As Tennessee basketball began its slate of games in the Players Era Festival in Las Vegas, it also got a new ranking in front of its name. The Vols moved up three spots to No. 17 in the refreshed AP Poll released on Monday. The games on Monday do not count for voting, though, with ballots submitted before the slate began.
Tennessee jumped rival Kentucky, along with Texas Tech. UT’s position is good for the third-highest mark in the SEC. This is only behind No. 8 Alabama and No. 10 Florida now that the Wildcats have slipped down to No. 19. Other conference teams include Arkansas at No. 22 and Vanderbilt at No. 24.
The top-ranked team in the country remains Purdue. Then, it’s Arizona and Houston. The Vols will play the No. 3 Cougars on Tuesday at 6 p.m. ET in Las Vegas.
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Currently, Tennessee is at halftime of its game against Rutgers. Through 20 minutes, the Vols are in firm control in Sin City. UT leads 56-30.
Leading the way is a fantastic game from Maryland and Belmont transfer guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie. He’s already scored 23 points on 8-for-12 shooting from the field and 4-for-6 on threes. He’s also produced three assists, two rebounds, a block and a steal so far.
Behind Gillespie is freshman phenom Nate Ament. The former five-star has 17 points on 6-for-9 shooting from the field and 3-for-5 from range. He also has posted three rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Surprisingly, given the scoring onslaught, it’s only been two other players scoring this half. Both centers, Felix Okpara and JP Estrella, who is returning from injury, have notched eight points. Cade Phillips and Amaree Abrams both started, but neither took a shot. 12 players have seen the floor, as well.
