Tennessee hasn’t been to the Elite Eight since 2010. Purdue hasn’t made it that far in the NCAA Tournament since 2000. On Thursday night, one of those teams will end their drought.
The No. 2 seed Vols (31-5) face the No. 3 seed Boilermakers (25-9) in the Sweet Sixteen in Louisville, Kentucky on Thursday night. The two teams have never played in the postseason, but they played just last season in the Battle 4 Atlantis regular season tournament, and the Vols prevailed in overtime.
This year, Purdue has a much different team, but they’re still led by prolific scorer Carsen Edwards. The junior guard is averaging 23.6 points a game and is one of the top 10 scorers in college basketball this season.
Tennessee, meanwhile, boasts a roster full of players who can take over a game if needed.
Five different Vols have scored 20 or more points in a game this season, and UT is led by two-time SEC Player of the Year and First-Team All-American Grant Williams.
Purdue defeated No. 14 seed Old Dominion 61-48 in the first round then blew out No. 6 seed Villanova 87-61 to reach the Sweet Sixteen. Tennessee escaped No. 15 seed Colgate’s upset bid 77-70 and defeated No. 10 seed Iowa in overtime 83-77 after giving up a 25-point lead in regulation to get here.
Now, it’s time to see which team can prevail and make it back to the Elite Eight for the first time in a long time.
Here’s everything you need to know about Thursday’s game. Take a look at our score predictions for the game, and here’s a look at the match-up by the numbers. If you can’t make it to Louisville, here’s how you can watch and listen to the Tennessee vs. Purdue game in the Sweet Sixteen
Tip-Off: 7:29 Eastern, March 28th, KFC Yum! Center (Louisville, KY)
TV: TBS
Streaming Online: NCAA.com/March-Madness-Live
Radio: Vol Network (99.1 FM or 990 AM in Knoxville/surrounding areas)
Line: Tennessee (-2)
