The regular-season is officially in the rear-view mirror, which means that conference tournaments are on deck next week before the NCAA Tournament rolls around later in the month. It’s March, it’s basketball season, and most importantly, it’s bracket season.
We’ve been looking at Joe Lunardi’s bracketology reports all season to get a good idea of where Tennessee stands in the overall pecking order. Rick Barnes’ Volunteers have primarily landed as a five-seed in many projections, with a few blips up and down the chart with big wins or meaningful losses. Tennessee has been a five-seed for the last six updates, though, and that’s where the Vols land following the regular season.
In Lunardi’s latest report that was released on Sunday morning, Tennessee comes in as the final five-seed behind Arkansas, Vanderbilt, and St. John’s. His projected Midwest Region matchup has Tennessee facing off against 12-seed Liberty in the first round, with a potential matchup against either 4-seed Virginia or 13-seed North Dakota State in the second round. Both games are slated to take place in Portland, OR.
Other notable projected entries in Tennessee’s Midwest Region quadrant include 1-seed Michigan, 2-seed UConn, 3-seed Purdue, 6-seed North Carolina, 7-seed Georgia, and 8-seed St. Louis. Lunardi also has Auburn slated as the 11-seed in the region, with a First Four game against VCU before the first round.
If Tennessee’s Midwest Region projection sticks, the Vols’ championship route would include first and second round games in Portland, OR, Sweet 16 and Elite Eight games in Chicago, IL, and the Final Four and championship games in Indianapolis, IN.
With Auburn sneaking back into the fold before the SEC Tournament, the Southeastern Conference leads the nation with 11 projected tournament teams in the field of 68 in Lunardi’s Sunday projection: 1-seed Florida, 4-seed Alabama, 5-seed Arkansas, 5-seed Vanderbilt, 5-seed Tennessee, 6-seed Kentucky, 7-seed Georgia, 10-seed Texas, 10-seed Texas A&M, 10-seed Missouri, and 11-seed Auburn.
Tennessee finished the 2025-2026 regular season with a 21-10 overall record and an 11-7 run in SEC play. The Volunteers will be the 5-seed in the SEC Tournament next week in Nashville, with their first game taking place against either 12-seed Auburn or 13-seed Mississippi State on Thursday. Tennessee also has 4-seed Vanderbilt and 1-seed Florida in its likely path to the SEC Championship game.
More From RTI: The 2026 SEC Tournament Bracket, Championship Paths Officially Revealed
Here’s a look at the full schedule for this year’s men’s NCAA Tournament:
First Four
- March 17, 18
- Host Site: Dayton, OH
First and Second Rounds
- March 19, 21
- Host Sites: Buffalo, NY | Greenville, SC | Oklahoma City, OK | Portland, OR
– – – - March 20, 22
- Host Sites: Tampa, FL | Philadelphia, PA | San Diego, CA | St. Louis, MO
South Regional (Sweet 16, Elite 8)
- March 26, 28
- Host Site: Houston, TX
West Regional (Sweet 16, Elite 8)
- March 26, 28
- Host Site: San Jose, CA
Midwest Regional (Sweet 16, Elite 8)
- March 27, 29
- Host Site: Chicago, IL
East Regional (Sweet 16, Elite 8)
- March 27, 29
- Host Site: Washington, D.C.
Final Four/Championship
- April 4, 6
- Host Site: Indianapolis, IN
Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider for more Tennessee Basketball coverage throughout the SEC Tournament and the NCAA March Madness Tournament this month.
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