# 2019–20 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team

The 2019–20 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee in the 2019–20 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Volunteers were led by fifth-year head coach Rick Barnes. The team played its home games at Thompson–Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee, as a member of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the 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 Tournamament was cancelled amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

## Previous season

The Vols finished the 2018-19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season 31–6, 15–3 in SEC play to earn a share of the SEC regular season championship. As the No. 2 seed in the SEC tournament, they defeated Mississippi State and Kentucky before losing to Auburn in the championship game. They received an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament as the No. 2 seed in the South region. There the Volunteers defeated Colgate and Iowa in the Second Round before being upset by Purdue in the Sweet Sixteen.

## Offseason
### Departures

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Reason for departure |
| Admiral Schofield | 5 | F | 6'6" | 241 | Senior | Zion, IL | Graduated; selected 42nd overall by the Philadelphia 76ers |
| Kyle Alexander | 11 | F | 6'11" | 215 | Senior | Milton, ON | Graduated |
| Brad Woodson | 12 | G | 6'1" | 177 | Senior | Murfreesboro, TN | Graduated |
| Lucas Campbell | 24 | G | 6'4" | 185 | Senior | Knoxville, TN | Graduated |
| Jordan Bone | 0 | G | 6'3" | 174 | Junior | Nashville, TN | Declared for the NBA draft; selected 57th overall by the New Orleans Pelicans |
| Grant Williams | 2 | F | 6'7" | 236 | Junior | Charlotte, NC | Declared for the NBA draft; selected 22nd overall by the Boston Celtics |
| Derrick Walker | 15 | F | 6'8" | 236 | Sophomore | Kansas City, MO | Transferred to Nebraska |
| D. J. Burns | 32 | F | 6'9" | 272 | Freshman | Rock Hill, SC | Transferred to Winthrop |

### Coaching changes

In April 2019, associate head coach Rob Lanier was hired as the new head coach at Georgia State. Barnes hired Kim English as a replacement later that month.

### Incoming transfers

| Name | Number | Pos. | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Previous school |
| Victor Bailey Jr. | 13 | G | 6'4" | 190 | Junior | Austin, TX | Transferred from Oregon. Under NCAA transfer rules, Bailey will have to sit out the 2019–20 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility. |
| Uroš Plavšić | 34 | C | 7'0" | 240 | Sophomore | Ivanjica, Serbia | Transferred from Arizona State. Under NCAA transfer rules, Plavšić will have to sit out the 2019–20 season. Will have three years of remaining eligibility. |

### 2019 recruiting class

College recruiting information :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Josiah-Jordan James CG | Charleston, SC | Porter–Gaud School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 200 lb (91 kg) | Sep 19, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Drew Pember PF | Knoxville, TN | Bearden High School | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Jun 8, 2018 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Davonte Gaines SF | Buffalo, NY | High School for Health Careers and Sciences | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | 175 lb (79 kg) | Jul 1, 2017 |
| Star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ||||||
| Olivier Nkamhoua C | Cumberland, MD | Bishop Walsh High School | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | N/A | May 17, 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 2019 Tennessee Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. "2019 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. ||||||

### 2020 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2020) :
| 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 October 15, 2019.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 1 | Kentucky |
| 2 | Florida |
| 3 | LSU |
| 4 | Auburn |
| 5 | Tennessee |
| 6 | Alabama |
| 7 | Mississippi State |
| 8 | Ole Miss |
| 9 | Georgia |
| 10 | South Carolina |
| 11 | Arkansas |
| 12 | Texas A&M |
| 13 | Missouri |
| 14 | Vanderbilt |

### Preseason All-SEC teams

The Volunteers had one player selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

## Depth chart

| Pos. | Starting 5 | Bench 1 | Bench 2 |
| C | John Fulkerson | Uroš Plavšić | Drew Pember |
| PF | Yves Pons | Olivier Nkamhoua | |
| SF | Josiah-Jordan James | Davonte Gaines | Brock Jancek |
| SG | Jordan Bowden | Jalen Johnson | |
| PG | Lamonte Turner | Santiago Véscovi | Jacob Fleschman |

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| October 30, 2019* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | Eastern New Mexico | W 107–59 | – | 23 – Turner | 10 – Fulkerson | 7 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (6,222) Knoxville, TN |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 5, 2019* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | | UNC Asheville | W 78–63 | 1–0 | 17 – Turner | 9 – Fulkerson | 6 – Turner | Thompson–Boling Arena (19,273) Knoxville, TN |
| November 12, 2019* 9:00 pm, SECN | | Murray State | W 82–63 | 2–0 | 26 – Bowden | 9 – Fulkerson | 14 – Turner | Thompson–Boling Arena (16,912) Knoxville, TN |
| November 16, 2019* 5:00 pm, ESPN+ | | vs. No. 20 Washington James Naismith Classic | W 75–62 | 3–0 | 18 – Bowden | 7 – Turner | 8 – Turner | Scotiabank Arena (6,802) Toronto, ON |
| November 20, 2019* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | No. 20 | Alabama State Emerald Coast Classic campus game | W 76–41 | 4–0 | 16 – Bowden | 13 – James | 6 – Turner | Thompson–Boling Arena (18,176) Knoxville, TN |
| November 25, 2019* 7:00 pm, SECN | No. 17 | Chattanooga Emerald Coast Classic campus game | W 58–46 | 5–0 | 17 – Turner | 12 – Bowden | 12 – Turner | Thompson–Boling Arena (18,556) Knoxville, TN |
| November 29, 2019* 7:00 pm, CBSSN | No. 17 | vs. Florida State Emerald Coast Classic semifinal | L 57–60 | 5–1 | 20 – Turner | 10 – Pons | 2 – Turner | The Arena at NFSC (2,500) Niceville, FL |
| November 30, 2019* 4:00 pm | No. 17 | vs. No. 20 VCU Emerald Coast Classic | W 72–69 | 6–1 | 17 – Fulkerson | 7 – Tied | 7 – Turner | The Arena at NFSC (2,500) Niceville, FL |
| December 4, 2019* 7:00 pm, SECN+ | No. 21 | Florida A&M | W 72–43 | 7–1 | 15 – Fulkerson | 13 – Nkamhoua | 6 – Turner | Thompson–Boling Arena (17,187) Knoxville, TN |
| December 14, 2019* 3:00 pm, ESPN | No. 19 | No. 13 Memphis American/SEC Alliance | L 47–51 | 7–2 | 14 – James | 7 – Fulkerson | 3 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (21,868) Knoxville, TN |
| December 18, 2019* 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 21 | at Cincinnati | L 66–78 | 7–3 | 14 – Fulkerson | 4 – Tied | 6 – Bowden | Fifth Third Arena (12,012) Cincinnati, OH |
| December 21, 2019* 1:00 pm, SECN | No. 21 | Jacksonville State | W 75–53 | 8–3 | 19 – Bowden | 9 – Pons | 11 – Turner | Thompson–Boling Arena (18,247) Knoxville, TN |
| December 28, 2019* 1:30 p.m., CBS | | Wisconsin | L 48–68 | 8–4 | 9 – Tied | 10 – Nkamhoua | 5 – James | Thompson–Boling Arena (21,678) Knoxville, TN |
| January 4, 2020 12:00 pm, ESPNU | | LSU | L 64–78 | 8–5 (0–1) | 18 – Vescovi | 6 – Vescovi | 6 – Bowden | Thompson–Boling Arena (18,653) Knoxville, TN |
| January 7, 2020 7:00 pm, SECN | | at Missouri | W 69–59 | 9–5 (1–1) | 13 – Bowden | 7 – James | 4 – James | Mizzou Arena (8,663) Columbia, MO |
| January 11, 2020 1:00 pm, SECN | | South Carolina | W 56–55 | 10–5 (2–1) | 15 – Fulkerson | 10 – Fulkerson | 3 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (19,603) Knoxville, TN |
| January 15, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Georgia | L 63–80 | 10–6 (2–2) | 12 – Bowden | 8 – Pons | 3 – Tied | Stegeman Coliseum (10,313) Athens, GA |
| January 18, 2020 6:00 pm, SECN | | at Vanderbilt | W 66–45 | 11–6 (3–2) | 21 – Bowden | 8 – Fulkerson | 5 – James | Memorial Gymnasium (12,693) Nashville, TN |
| January 21, 2020 9:00 pm, SECN | | Ole Miss | W 73–48 | 12–6 (4–2) | 18 – Fulkerson | 10 – Fulkerson | 6 – James | Thompson–Boling Arena (17,031) Knoxville, TN |
| January 25, 2020* 4:00 pm, ESPN | | at No. 3 Kansas Big 12/SEC Challenge ESPN College GameDay | L 68–74 | 12–7 | 24 – Pons | 12 – Fulkerson | 4 – James | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS |
| January 28, 2020 6:30 pm, SECN | | Texas A&M | L 58–63 | 12–8 (4–3) | 15 – Fulkerson | 7 – Fulkerson | 6 – Vescovi | Thompson–Boling Arena (17,722) Knoxville, TN |
| February 1, 2020 2:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Mississippi State | L 73–86 | 12–9 (4–4) | 16 – Tied | 5 – Fulkerson | 5 – Tied | Humphrey Coliseum (8,113) Starkville, MS |
| February 4, 2020 7:00 pm, ESPNU | | at Alabama | W 69–68 | 13–9 (5–4) | 22 – Fulkerson | 14 – Pons | 5 – Vescovi | Coleman Coliseum (9,651) Tuscaloosa, AL |
| February 8, 2020 1:00 pm, CBS | | No. 15 Kentucky Rivalry | L 64–77 | 13–10 (5–5) | 18 – Vescovi | 9 – Bowden | 3 – Tied | Thompson–Boling Arena (21,232) Knoxville, TN |
| February 11, 2020 7:00 pm, SECN | | Arkansas | W 82–61 | 14–10 (6–5) | 20 – Vescovi | 8 – Fulkerson | 8 – Vescovi | Thompson–Boling Arena (17,222) Knoxville, TN |
| February 15, 2020 6:00 pm, SECN | | at South Carolina | L 61–63 | 14–11 (6–6) | 25 – Fulkerson | 9 – Fulkerson | 5 – Tied | Colonial Life Arena (15,085) Columbia, SC |
| February 18, 2020 6:30 pm, SECN | | Vanderbilt | W 65–61 | 15–11 (7–6) | 17 – Tied | 7 – Fulkerson | 7 – Vescovi | Thompson–Boling Arena (18,562) Knoxville, TN |
| February 22, 2020 12:00 pm, CBS | | at No. 13 Auburn | L 66–73 | 15–12 (7–7) | 28 – Bowden | 10 – Pons | 6 – Bowden | Auburn Arena (9,121) Auburn, AL |
| February 26, 2020 8:30 pm, SECN | | at Arkansas | L 69–86 | 15–13 (7–8) | 19 – Bowden | 9 – Pons | 3 – James | Bud Walton Arena (14,101) Tuscalooa, AL |
| February 29, 2020 2:00 pm, ESPN2 | | Florida | W 63–58 | 16–13 (8–8) | 22 – Fulkerson | 8 – James | 6 – James | Thompson–Boling Arena (19,743) Knoxville, TN |
| March 3, 2020 9:00 pm, ESPN | | at No. 6 Kentucky Rivalry | W 81–73 | 17–13 (9–8) | 27 – Fulkerson | 7 – James | 5 – James | Rupp Arena (20,413) Lexington, KY |
| March 7, 2020 12:00 pm, ESPN2 | | No. 17 Auburn | L 63–85 | 17–14 (9–9) | 19 – Fulkerson | 7 – Fulkerson | 4 – Bowden | Thompson–Boling Arena (21,156) Knoxville, TN |
| SEC Tournament |||||||||
| March 12, 2020 1:00 pm, SECN | (8) | vs. (9) Alabama Second round | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | Bridgestone Arena Nashville, TN |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

## Ranking

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes т = Tied with team above or below :
| | Week | 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 | 18 | Final |
| AP | RV | RV | 20 | 17 | 21 | 19 | 21 | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | Not released |
| Coaches | 25 | 25* | 17 | 16 | 20 | 17-T | 21 | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | | |
*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings