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Hoops Central: #8/6 [4] Tennessee vs. #4 [2] Florida
March 16, 2025 | Men's Basketball
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Playing in the conference championship game for the fourth time in the last seven events. fourth-seeded Tennessee is set to battle second-seeded, No. 4 Florida in the SEC Tournament final Sunday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville. Tipoff is slated for 1 p.m. ET.
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GAMEDAY TIMES & BROADCAST INFO
- Opponent: Florida Gators
- Tipoff: Sunday, March 16 | 2 p.m. ET
- Venue: Bridgestone Arena
- Watch Online: ESPN
- Online: Listen Live | Live Stats
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Roster Schedule Game NotesTHE LATEST FROM THE VOLS
#8/6 Vols Knock off #3 Auburn, 70-65, to Reach SEC Title Game #8/6 Vols Beat Texas, 83-72, in SEC Tournament Quarterfinal Zeigler on Two CollegeInsider.com NPOY Award Finalist Lists, Lanier Tabbed to One Zeigler, Mashack and Lanier Tabbed Finalists for CollegeInsider.com Awards Zeigler, Mashack Among 10 Naismith Defensive Player of the Year SemifinalistsFans can catch Sunday's game between the Volunteers (27-6) and Gators (29-4) on ESPN. Dan Shulman (play-by-play), Jay Bilas (analyst) and Jess Sims (reporter) will have the call. Fans can also listen live on their local Vol Network affiliate to hear Bob Kesling and Bert Bertelkamp describing the action.
In its most recent action, Tennessee took down top-seeded Auburn, 70-65, in a top-10 showdown Saturday afternoon in the semifinal round.
UT defeated the third-ranked Tigers behind a team-high 20 points from senior guard Zakai Zeigler. The triumph gave the Volunteers their seventh AP top-15 win of the season, a new school record, including their fourth over a top-seven foe to tie the program's best mark.
THE MATCHUP
• This is the first SEC Tournament title game between the two sides.
• Tennessee's 82 wins over Florida are tied for its fourth-most versus any foe. It has 132 victories against Vanderbilt, 100 versus Georgia, 91 versus Mississippi State and an equal 82 against Auburn.
• UT is 9-3 in its last 12 matchups with Florida, dating to 2/21/18, after going 1-5 in the prior six.
• The Volunteers are 4-3 in AP top-25 clashes versus Florida. This is the sides' third AP top-10 matchup of the season after they had zero previously.
• The two regular season matchups in the series were decided by 50 total points. Florida won by 30 on its home floor and UT, without both Zakai Zeigler (injury) and Igor Miličić Jr. (illness), won by 20 on its home court.
• The Gators, making their second straight SEC finals trip, placed second in the SEC and are 11-1 since losing at UT on 2/1/25.
• Florida is paced by senior guard Walter Clayton Jr., a First Team All-SEC choice, who is averaging 17.4 ppg and 4.4 apg.
NEWS & NOTES
• The Volunteers are 76-58 (.567) in SEC Tournament play, with five titles. They are 13-7 (.650), with one crown, in Rick Barnes' tenure.
• Tennessee owns a 5-8 record in SEC championship contests, including 1-2 under Rick Barnes. This is its fourth finals berth in the last seven tournaments.
• Tennessee is 1-4 all-time in its home state in SEC title games. It is 0-2 in Nashville and 1-2 in Knoxville. UT is looking to win an SEC Tournament crown in the Volunteer State for the first time since 1936 when it beat Alabama, 29-25, in Knoxville on 3/2/36.
• During its active 78-week streak in the AP Poll, dating to the 2021- 22 preseason release, Tennessee has played just 16 of its 140 games as a lower-ranked team, posting a 10-6 record. That includes a 9-4 mark since 1/22/22 and a 7-2 tally versus SEC foes.
• This is UT's seventh AP top-eight clash versus an SEC foe this year; it went 4-2 in the first six. The Volunteers played seven such prior games in program history before 2024-25, going 3-4.
• With 833 wins, Rick Barnes is tied with John Calipari for ninth all- time (min. 10 years in DI) and for the most among active coaches.
• Zakai Zeigler owns Tennessee's single-season assist record with 234, six away from the SEC top 10. His 706 career assists are seven shy of the UT record, while his his UT-best 242 steals are four away from a top-10 spot on the SEC's all-time list. More on Page 11.
• Chaz Lanier is 10 points away from the 25th 600-point season in UT history. He would be the 16th different Vol to hit that mark.
• UT now has 27 wins for the sixth time. Four are under Rick Barnes. • Tennessee's 198 victories over the last eight seasons (2017-25) rank co-eighth nationally, alongside Auburn and San Diego State. Only Gonzaga (238), Houston (238), Duke (216), Kansas (212), Purdue (204), Saint Mary's (199) and Liberty (199) own more.
• Over the last four years, UT leads or co-leads DI in wins over teams in the AP top 25 (29), top 20 (25), top 15 (22), top 10 (12), top five (seven) and top three (four).
ALL-SEC ACCOLADES
• Zakai Zeigler and Chaz Lanier both won individual SEC awards from the league's head coaches. Zeigler earned SEC Defensive Player of the Year plaudits for the second straight season, while Lanier claimed the inaugural SEC Newcomer of the Year honor.
• The league's coaches tabbed Zeigler a First Team All-SEC competitor and Lanier a Second Team All- SEC designee. Zeigler is the 14th player in program history with at least three All-SEC nods that include two first-team choices. The others are Dale Ellis, Ernie Grunfeld, Allan Houston, Gilbert Huffman, Reggie Johnson, Bill Justus, Bernard King, Len Kosmalski, Chris Lofton, Dyron Nix, Paul "Lefty" Walther, Tony White and Ron Widby.
• Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack both made the cut for the coaches' SEC All-Defensive Team. This is just the ninth season—10th instance—with multiple players from the same team receiving SEC All-Defensive Team honors, including the second in a row for UT.
• Meanwhile, in the Associated Press voting, Lanier collected First Team All-SEC distinction and Zeigler garnered Second Team All-SEC status.
A PAIR OF ALL-AMERICANS
• Chaz Lanier and Zakai Zeigler both earned The Sporting News Third Team All-America plaudits. No other school put multiple players on the list.
• Ernie Grunfeld and Bernard King, arguably the best duo to ever play together in the SEC, form the only other same-season All-American tandem in Tennessee history. They each earned All-America plaudits in both 1975-76 and 1976-77.
• Lanier and Zeigler are also the lone teammate pair on the Wooden Award Top 15 National Ballot, from which the Wooden All-Americans and Wooden Award winner will be selected.
• The two guards form one of just three teammate tandems to make the 30-man Lute Olson Award finalist list.
• Lanier and Zeigler are among the 30 players on the Naismith Trophy Midseason Team, one of just five teammate pairs on the list. Additionally, they are among seven teammate duos on 50-player USBWA Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch List.
RACKING UP RANKED VICTORIES
• TOP 25: In the past four years (2021-25), Tennessee's 29 AP top-25 wins lead DI. Only Alabama (closest SEC team with 26), Connecticut (26), Kansas (26), Iowa State (25) and Purdue (23) are within seven.
• TOP 20: Tennessee is first in the nation with 25 AP top-20 triumphs over that span. Only Connecticut (24), Kansas (22) and Alabama (closest SEC team with 21) are even within five.
• TOP 15: The Volunteers lead DI with 22 AP top-15 decisions over those four years. Kansas (20) and Alabama (closest SEC team with 18) are the only schools even within five.
• TOP 10: Since 2021-22, Tennessee owns 12 AP top-10 wins, co-first nationally, alongside Connecticut (12), Iowa State (12) and Kansas (12). The only school within one is Kentucky (closest SEC team with 11). The 12 wins in that time are against #1 Alabama (2/15/23), vs. #3 Kansas (11/25/22), #3 Auburn (2/26/22), #4 Kentucky (2/15/22), vs. #5 Kentucky (3/12/22), #6 Arizona (12/22/21), #10 Texas (1/28/23), at #10 Kentucky (2/3/24), #5 Florida (2/1/25), at #7 Texas A&M (2/22/25), #6 Alabama (3/1/25) and vs. #3 Auburn (3/15/25).
• TOP FIVE: In that same four-year span, UT has seven AP top-five victories, the most in the country. Only four other schools have even five: Alabama (six), Arizona (six), Florida (five) and Iowa State (five).
HIGH-CALIBER COMPANY
• Tennessee and Kansas are the only two schools to earn an AP top-five ranking in each of the last four seasons (2021-25). Only two others, Arizona and Purdue, entered 2024-25 with a three-year streak.
• The Volunteers are one of only four teams to reach the AP top six in each of the past five seasons, alongside Alabama, Houston and Kansas.
• UT is one of just five programs to reach the AP top six in at least six of the last seven seasons (2018- 25), alongside Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Kentucky. Those are also the only five schools to enter the AP top five in at least five different years in that stretch.
• The Vols are among only eight teams to reach the No. 1 spot in the AP Poll in at least two of the last seven seasons (2018-25), joining Auburn, Baylor, Duke, Gonzaga, Houston, Kansas and Purdue.
• Over that same seven-year stretch (2018-25), UT is also one of seven teams to claim an AP top-two position in at least three seasons, alongside Baylor, Connecticut, Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Purdue.
• UT is one of seven schools with an AP top-20 ranking in each of the last eight years (2017-25), alongside Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan State and North Carolina. Just two others—Houston and Purdue—have even been AP top-25 each season.
• Additionally, over the last three years (2022-25), the Vols are one of just six teams to reach the AP top two in multiple seasons, joining Alabama, Connecticut, Duke, Kansas and Purdue.
QUITE THE CAMPAIGN
• Tennessee's nine AP top-25 wins this season are its most ever, eclipsing the seven it had in both 2023- 24 and 2021-22. It has tallied at least seven in three of the last four years after never before doing so.
• UT has seven AP top-15 wins this year, passing 2021- 22 (six) for the most in school history. The Vols had five in 2022-23, giving them five-plus in three of the last four years after never before hitting that mark.
• This is the third time in program history, including the second in Rick Barnes' tenure, the Vols have logged four AP top-seven (or even AP top-10) victories in a single season, joining 2021-22 and 1976-77.
• Tennessee has 25-plus wins in a season for the ninth time, including the sixth under Rick Barnes (all in the last eight years) and the fourth in a row. It reached 25 victories in the regular season for the third time, joining 2018-19 (27-4) and 2007-08 (28-3).
• UT has 27-plus wins for the sixth time (fourth under Barnes). It went 27-9 in 2023-24, 27-8 in 2021-22, 31-6 in 2018-19, 28-9 in 2009-10 and 31-5 in 2007-08.
TOP-TIER TRIUMPHS
• Tennessee is 43-41 (.512) against AP top-25 foes under Rick Barnes, including 27-14 (.659) in its past 41 such games (since 1/22/22).
• The Volunteers are 37-33 (.529) versus AP top-20 teams in Barnes' tenure, including 23-10 (.697) in their last 33 such affairs (since 1/22/22).
• UT is 29-26 (.527) against AP top-15 teams in the Barnes era, including 22-9 (.710) in its last 31 such games (since 12/22/21).
• The Vols own a 17-15 (.531) record versus AP top-10 foes under Barnes, including a 15-9 (.625) mark in their last 24 such contests (since 3/2/19) and a 12-6 (.667) tally in their last 18 (since 12/22/21).
• UT is 11-9 (.550) against AP top-five foes in Barnes' tenure, including 7-4 (.636) in its last 11 such affairs (since 2/15/22). It is 9-2 (.818) versus AP top-five SEC teams, including 8-1 (.889) in its last nine such outings (since 3/2/19).
STRONG IN THE STANDINGS
• Tennessee finished fourth in the SEC this season. It marked the program's seventh top-four finish in the last eight years, including its fifth in a row.
• The Volunteers are the only team in the league to place top-four each of the past five seasons. Only three others have done it multiple times: Alabama (four), Auburn (three) and Kentucky (three).
• UT is also the only school to place top-four in seven of the last eight campaigns. Just three others have done it even four times: Auburn (six), Kentucky (six) and Alabama (four).
SENSATIONAL SIX
• Tennessee, Drake, Duke, Gonzaga, Houston and Saint Mary's are the only schools with 25-plus wins each of the past four seasons (2021-22 to 2024-25).
• Only two others, Arizona and Purdue, entered 2024- 25 with a three-year streak and can still join that list.
TENNESSEE TORCHBEARER
• On 3/7/25, Chancellor Donde Plowman surpised Jahmai Mashack before a team film session by naming him a Torchbearer, which is the highest student honor conferred by the University of Tennessee. He was one of just 10 individuals to receive the prestigious distinction in 2025.
• Mashack is the fourth men's basketball to win the award, joining Carl Langschmidt (1953), Byrl Logan (1939) and Charles Lucas (1931).
• Mashack and swimmer Griffin Hadley, a fellow 2025 winner, are the first male non-football student- athletes to receive the honor in 72 years, dating to Langschmidt. The only other male student-athletes to garner it during that time are football standouts Joshua Dobbs (2016) and Trey Smith (2020).
• The award is given for academic achievement and outstanding commitment to others as demonstrated by the student's various activities and significant contributions to the university and the community.
