers' 17-week AP top-10 streak still ranks as the second-longest mark in program history, trailing only its 20-week mark in 2018-19. All three of the team's 15-week streaks are in the last seven years, under head coach Rick Barnes.
Tennessee is in the AP top 10 for the 75th time in Barnes' 10 seasons at the helm, all since 2017-18; it had 28 AP top-10 placements in the 14 years (2001-15) before he came to Rocky Top. The program has earned an AP top-10 position in 36 of the 41 AP Poll releases over the past two seasons, including a top-eight spot in 32 of the past 35.
Across the last 57 AP Poll reveals—that dates to Nov. 28, 2022—Tennessee has checked in with a top-15 ranking in 54 of them.
The Volunteers are in the AP top 25 for the 79th week in a row, a count that extends across four complete campaigns, since the 2021-22 preseason poll. That tally is 42 greater than the prior program record of 37 weeks, set March 1999 to Feb. 2001. Tennessee's 79-week streak is the second-best active mark in the nation, trailing just Houston (105). No other program is at even 60-plus, while the closest SEC team is fifth-place Kentucky with a 41-week figure that is 38 shy of the Volunteers' total.
Tennessee is coming off a week in which it went 2-1 at the SEC Tournament to reach the title game for the 14th time in program history. It opened play Friday in Nashville, Tenn., with an 83-72 triumph over No. 13-seeded Texas, behind a game-high 23 points from fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier. The next day, it upset top-seeded, third-ranked Auburn, 80-75, with senior guard Zakai Zeigler's 20 points leading the way. The Volunteers fell Sunday to second-seeded, fourth-ranked Florida, 86-77, despite season-best point totals from senior guard Jordan Gainey (24) and Zeigler (23), who both earned SEC All-Tournament plaudits.
The Volunteers accumulated 1,174 points in the AP balloting, 11 more than they did last week and just 41 shy of fifth-place St. John's. In the Coaches Poll, they earned 634 points, a 29-point improvement and just nine fewer than the Red Storm.
Tennessee is one of seven SEC teams in the top 25 of both polls, four of which are in the top eight of each. It is featured alongside third-ranked Florida, fourth-ranked Auburn, No. 7/8 Alabama, No. 18/21 Kentucky, No. 19/18 Texas A&M and No. 23/24 Missouri. In addition, Ole Miss is in the receiving votes section of both polls, while Vanderbilt is listed there in the AP Poll.
The Volunteers, seeded second for the second year in a row, open NCAA Tournament action Thursday at 6:50 p.m. against No. 15-seeded Wofford, live on TNT from Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men's basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook. Â Â
Tennessee (27-7, 12-6 SEC) ascended two spots in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, as announced Monday afternoon, and held steady—it is no longer tied with Michigan State—in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll, as released Sunday evening.
The Volunteers' 17-week AP top-10 streak still ranks as the second-longest mark in program history, trailing only its 20-week mark in 2018-19. All three of the team's 15-week streaks are in the last seven years, under head coach Rick Barnes.
Tennessee is in the AP top 10 for the 75th time in Barnes' 10 seasons at the helm, all since 2017-18; it had 28 AP top-10 placements in the 14 years (2001-15) before he came to Rocky Top. The program has earned an AP top-10 position in 36 of the 41 AP Poll releases over the past two seasons, including a top-eight spot in 32 of the past 35.
Across the last 57 AP Poll reveals—that dates to Nov. 28, 2022—Tennessee has checked in with a top-15 ranking in 54 of them.
The Volunteers are in the AP top 25 for the 79th week in a row, a count that extends across four complete campaigns, since the 2021-22 preseason poll. That tally is 42 greater than the prior program record of 37 weeks, set March 1999 to Feb. 2001. Tennessee's 79-week streak is the second-best active mark in the nation, trailing just Houston (105). No other program is at even 60-plus, while the closest SEC team is fifth-place Kentucky with a 41-week figure that is 38 shy of the Volunteers' total.
Tennessee is coming off a week in which it went 2-1 at the SEC Tournament to reach the title game for the 14th time in program history. It opened play Friday in Nashville, Tenn., with an 83-72 triumph over No. 13-seeded Texas, behind a game-high 23 points from fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier. The next day, it upset top-seeded, third-ranked Auburn, 80-75, with senior guard Zakai Zeigler's 20 points leading the way. The Volunteers fell Sunday to second-seeded, fourth-ranked Florida, 86-77, despite season-best point totals from senior guard Jordan Gainey (24) and Zeigler (23), who both earned SEC All-Tournament plaudits.
The Volunteers accumulated 1,174 points in the AP balloting, 11 more than they did last week and just 41 shy of fifth-place St. John's. In the Coaches Poll, they earned 634 points, a 29-point improvement and just nine fewer than the Red Storm.
Tennessee is one of seven SEC teams in the top 25 of both polls, four of which are in the top eight of each. It is featured alongside third-ranked Florida, fourth-ranked Auburn, No. 7/8 Alabama, No. 18/21 Kentucky, No. 19/18 Texas A&M and No. 23/24 Missouri. In addition, Ole Miss is in the receiving votes section of both polls, while Vanderbilt is listed there in the AP Poll.
The Volunteers, seeded second for the second year in a row, open NCAA Tournament action Thursday at 6:50 p.m. against No. 15-seeded Wofford, live on TNT from Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men's basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook. Â Â
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