Are They In?

The Vols took care of business last week with two big wins, most notably against Missouri on Saturday.  The Missouri win was a hard fought battle and epitomizes the Vols’ determination to make the NCAA tournament.  While many pundits believe the Vols are in, nothing can be taken for granted.  If Cuonzo Martin’s basketball Vols want to ensure a place in the field, one or two more wins could be required.  A first round win in the SEC tourney avoids putting a bad loss on the resume, lowering the RPI, and improves the overall record.  Two wins means another quality victory is on the resume and the Vols would be a lock.

Should the Vols lose in the first or second round, small conference tournaments could decide their fate.  For the Vols, upsets are bad.  They need NCAA tourney teams to win their conference championships, taking the automatic invitation, leaving more at large bids available.  The Vols hope to have a good enough SEC tournament showing to remove all doubt and make everyone else’s play a moot point.