Tennessee basketball fell to 2-3 in SEC play after blowing a double-digit lead at home against Kentucky 12 days ago. The Vols were staring down a potentially very rough January before picking up back-to-back road wins at Alabama and Georgia.
Both the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs are NCAA Tournament teams with Tennessee opening as underdogs in both games. Picking up a pair of tight wins has flipped the outlook for the Vols as January winds down. Now boasting a 4-3 record in conference play, Tennessee has a chance to get on a roll with a manageable upcoming schedule.
Tennessee returns to the friendly confines of Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center on Saturday to host Auburn. The matchup did not look all that difficult three weeks ago when Auburn was 10-7 and dropped two of its first three SEC games.
But the Tigers have since won four straight conference games including the most impressive victory in SEC play this season, upsetting defensing national champion Florida in Gainesville last Saturday.
“I always use that saying, proud peacock today, feather duster tomorrow,” Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said. “You feel good right now, but you can’t enjoy it very long because you got to turn around, you got a really good Auburn team coming in. And as good as you feel tonight, it could be over like that.”
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After the home matchup against Auburn, Tennessee hosts Ole Miss in Knoxville before traveling to Rupp Arena for a rematch against Kentucky. The Vols then travel to Mississippi State before hosting LSU and Oklahoma in back-to-back games.
KenPom favors Tennessee to win five of its next six games with the Vols just one-point underdogs at Kentucky. The other road game in the stretch, at Mississippi State, is their second easiest road game of the season according to KenPom.
The analytical based site projects Tennessee to win three of the next six games by double digits. After a tough January slate, the next three weeks presents Tennessee with an opportunity to start racking up wins. If the Vols go 5-1 over the next three weeks then they’ll be 9-4 in SEC play and sitting in a good spot ahead of their road trip to Vanderbilt.
“It’s a matter of understanding you’re in the grind of a college basketball season,” Barnes said. “I think with maybe six weeks to go. And this is where separation starts to happen. And we’ve got to keep getting better.”
