KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee men’s basketball team jumped into the top seven of both major polls this week, as announced Monday afternoon.
Tennessee (6-0) climbed four places in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll to seventh in the country, as well as ascended three places in the USA TODAY Coaches Poll to sixth nationally.
This is the 63rd straight week Tennessee is ranked in the AP Poll, a streak spanning four years and dating to the 2021-22 preseason release. That mark is 26 weeks longer than the previous program high of 37 and is the third-longest active ledger in the nation, behind just Houston (89) and Kansas (68). The only other school at even 45-plus weeks is Arizona (61), while the closest SEC program is Kentucky (25), tied for No. 10 overall and 38 weeks behind.
The Volunteers are in the AP top 15 for the 37th time in the last 40 releases, a figure that extends to Nov. 28, 2022. In addition, this is the fifth consecutive year Tennessee has entered the AP top 10. It has a total of 59 AP top-10 rankings in head coach Rick Barnes‘ 10-year tenure.
Tennessee is coming off a 2-0 week, with both games in Nassau, Bahamas, at the Baha Mar Championship, which it won. It opened the tournament with a 64-42 triumph Thursday over Virginia behind 26 points from fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier. The next day, Lanier scored 25 points, all in the first half, to help the team knock off No. 13/14 Baylor, 77-62, in the final.
In their six outings thus far, the Volunteers have led for 228 minutes and 13 seconds and trailed for only four minutes and 39 seconds. They have held an edge of at least 26 points in each game and have not faced a deficit larger than three.
Tennessee registered 1,116 points in the AP Poll balloting, a 174-point jump from last week and only nine shy of sixth-place Houston. It accumulated 587 points in the Coaches Poll, a 125-point improvement and just six behind fifth-place Iowa State.
The Volunteers are one of eight teams in the top 25 of both polls, joining No. 2/3 Auburn, eighth-ranked Kentucky, ninth-ranked Alabama, No. 18/16 Florida, No. 19/21 Arkansas, No. 20 Texas A&M and No. 23/24 Ole Miss. Additionally, Mississippi State is No. 25 in the AP Poll and third in the receiving votes section of the Coaches Poll.
Beyond that, Texas is in the top three of the receiving votes category on each list, while Georgia also received votes in both polls. Vanderbilt garnered points in the AP Poll, while LSU did so in the Coaches Poll. In total, 13 of the SEC’s 16 teams earned votes in at least one poll, with nine ranked in either or both.
Tennessee wraps up the first month of the season Wednesday at 4 p.m. when it squares off with UT Martin, live on SEC Network+ from Food City Center.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.
