KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — For the first time since 2010, a pair of AP Top-25 Teams will clash in Thompson-Boling Arena this Sunday, as the 20th-ranked Volunteers host No. 7 North Carolina. The game will tip at 3 p.m. and will be televised live on ESPN and streamed online via WatchESPN.

Tennessee announced plans earlier in the week to “checker” Thompson-Boling Arena for next Sunday’s highly anticipated game against the defending national champion Tar Heels. Fans planning to attend the sold-out showdown, which tips off at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN, are encouraged to visit  CheckerTBA.com to learn whether their seats are in a section designated to wear orange or white. VolShop locations are offering t-shirts in both colors; the shirts feature the state outline filled in with a checkerboard.

Doug Sherman (play-by-play) and Jay Bilas (analyst) are on the call for Sunday’s matchup for ESPN. Fans can also listen live on their local Vol Network affiliate to catch Bob Keslingand Bert Bertelkamp describing the action. The contest is officially sold out, but tickets for upcoming games can be purchased at AllVols.com.

The Volunteers (7-1) have begun the season on a hot streak, earning their best starting record since 2010-11, when they opened with seven straight wins. UT was recently rewarded for its strong play, making its first appearance in the AP top-25 poll since December of 2010. After a win over Lipscomb last Saturday, Tennessee moved up to 20th in the polls and are now in search of its second consecutive win over an AP Top-10 at home. Grant Williams has stepped up his game across the board this season, posting 16.1 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 2.6 apg and 1.9 bpg for the Vols.

North Carolina (9-1) has double-digit wins over “Power 5” foes in Stanford, Arkansas and Michigan this season and enters Sunday’s contest riding a four-game winning streak, during which the Tar Heels have averaged 93.0 ppg while holding their opponents to 73.0 ppg. Junior forward Luke Maye leads the charge for UNC, averaging a double-double with 19.6 ppg and 10.5 rpg.

THE SERIES
• Overall: UNC leads, 9-1
• In Knoxville: Series tied, 1-1
• In Chapel Hill: UNC leads, 3-0
• Neutral Sites: UNC leads, 5-0
• Current Streak: UNC has won four straight
• Last Meeting: UNC won, 73-71, in Chapel Hill, 12/11/16
• Rick Barnes vs. UNC: 6-11
• Rick Barnes vs. Roy Williams: Tied, 6-6

RIGHT NOW
• UNC is the third of four ACC opponents on Tennessee’s schedule during a 30-day span.
• The Vols are rated No. 7 in the ESPN InsideRPI, with the nation’s 24th-rated SOS.
• At 7-1, the Volunteers are off to their best start since the 2010-11 season, when they went 7-1 though their first eight games.
• Tennessee leads the SEC in assists per game (19.1) and 3-point percentage (.412).

A WIN WOULD…
• Extend Tennessee’s home winning streak against non-conference opponents to 11 games. That streak dates to last season’s win over Appalachian State on Nov. 15, 2016
• Give the Vols six straight home wins over teams that are the defending national champion, dating to 1999
• Give the Volunteers a 17-game home winning streak during the month of December

ABOUT NORTH CAROLINA
• North Carolina, the defending NCAA champions, visit Knoxville as the Vols and Tar Heels close out a two-game, home-and-home series, which began last season.
• Under the direction of head coach Roy Williams, the Tar Heels are 9-1 this season (lone loss came against No. 4 Michigan State in the PK80 Tournament) and are ranked No. 7 by the AP and coaches.
• The Tar Heels received a huge boost in the offseason when Joel Berry II, the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four, withdrew his name from the NBA Draft and announced he would return for another season in Chapel Hill. In nine games, he’s averaging 16.0 ppg, 3.7 apg and 2.4 rpg.
• North Carolina is bolstered by Luke Maye, who won UNC’s Danny Green Award as the team’s most improved player and was named the Most Outstanding Player in the NCAA South Regional during the team’s title run last season. The junior has become one of the Tar Heels’ best players after starting only one game in his career prior to this season.
• This year, Maye has started all 10 games and is averaging a double-double behind 19.9 ppg and 10.5 rpg, both of which are team highs. The 6-8 forward is shooting 57 percent (80-140) from the field and has the ability to knock down shots from beyond the arc, connecting on 48 percent (13-27) of his attempts from deep.
• Kenny Williams (13.4 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.4 spg) and Theo Pinson (9.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 4.4 apg) have stepped up as two do-it-all guys for UNC this season.
• The Tar Heels have double-digit wins over “Power 5” foes in Stanford, Arkansas and Michigan this season and enter Sunday’s contest riding a four-game winning streak, during which UNC has averaged 93.0 ppg while holding its opponents to 73.0 ppg.

UNC CONNECTIONS
• Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes and Senior Executive Associate AD/Chief Operating Officer Reid Sigmon (who serves as UT’s men’s basketball administrator) both attended college in North Carolina. Barnes attended Lenoir-Rhyne University in Hickory; he and his wife, Candy, both are Hickory natives, and his mother and brothers still reside there. Sigmon went to Wake Forest.
• Hickory is approximately 150 miles west of Chapel Hill.
• Two current Vols are North Carolina natives: Jalen Johnson (Durham) and Grant Williams (Charlotte). Another current Vol, John Fulkerson, played his high school ball at The Christ School in Arden, North Carolina, near Asheville.
• Third-year UT assistant coach Desmond Oliver spent five seasons as an assistant at Charlotte from 2010-15.
• Tennessee Video Coordinator Riley Davis was a Regional Advance Scout for the Charlotte NBA franchise during the 2013-14 season.
• A former UNC standout used to hold the head coaching reins on Rocky Top. Asheville native Buzz Peterson was UT’s head coach from 2001-05. He and his close friend, Michael Jordan, both played on UNC’s 1982 National Championship Team.
• Peterson’s predecessor at UT, Jerry Green (1997-2001), was an assistant at Kansas for four years under current UNC head coach Roy Williams, before taking the head job at Oregon and later Tennessee.

LAST MEETING WITH UNC
• Tennessee led No. 7 North Carolina by five with just 4:32 remaining in regulation on Dec. 11, 2016, at the Dean E. Smith Center, but the upset bid came up short as the Tar Heels outscored UT 10-5 over the decisive stretch, handing the Vols a 73-71 loss.
• Tennessee was led by senior Robert Hubbs III, who scored a game-high 21 points on 9-of-11 shooting. He also had a team-high six rebounds. Freshman Jordan Bowden added 12 points with five boards.
• After leading by as many as 15 in the first half, the Vols successfully fended off North Carolina’s comeback attempts for much of the second half. Vols freshman Grant Williams—a North Carolina native—knocked down a short jumper in the lane to give UT a 68-63 lead with just over 4:30 to play, but a 7-1 run gave the Tar Heels their first lead since the 15:34 mark in the first half. The rally was capped by a driving layup from Carolina’s leading scorer, Justin Jackson, which gave the Tar Heels a 70-69 lead with 2:14 left in the game.
• The Vols hung around, trailing 73-71 with nine seconds left. Lamonté Turner drove the length of the court and into the lane, but his potential game-tying shot attempt was blocked with just two seconds remaining.
• Turner finished with nine points. Williams turned in a nice outing in his home state, posting seven points, six rebounds and four blocks.
• After UNC scored the first four points of the game, the Vols went on a 27-9 run—at one point scoring on 10 consecutive possessions. The Big Orange shot 65 percent as a team in the first half and were 3-of-6 from beyond the 3-point arc.
• Tennessee’s first half field-goal percentage of .654 was the fourth-highest ever recorded by a UNC opponent in a half at the Dean Smith Center, which opened in 1986.

RANKED TEAMS COLLIDE IN KNOX
• Sunday’s game marks the first time two ranked men’s teams have collided at Thompson-Boling Arena since Feb. 27, 2010, when the 19th-ranked Vols upset second-ranked Kentucky, 74-65. That Wildcats squad was led by current NBA stars John Wall, Eric Bledsoe and DeMarcus Cousins.
• That game also is the last time Tennessee faced a top-10 opponent at home when the Vols were ranked as well.
• Tennessee went on to advance to the Elite Eight, its deepest-ever run in the NCAA Tournament.

SUNDAY’S GAME A SELLOUT
• Sunday’s game was officially announced as a sellout several weeks ago. It is Tennessee’s first sellout at Thompson-Boling Arena since Feb. 17, 2015.

VOLS’ SCHEDULE IS ACC HEAVY
• Tennessee’s 2017-18 schedule features four games against ACC opposition in a 30-day span: Nov. 24 vs. NC State, Dec. 3 at Georgia Tech, Dec. 17 vs. North Carolina, Dec. 23 at Wake Forest.
• The Vols defeated NC State, 67-58, at the Battle 4 Atlantis. Then, in its first true road game of the season, Tennessee toppled Georgia Tech, 77-70, in Atlanta.
• Additionally, Tennessee traveled to Clemson for a charity exhibition on Nov. 5. The Vols defeated the Tigers, 71-67.

VOLS HAVE WON LAST FIVE AT HOME vs. DEFENDING NAT’L CHAMPS
• Tennessee has won five straight home games against the defending national champion, dating to 1998-99. UT possesses an overall record of 7-4 at home against the defending national champion.
• Only one of those games came against a non-conference opponent: Tennessee’s 60-57 win over then-Big East member UConn on Jan. 21, 2012.
DEFENDING CHAMP       DATE             RESULT
#25 Kentucky                Feb. 16, 2013     W, 88-58
#13 UConn                   Jan. 21, 2012      W, 60-57
Florida                          Feb. 5, 2008        W, 104-82
#5 Florida                     Feb. 27, 2007      W, 86-76
#13 Kentucky               Feb. 28, 1999      W, 68-61
#3 Kentucky                 Feb. 25, 1997      L, 74-64
Kentucky                      Feb. 17, 1979      W, 101-84
#1 Kentucky                 Feb. 28, 1959      L, 69-56
#3 Kentucky                Jan. 19, 1952       L, 65-56
#2 Kentucky                Jan. 14, 1950       W, 66-53
Kentucky                     Jan. 15, 1949       L, 66-51
BARNES VS. THE TAR HEELS
• Vols coach Rick Barnes, a native of Hickory, North Carolina, owns a 6-11 career record against UNC and a 6-6 career head-to-head record against current UNC coach Roy Williams.
• Barnes has led his teams to one win over UNC when the Tar Heels were ranked in the AP top 10, leading Texas to a 103-90 victory in Arlington, Texas, Dec. 19, 2009, when UNC was ranked 10th in both polls.
• Barnes never faced the Tar Heels during his tenure at Providence from 1988-94. He went 1-9 vs. UNC while he was the head coach at Clemson from 1994-98.
• As the head coach at Texas from 1998-2015, Barnes led his Longhorns teams to a 5-1 record against UNC. Here is a breakdown of those six meetings:
DATE                       SITE          UNC RANK         RESULT
March 20, 2004       Denver           #18                 W, 78-75
Dec. 19, 2009         Arlington         #10                 W, 103-90
Dec. 18, 2010         Greensboro     NR                 W, 78-76
Dec. 21, 2011         Chapel Hill       #5                  L, 82-63
Dec. 19, 2012         Austin             #23                 W, 85-67
Dec. 18, 2013         Chapel Hill      #14                 W, 86-83

VOLS CLIMB INTO TOP 20
• Tennessee on Dec. 4 made its first appearance in the AP top-25 poll since 2010—nearly seven full years. The Vols landed at No. 24 in that week’s AP poll.
• Prior to that week, the last time Tennessee appeared in the top 25 was Dec. 20, 2010 (19th AP, 18th coaches).
• This week, UT stands at No. 20 both major polls.

UT IN RARE RANKED COMPANY
• Tennessee is one of seven schools whose men’s and women’s basketball teams are both ranked in the latest Associated Press top-25 poll.
• The Vols are ranked 20th, and the unbeaten Lady Vols are ranked seventh under coach Holly Warlick.
• Other schools with two ranked hoops squads (AP poll) are Baylor, Duke, Florida State, Texas A&M, Villanova and West Virginia

-UT Athletics

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Senior Jaime Nared and Head Coach Holly Warlick met with members of the media prior to No. 7/7 Tennessee’s practice on Wednesday. The Lady Vols are preparing to leave for California, where they will face Long Beach State (2-7) on Sunday before traveling north to play No. 18/17 Stanford (5-4) on Dec. 21.

Nared was named SEC Player of the Week on Tuesday, Dec. 12 after posting 27 points and 6 rebounds against Troy the previous Wednesday and following that up with 23 points and 13 rebounds against Texas on Sunday. Answering questions from the media, Nared shared her thoughts on how the team is preparing for its upcoming west coast trip and what it means for the program to be ranked in the Top 10. Warlick’s answers included discussion on how the team has responded to challenging opponents and situations this season, as well as how the seniors have emerged as leaders.

Tennessee will face Long Beach State on Sunday at 5 p.m. ET (2 p.m. PT) in Long Beach, Calif. The game will be available for viewing online via Beach Vision.

Head Coach Holly Warlick

On how the team will respond on the road:
“Yes, I am anxious to see how the team will respond. We’ve been through some tough games as well, and they have practiced well. We practiced yesterday, and they did a great job, so I anticipate them being very focused and continuing to do what we’ve been doing.”

On her thoughts about the team’s performance against Texas:
“We fought for loose balls, we rebounded out of our area, and we were physical. I just loved our heart and our passion. It really stood out to me, and it was really fun to watch.”

On if the freshmen had exceeded her expectations:
“I had great expectations for them, so I think they’re pretty spot on. They’re talented; they’re mature. We put them in situations when we were in Cancun to play three games back-to-back-to-back, and they responded. So I think they’re right where we thought they would be.”

On the seniors being leaders for the freshmen: 
“It’s a combination of both – it’s who they are. They have a little bit of a calming effect to them, and I think Jaime and Mercedes have done a great job of taking (the freshmen) in and making sure they understand what’s expected and what’s going to happen. Those two have done an excellent job… they’ve talked to them about their experiences, and I think it’s prepared them.”

On the team consistently getting to the free throw line:
“It’s a product of the shots we’re taking that have been created out of our offense. That’s our goal, to get to the line. And we’re doing that. We’re not settling. We’re not settling for a contested jump shot. If it’s going to be contested, get to the basket. And we’ve got players that can get to the basket, so that helps the situation with the free throws.”

On if recent success will affect the way the team plays:
“I would be shocked if they changed their demeanor, personality or how they play. I’d be shocked. We’ve been pretty consistent since day one about how hard we’ve been playing and the things we’ve been doing, so that really hasn’t changed.  We’ve missed shots, but for the most part, our effort has been solid.”

Tennessee Senior Jaime Nared

On learning things about her team through the past 10 games:
“Just everybody’s heart. I didn’t really know how everybody was going to respond to such big games, but I think everybody is super competitive, and everybody wants to compete and win. That’s what I’ve learned about this group, and I’ve been really happy to see that they’re willing to compete and just play hard.”

On what she means when she uses the term playing hard:
“Definitely competitiveness, especially with the freshmen. Freshman year you kind of don’t really know what to expect, and they’ve done a great job with just competing and doing everything the coaches have asked of them. They’ve over exceeded expectations.”

On how eager she is to see how they play on the road:
“We’ve played in Cancun. I thought we did pretty good. California is beautiful, and there are a lot of things that could be a distraction, but I think seeing how we’ve handled the first 10 games just shows the maturity of our team, and how competitive everybody is. I think that everybody will be fine on the road trip.”

On advice she would give to the freshmen heading into a tough road matchup at Stanford:
“I think just playing our game and just staying together. That’s the biggest fear of road games – giving into the crowd and people saying inappropriate things or things that they shouldn’t say. You don’t really know what to expect, but just always staying together as a team, always be dialed into the game, making sure we’re just staying together.”

On stressing communication on the road:
“(In the) Texas game, it was hard to hear. We really had to come together and sometimes we found ourselves saying things ten times before we finally got together because it was just so loud. At any game that you play, and especially road games, it’s going to be like that. I’m not really sure about Long Beach, but I know it’s going to be loud. They have a small arena, but as long as we’re paying attention to coaches and to each other, I think we’ll be fine.”

On how starting the game strong benefits a particularly younger team:
‘It’s great. I thought about this same thing the other day. We used to get off to terrible starts last year, but this year it seems like everybody is just ready. In warmups we don’t really have to say, “Come on, focus guys.” We don’t have to get everybody dialed into the game. It’s just completely different, and it’s been great. Having that opportunity and everybody focusing, doing their part. It’s really great.”

On being less nervous when they are consistent:
“Sometimes shots just don’t fall, but you can’t really let that affect your game. It may not happen every game. You may miss your first couple of shots, but I think defensively we’ve been doing great in the beginning of the games, which has kind of helped us to propel our offense.”

On their additional focus:
“Maybe just our attention to detail. I think that’s a big thing. When we start the game off, everybody is focused. Everybody knows what their job is for the game and is dialed in to what they need to do, so I don’t think it’s anything in particular rather than everybody being focused in on what they need to do, and being together.”

On what it means to be in the Top 10:
“It’s great. It’s still early December. It doesn’t really matter right now. I like to see that we’re growing each game, and that we’re just playing well together. That’s something I like to see, especially this early in the season. Obviously we have to keep it going. We can’t settle with where we are now. We have to keep getting better each game and keep working hard, not letting our little success that we’ve had so far affect the rest of our season because that could make for an up and down season. We’re not letting that get to us.”

On if freshmen have asked quested about what to expect on the road:
“They don’t really know what to expect. I think they’ll be fine though. That’s just what I’ve learned about them. They’re true competitors. They’re freshmen, and that’s just great to see. They work hard. I don’t think it will really affect them. It’s easy to tell them how it’s going to be, but when we’re in the environment and we’re working together they’ll calm down because they understand that we have each other’s back.”

On the freshmen being really composed:
“Sometimes we do get a little happy with our passes, kind of up-tempo, but we always just remind each other to slow our pace down and remind ourselves who we are. At the end of the day, we’ve just done a great job accepting what everybody has to say to them and just making changes.”

On freshmen exceeding expectations:
“I remember what freshman year was like. Obviously it was a big adjustment, and you just have to kind of accept your role in college and do whatever it takes for your team. Obviously they’ve had different roles. Everybody has a different role once you get to college, and it’s finding out what that is and doing what you’re told. I just know that they’re still in the gym. It’s easy to do it when you first get here and probably don’t have as much, but as the season goes on and you’re trying to get better, that’s a product of who they are and success that they’ve had.”

On the roles of the freshmen being pretty clear:
“We have 10 people on our team. We don’t have a big team, which kind of is cool just because we’re all close together, and we all have an understanding of what we’re supposed to do. We all met with Holly maybe last week or a couple weeks ago, and she basically told everybody what they’re role is on the team, what she expects of us, and just to do what we can every night. Just compete. That’s her biggest thing. She wants us to compete. That’s not really something that we’ve had to question from each other this year. I think everybody has just done a great job.”

On what the older players learned from being on the road:
“I think we learned a lot from last year – the past couple of years, honestly. Our teams in the past couple of years have been not very cohesive. We were one of the most talented teams in the country (last year), and we had one of the most up and down seasons. That’s not something that we’re really focusing on as much this year. We know what we needed to fix. We’ve warned everybody about what we needed to do every single game, and everybody’s responded. Last year is just kind of whatever now; it doesn’t really matter anymore. We can’t fix the past, we’re just worried about now.”

On freshmen being able to focus solely on basketball while on road trip:
“I think it’ll be fun. We’re going to the movies, so we’re going to do a little team bonding as well. We’re going to Bubba Gump; I’m excited for that. School is a little part of it, but I mean, how they’ve handled it during school and finals week, I’m excited to see how they’ll handle basketball without school. Sometimes you get worries about your school work and stuff, but when you don’t have it, it’s easier to just focus on the game.

On if consistency and cohesiveness makes playing games more fun:
“Yes, it does. It makes it easier to play together and play for each other. We have each other’s back. I don’t question that with the people on our team. I think you kind of see that when we play together. Somebody gets beat, somebody’s there and we’re rotating. We’re always communicating with one another, and we genuinely want each other to do well. It makes all these games so much better. It’s just been a fun year, and just seeing how well we get along and everything that comes along with our success so far. How much we can grow throughout the rest of our season, I’m excited to see.”

-UT Athletics