Two of the best teams in Tennessee face off on Saturday afternoon, as the Lipscomb Bison travel up to Knoxville to take on the Volunteers. Who comes out on top?
TV Schedule: Saturday, Dec. 9, 2:15 p.m. ET, SEC Network
Arena: Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville, Tennessee
It is the first week of December in the 2017-18 college basketball season, and the Tennessee Volunteers are ranked.
After being selected to finish No. 13 in the SEC, the Vols look like they are a legitimate top five team in the conference after defeating the Purdue Boilermakers, NC State Wolf Pack, and giving the undefeated Villanova Wildcats everything they could handle.
This team is athletic, physical, and deep – three things that are the perfect concoction for a team to make a deep run in March.
However, the run-up to SEC play is no easy task, as they still play both the North Carolina Tar Heels and then Wake Forest on the road before opening their SEC slate against Arkansas on the road.
That being said, their next opponents, the Lipscomb Bison, are the favorites along with Florida Gulf Coast in the Atlantic Sun conference, and the Vols cannot afford to get caught looking ahead against this talented team.
The Bison have struggled on the road so far this season, but have two huge wins over in-city rivals and seemingly perennial NCAA Tournament team Belmont. A win over Tennessee would be massive in terms of bragging rights, as then they would only have to argue with the MTSU Blue Raiders over which team is the top team in Tennessee.
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However, Lipscomb’s road struggles combined with Rick Barnes’ style of play should be too much for the Bison. I like this Lipscomb team, but the Vols are ranked and should dispatch their in-state neighbors.
Prediction: Tennessee 76, Lipscomb 65