Rick Barnes and the 18th-ranked Tennessee Volunteers will take on the Texas Longhorns in the main event of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge on Saturday. The game, which will feature two strong teams with a budding cross-country rivalry, will also be Barnes’ return to the University of Texas.
Prior to his time in Tennessee, Barnes was the head coach of Texas for 17 years from 1998 to 2015. During his tenure in Austin, Barnes took the Longhorns to the Final Four in 2003.
On Thursday, Barnes spoke to the media about what kind of challenge Texas will give Tennessee on the court.
“They are excellent defensively,” Barnes said. “They do a really good job and try to keep the ball on one side and are a heavy help team. You drive baseline and they are going to try and put a wall up. They rebound the ball, I think they are a physical team and I thought they played a terrific game the other night and put it together at TCU, so they have some momentum obviously working there. Offensively, they run their motion passing game with a lot of cutting, within that cutting they are going to look to get some isolations where they like to get it in different areas on the floor. Chris (Beard) knows exactly how he wants to play. He’ll change his defenses a little bit and show some things there that obviously we need to be ready for. Again, they play extremely hard and are very fundamentally sound in what they do.”
Below is all the key information surrounding the game between the Vols and the Longhorns on Saturday night in Austin.
How to Watch – No. 18 Tennessee (14-5, 5-3 SEC) @ Texas (15-5, 5-3 Big 12)
- Date: Saturday, Jan. 29, 2022
- Start Time: 8:00 p.m. ET/7:00 p.m. CT
- TV: ESPN
- Online Streaming: Watch ESPN/The ESPN App
- Radio (Knoxville): The Vol Network/The Vol Network App
Odds and Statistics
| SPORTSBOOK | POINT SPREAD | MONEYLINE | TOTAL |
|---|---|---|---|
| BetMGM | Tennessee +3.5 (-110) Texas -3.5 (-110) | Tennessee +145 Texas -175 | Over 126.5 (-110) Under 126.5 (-110) |
| Caesars | Tennessee +3.5 (-110) Texas -3.5 (-110) | Tennessee +145 Texas -170 | Over 126.5 (-110) Under 126.5 (-110) |
| DraftKings | Tennessee +3 (-110) Texas -3 (-110) | Tennessee +150 Texas -170 | Over 126.5 (-110) Under 126.5 (-110) |
| FanDuel | Tennessee +3.5 (-106) Texas -3.5 (-114) | Tennessee +140 Texas -170 | Over 126.5 (-110) Under 126.5 (-110) |
- ESPN’s Basketball Power Index currently gives Tennessee an 40.1 percent chance to win the game.
Additional Read from RTI: Tennessee Basketball Throws Shade at Texas in History Lesson
Team Statistics (via ESPN)
Previous Matchups
- Since 1952, the Vols and Longhorns have matched up six times on the basketball court. Saturday’s game will be the tiebreaker, as both teams are knotted with three wins each.
- In the Vols’ only trip to Austin in program history, Tennessee took down Rick Barnes and No. 6 Texas in 2005.
- Eight Facts From Rick Barnes’ 17 Years At Texas
Probable Starters (via UT Sports)
Stat Leaders
Tennessee:
- Points: Santiago Vescovi – 14.6 PPG, 43.9 FG%, 76 FT%
- Rebounds: Josiah-Jordan James – 5.8 RPG, 4.5 DRPG, 1.3 ORPG
- Assists: Kennedy Chandler – 4.9 APG, 2.7 TOPG, 30.1 MPG
Texas:
- Points: Timmy Allen – 11.9 PPG, 53.3 FG%, 73 FT%
- Rebounds: Timmy Allen – 6.6 RPG, 4.1 DRPG, 2.5 ORPG
- Assists: Marcus Carr – 3.4 APG, 2.1 TOPG, 29.7 MPG
Last Five Games
Tennessee
- 1/26/22 – W – Florida 71 @ Tennessee 78
- 1/22/22 – W – LSU 50 @ Tennessee 64
- 1/18/22 – W – Tennessee 68 @ Vanderbilt 60
- 1/15/22 – L – Tennessee 79 @ Kentucky 107
- 1/11/22 – W – South Carolina 46 @ Tennessee 66
Texas
- 1/25/22 – W – Texas 73 @ TCU 50
- 1/22/22 – W –Oklahoma State 51 @ Texas 56
- 1/18/22 – L – Kansas State 66 @ Texas 65
- 1/15/22 – L – Iowa State 79 @ Texas 70
- 1/11/22 – W – Oklahoma 52 @ Texas 66
