NCAA Basketball: Texas, Virginia soar on top 25 ranking ahead of Thanksgiving
By Joey Loose
21. Tennessee (2-1)
Tennessee’s performance last Sunday against Colorado was bad, but a season is not built or destroyed by one nonconference game in the opening week. The Volunteers remain a very talented SEC program, while their metrics still look pretty good despite that devastating performance. Even more good news comes from this past week, where they took care of business in their only time back on the court.
The Volunteers picked up an 81-50 win at home against Florida Gulf Coast, another fine performance on both ends of the court. It was 18-point performances from both Josiah-Jordan James and Olivier Nkamhoua that helped get the job done for the Volunteers, while Julian Phillips added 11 points as well. This was another game the Volunteers were expected to win with ease, but it was important to see them get back on track after that Colorado game.
While it’s nice to beat up on Florida Gulf Coast, it’ll take the team’s best effort this week to get things back on track completely. The Volunteers will head to the Battle 4 Atlantis, where they’ll face off with Butler and then either BYU or USC in the second round. If this program can get three wins in the Bahamas, then might be able to put that Colorado game squarely in the rearview mirror.