PHILADELPHIA – The No. 23/25 Tennessee men’s basketball team (23-11, 11-7) is set to continue the 2025-26 slate Sunday, as it takes on the Virginia Cavaliers (30-5, 15-3) in the second round of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia. Tipoff is set for 6:10 p.m. ET.
Fans can watch Sunday’s game on TNT and stream on HBO Max as well as the March Madness Live app. Andrew Catalon (play-by-play), Steve Lappas (color) and Evan Washburn (reporter) will have the call.
Fans state-wide can tune in to their local Vol Network terrestrial radio affiliate or the Varsity Network app to hear Voice of the Vols Mike Keith and analyst Chris Lofton depict the action.
THE MATCHUP
• After starting 1-4 against Virginia, Tennessee is 5-4 in its last nine games in the series, which dates back to 1917, the ninth year of the Volunteers’ program.
• This is the sixth neutral site at which the two sides have met.
• Virginia is one of three teams UT has played at least thrice in the NCAA Tournament, alongside Michigan (1-3) and Louisiana (3- 0). The Volunteers are 1-2 against Virginia, falling in 1981 and 1982, before winning in 2007.
• The Volunteers are 127-102 all-time versus current ACC schools. That includes a 2-7 ledger in NCAA Tournament competition.
• Rick Barnes is 86-78 against the current ACC membership. He is 16-6 with the Vols, including 9-2 the past five years (2021-26) and 1-1 this season.
• Virginia, which finished second in the ACC and made the league title game, is in the NCAA Tournament for the 10th time since 2014.
• First Team All-ACC choice Thijs De Ridder, a freshman forward, leads the Cavaliers with 15.4 ppg and 6.2 rpg.
NEWS & NOTES
• Ryan Odom served as the head coach at Rick Barnes‘ alma mater, Lenoir-Rhyne, in 2015-16.
• UT freshman forward Nate Ament, a Second Team All-ACC pick, is from Manassas, Va., about 82 miles southwest of Charlottesville.
• Tennessee is 32-28 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including 13-7 under Rick Barnes, who has five more wins and two more bids than any other UT coach.
• Tennessee is in the Round of 32 for the fifth year in a row, tying a program best. It is seeking a fourth straight Sweet 16 trip, which would double its prior best.
• In the win over Miami (OH), Ja’Kobi Gillespie became the ninth player to post 29 points, nine assists and three steals in NCAA Tournament play. He is the second to do it in the last 30 years and the first from the SEC.
• A Vol has scored 29-plus in the NCAA Tournament three years in a row. It happened once previously (Ernie Grunfeld in 1976).
• Rick Barnes‘ 859 wins are second among active DI coaches and No. 10 all-time (min. 10 years in DI).
• With a 45.0 offensive rebounding percentage, the Vols are on pace to log, per KenPom, the third-best mark this century. They trail 2000-01 Michigan State (47.0) and 2000-01 Georgetown (45.3).
• Tennessee is 2-0 versus AP top-11 teams this season. It defeated #3 Houston (11/25/25) by three and #11 Louisville (12/16/25) by 21.
• Seven of Tennessee’s 11 setbacks are by fewer than six points. Four were decided by one possession.
• The Vols have played just four games (2-2) that did not include a lead of 10-plus either way.
• Tennessee, Alabama and Houston are the only schools to make the last three Sweet 16s. Tennessee, Alabama and Duke are the only three in the last two Elite Eights.
• UT finished a program-best fifth in the AP Poll, Coaches Poll and KenPom in 2023-24 and 2024-25.
• The Vols’ 224 wins the last nine years (2017-26) place ninth in DI. Only Houston (272), Gonzaga (27), Duke (253), Kansas (236), Purdue (234), Arizona (227), Saint Mary’s (227) and Liberty (225) own more. Virginia (221) is No. 10.
WINNING WAYS
• Over the last nine seasons (2017-26), Tennessee (224-85; .725) paces all SEC programs in total victories, overall winning percentage and postseason victories (25). In that span, UT has three SEC titles (2018 and 2024 regular seasons, 2022 tournament).
• In that same period, the Volunteers are one of two SEC teams with even 210-plus wins and/or a winning percentage above .690, alongside Auburn (220-87; .717), which is a distant second in both.
• Over SEC play across the same span, Tennessee (109-52; .677) is first in both league victories and league winning percentage. The only other schools at even 100-plus wins and/or a .620 clip are Kentucky (107-54; .665), Alabama (104-58; .642) and Auburn (103-59; .636).
• In just the last five seasons (2021-26), the Vols own a 132-47 (.737) overall record. That is good for the most total wins and the best winning percentage in the SEC, far ahead of Alabama (.718; 127-50) in the former and Auburn (.720; 126-49) in the latter.
• In that time, Tennessee (62-28; .689) is second in league victories and league winning percentage, behind only Alabama (64-26; .711).
SERIOUS STREAKS
• The Volunteers own 20 wins for the fifth season in a row. That ties the longest streak in program history, recorded both from 1980-81 to 194-85 and 2005- 06 to 2009-10. This is Tennessee’s seventh 20-win season in the last nine years and 32nd all-time.
• UT has reached at least 23 wins in all five years of its active streak. This is the first time the Vols have ever won even 22-plus games in five straight seasons.
• Tennessee has double-figure SEC victories for the sixth straight year, good for the second-longest streak in program history. The Vols had 10-plus SEC wins 13 seasons in a row from 1964-65 to 1976-77.
• UT has notched 11-plus SEC wins in all six seasons of its active streak. That one shy of the top mark in program history, set from 1970-71 to 1976-77.
EIGHT IN A ROW
• Tennessee has reached every NCAA Tournament since 2018. The eight straight bids are two above the program’s previous high of six from 2006-11.
• UT is tied with Houston for the fourth-longest active NCAA Tournament streak in DI, trailing Michigan State (28), Gonzaga (27) and Purdue (11). Kansas (due to a vacated bid) is next with seven.
• The Vols’ current streak includes four—2018, 2023, 2024, 2025—of their 10 all-time Sweet 16 bids and two of their three Elite Eight trips (2024, 2025).
• UT has earned a top-six seed in all of its eight NCAA Tournament trips under Rick Barnes: No. 3 in 2018, No. 2 in 2019, No. 5 in 2021, No. 3 in 2022, No. 4 in 2023, No. 2 in 2024, No. 2 in 2025 and No. 6 in 2026.
• The Vols’ No. 2 seed last year (2025) matched 2024, 2019, 2008 and 2006 for their best position ever.
• Tennessee has three No. 2 seeds in Barnes’ tenure, eclipsing its full total (two) before his arrival. The eight top-six seeds in the era Barnes also surpass UT’s complete tally (six) prior to his hiring.
GILLESPIE’S GREATNESS
• Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored a career-high 34 points in the SEC home opener against Texas (1/6/26). He went 12-of-18, missing just four of his 16 shots in the first 38 minutes, for a career high in made field goals.
• Gillespie became the second SEC player in the last 20 years (2006-26) with at least 34 points, five assists, four rebounds and three steals in a game, alongside Ben Simmons (12/2/15 against North Florida).
• Gillespie became the fifth Power Six competitor in the last 20 seasons (2006-26) to post that four-stat line in a league game, including the first in nearly nine years and the second in regulation. He followed Khadeen Carrington (2/5/17 against Creighton), Markelle Fultz (1/18/17 against Colorado in OT), Corey Sanders (2/3/16 against Illinois in 3OT) and Dominique Jones (1/23/10 at Providence in OT).
• Prior to Gillespie, just two DI players tallied that four-stat line in a regulation game in 2025-26: Christian Anderson (11/4/25 versus Lindenwood) and Cameron Boozer (11/14/25 versus Indiana State).
• In addition, Gillespie previously scored a then-career-best 32 points in an 11/24/25 win over Rutgers in Las Vegas. Through the first week of January, he was thus one of six Power Five players with multiple 32-point games on the year, alongside Cameron Boozer, A.J. Dybantsa, Josh Hubbard, Nick Martinelli and Bruce Thornton.
• In the Round of 64 win over Miami (OH) (3/20/26), Gillespie posted the co-third-most points ever by a Volunteer in an NCAA Tournament game with 29, adding nine assists and three steals. He became the ninth player ever with that line in NCAA Tournament action, including the first from the SEC and second in the last 30 years (1996-2026). He joins Markquis Nowell (2023), Stephon Marbury (1996), Anderson Hunt (1990), Tim Hardaway (1989), Billy Donovan (1987), Magic Johnson (1979), Rickey Green (1977) and Sam McCants (1974).
• After scoring eight points in his UT debut, Gillespie had double-digit points in the next 28 games. He owns 26 outings with 15-plus points this season, 21 with 17-plus, 14 with 20-plus and six with 24-plus.
• Per ESPN’s Kevin Connors, Gillespie’s 28-game double-figure scoring streak was the second longest by a Vol this century. It trailed only Ron Slay’s multiyear streak of 29 games from 2001-02 into 2002-03.
• Additionally, in SEC-only action, Gillespie led the league in steals (2.7) and minutes (36.5) per game.
BEASTS ON THE BOARDS
• Tennessee leads the nation, according to KenPom, with a 45.0 offensive rebounding percentage. That is 1.5 above second-ranked Florida (43.5) and 5.8 ahead of third-place Illinois (39.2).
• UT is on pace, per KenPom, to be the third-best offensive rebounding team this century. The Vols trail only 2000-01 Michigan State (47.0) and 2000- 01 Georgetown (45.3), the latter by just 0.3.
• The Vols have double-digit offensive rebounds in 33 of 34 games, with 13-plus in 27, 15-plus in 21, 20-plus in seven and 23-plus in five. Their top tally is 26.
• Tennessee is second in DI in second in rebounding margin (12.9), offensive rebounds per game (15.94) and third in total rebounds per game (42.56).
• The Vols have at least 35 total boards in 30 of 34 contests, with 40-plus in 21, 45-plus in 15 and 50- plus in six. Their highest mark is 60.
• Jaylen Carey (five times), J.P. Estrella (five), Felix Okpara (four), Nate Ament (two), Bishop Boswell (two), DeWayne Brown II (two) have all amassed 10 total rebounds in a game this season.
• Per KenPom, Jaylen Carey is ninth in the country with his 17.4 offensive rebounding percentage. J.P. Estrella has a 17.9 mark, but does not qualify.
• In his second start, versus Gardner-Webb (12/21/25), DeWayne Brown II had 14 rebounds. He tied Grant Williams (3/1/17), Jarnell Stokes (3/3/12) and Brian Williams (12/15/07) for the most by a UT freshman in the last 20 seasons (2006-26). He also tied the fifth-highest total by any Vol in the Rick Barnes era.
• The Volunteers pulled down 60 rebounds in the double-overtime victory against Texas A&M (1/13/26) and conceded just 35 (plus-25). It marked their first time with 55-plus rebounds since grabbing 58 on 11/18/08 versus UT Martin. UT had 24 offensive boards and allowed only 10 (plus-14). Jaylen Carey (10p, 9r) was one rebound away from giving Tennessee three players with double-digit boards and double-doubles, as Bishop Boswell (13p, 11r) and Felix Okpara (10p, 12r) both hit that mark.
• In the overtime win at Georgia (1/28/26), Tennessee grabbed 52 rebounds and allowed only 27 (plus-25). It also pulled down an 26 offensive boards while giving up just seven (plus-19). Two Vols, J.P. Estrella and Felix Okpara, had as many offensive boards individually as the Bulldogs did as a team. Bishop Boswell (13p, 10r) tallied a double-double, while Estrella (17p, 9r) and Okpara (6p, 11r) nearly did so.
• In the victory over Auburn (1/31/26), UT had four players—Nate Ament, Bishop Boswell, Jaylen Carey and Amari Evans—grab eight rebounds. It marked the second such instance for the Volunteers in the last 20 seasons (2006-26), alongside a 12/23/13 game versus Morehead State. DeWayne Brown II gave UT five players with seven-plus boards, its first such occurrence in the last two decades and just the fourth by any SEC team in league play.
• At Kentucky (2/7/26), DeWayne Brown II pulled down a game-best 12 rebounds. That tied for the third-most by a Tennessee freshman in an SEC game the last 20 seasons (2006-26). The only others to hit that mark are Grant Williams (14 on 3/1/17 at LSU), Jarnell Stokes (14 on 3/3/12 against Vanderbilt), Tobias Harris (12 on 1/29/11 at Ole Miss) and Wayne Chism (12 on 2/10/07 against Vanderbilt).
• The Volunteers hauled in 25 offensive rebounds versus #17/18 Alabama (2/28/26), a program best in an SEC regulation contest. • J.P. Estrella (20p, 10r) logged his first double-double in SEC play versus #24/22 Vanderbilt (3/7/26), while Felix Okpara (8p, 10r) nearly had one, as well.
