# 2020–21 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team

The 2020–21 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was led by sixth-year head coach Rick Barnes, and played their home games at Thompson–Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee as a member of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the season 18-9, 10-7 in SEC Play to finish in 4th place. They defeated Florida in the quarterfinals of the SEC tournament before losing in the semifinals to Alabama. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament where they were upset in the first round by Oregon State.

## Previous season

The Volunteers finished the 2019–20 season 17–14, 9–9 in SEC play to finish in eighth place. They were set to take on Alabama in the second round of the SEC tournament. However, the remainder of the SEC Tournament was canceled amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. All further postseason tournaments were likewise canceled.

## Offseason
### 2020 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Keon Johnson SG | Bell Buckle, TN | The Webb School | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 185 lb (84 kg) | Aug 6, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Corey Walker PF | Jacksonville, FL | Hargrave Military Academy | 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) | 210 lb (95 kg) | Mar 3, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Jaden Springer SG | Charlotte, NC | IMG Academy | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | 195 lb (88 kg) | Oct 23, 2019 |
| Star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Rivals.com 2020 Tennessee Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

## Preseason
### SEC media poll

The SEC media poll was released on November 12, 2020.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | Tennessee |
| 2 | Kentucky |
| 3 | LSU |
| 4 | Florida |
| 5 | Alabama |
| 6 | Arkansas |
| 7 | Auburn |
| 8 | South Carolina |
| 9 | Ole Miss |
| 10 | Missouri |
| 11 | Texas A&M |
| 12 | Mississippi State |
| 13 | Georgia |
| 14 | Vanderbilt |

### Preseason All-SEC teams

The Volunteers had two players selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

## Schedule and results

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the start of the season was pushed back from the scheduled start of November 10. On September 16, 2020, the NCAA announced that November 25 would be the new start date.
On November 23, it was announced that head coach Rick Barnes had tested positive for COVID-19 and that the school had paused all basketball activities while further tests were conducted within the program.
| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Non-conference regular season |||||||||
| December 8, 2020* 6:00 pm, SECN+ | No. 12 | Colorado | W 56–47 | 1–0 | 11 – Tied | 10 – Pons | 5 – Vescovi | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| December 12, 2020* 12:30 pm, SECN Alt. | No. 12 | Cincinnati | W 65–56 | 2–0 | 15 – Fulkerson | 12 – Fulkerson | 3 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| December 15, 2020* 7:00 pm, SECN | No. 10 | Appalachian State | W 79–38 | 3–0 | 13 – Bailey Jr. | 8 – Bailey Jr. | 4 – Vesocvi | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| December 19, 2020* 8:00 pm, SECN+ | No. 10 | Tennessee Tech | W 103–49 | 4–0 | 21 – Springer | 6 – Tied | 6 – Springer | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| December 21, 2020* 6:00 pm, SECN | No. 8 | St. Joseph's | W 102–66 | 5–0 | 18 – Bailey Jr. | 9 – Pons | 5 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| December 23, 2020* 7:00 pm, SECN | No. 8 | USC Upstate | W 80–60 | 6–0 | 18 – Bailey Jr. | 8 – James | 8 – Vescovi | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| SEC regular season |||||||||
| December 30, 2020 9:00 pm, SECN | No. 7 | at No. 12 Missouri | W 73–53 | 7–0 (1–0) | 15 – Vescovi | 6 – Tied | 4 – James | Mizzou Arena (3,164) Columbia, MO |
| January 2, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 7 | Alabama | L 63–71 | 7–1 (1–1) | 16 – Bailey Jr. | 8 – Tied | 2 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| January 6, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 9 | Arkansas | W 79–74 | 8–1 (2–1) | 17 – Tied | 9 – James | 3 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| January 9, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 9 | at Texas A&M | W 68–54 | 9–1 (3–1) | 23 – Vescovi | 5 – Tied | 6 – Springer | Reed Arena (1,298) College Station, TX |
| January 12, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN2/ESPNU | No. 9 | at South Carolina | Postponed | Postponed | Postponed | Postponed | Postponed | Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC |
| January 16, 2021 6:00 pm, SECN | No. 10 | Vanderbilt | W 81–61 | 10–1 (4–1) | 16 – Johnson | 8 – Fulkerson | 5 – Springer | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| January 19, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN | No. 6 | at Florida | L 49–75 | 10–2 (4–2) | 8 – Fulkerson | 5 – Tied | 5 – Fulkerson | O'Connell Center (2,280) Gainesville, FL |
| January 23, 2021 8:30 pm, SECN | No. 6 | No. 19 Missouri | L 64–73 | 10–3 (4–3) | 20 – Pons | 6 – Fulkerson | 4 – Vescovi | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| January 26, 2021 7:00 pm, SECN | No. 18 | Mississippi State | W 56–53 | 11–3 (5–3) | 13 – Pons | 7 – Vescovi | 5 – Springer | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| January 30, 2021* 6:00 pm, ESPN | No. 18 | No. 15 Kansas SEC/Big 12 Challenge | W 80–61 | 12–3 | 17 – Pons | 11 – James | 4 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| February 2, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 11 | at Ole Miss | L 50–52 | 12–4 (5–4) | 13 – Pons | 6 – James | 4 – Tied | The Pavilion at Ole Miss (895) Oxford, MS |
| February 6, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | at Kentucky | W 82–71 | 13–4 (6–4) | 27 – Johnson | 10 – James | 5 – Vescovi | Rupp Arena (3,075) Lexington, KY |
| February 10, 2021 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 16 | Georgia | W 89–81 | 14–4 (7–4) | 30 – Springer | 8 – Fulkerson | 4 – Fulkerson | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| February 13, 2021 2:00 pm, ESPN | No. 16 | at LSU | L 65–78 | 14–5 (7–5) | 21 – Springer | 6 – Tied | 7 – Springer | Pete Maravich Assembly Center (2,224) Baton Rouge, LA |
| February 17, 2021 9:00 pm, SECN | No. 19 | South Carolina | W 93–73 | 15–5 (8–5) | 29 – Bailey Jr. | 9 – Pons | 5 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| February 20, 2021 1:00 pm, CBS | No. 19 | Kentucky | L 55–70 | 15–6 (8–6) | 18 – Bailey Jr. | 7 – Fulkerson | 5 – Johnson | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| February 24, 2021 9:00 pm, SECN | No. 25 | at Vanderbilt | W 70–58 | 16–6 (9–6) | 21 – Bailey Jr. | 10 – Pons | 3 – Tied | Memorial Gymnasium (144) Nashville, TN |
| February 27, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPN | No. 25 | at Auburn | L 72–77 | 16–7 (9–7) | 23 – Johnson | 8 – Pons | 6 – Springer | Auburn Arena (1,824) Auburn, AL |
| March 7, 2021 12:00 pm, ESPNU | | Florida | W 65–54 | 17–7 (10–7) | 14 – Tied | 10 – James | 4 – Fulkerson | Thompson–Boling Arena (4,191) Knoxville, TN |
| SEC Tournament |||||||||
| March 12, 2021 2:30 p.m., ESPN | (4) | vs. (5) Florida Quarterfinals | W 78–66 | 18–7 | 14 – Vescovi | 9 – Tied | 6 – Tied | Bridgestone Arena (2,186) Nashville, TN |
| March 13, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPN | (4) | vs. (1) No. 6 Alabama Semifinals | L 68–73 | 18–8 | 20 – Johnson | 9 – Johnson | 4 – Vescovi | Bridgestone Arena (3,164) Nashville, TN |
| NCAA tournament |||||||||
| March 19, 2021* 4:30 p.m., TNT | (5 MW) | vs. (12 MW) Oregon State First Round | L 56–70 | 18–9 | 14 – Johnson | 13 – James | 3 – Springer | Bankers Life Fieldhouse Indianapolis, IN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Source

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | Final |
| AP | 12 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 6 | 18 | 11 | 16 | 19 | 25 | RV | RV | RV | Not released |
| Coaches | 14 | 14^ | 16 | 10 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 17 | 10 | 15 | 20 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV |
^Coaches did not release a Week 1 poll.