Tennessee
Who should Tennessee root for in March Madness First Four between SMU vs Miami (Ohio)?
Tennessee basketball has to wait before knowing its opponent in the NCAA Tournament.
The Vols (22-11) earned a No. 6 seed in March Madness. They’ll match up with the winner of a First Four game between two No. 11 seeds, Miami of Ohio (31-1) and SMU (20-13), who will play at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio, on March 18 (9:15 p.m. ET, TruTV).
The winner plays Tennessee at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia on March 20 (4:25 p.m. ET, TBS).
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Here’s why we think the Vols should pull for Miami (Ohio) in their First Four matchup vs. SMU.
Miami (Ohio) has no record against power conference opponents
Miami (Ohio) had a historic regular season run with a 31-0 record, but it didn’t consistently play against top competition. The RedHawks didn’t have any games against power conference opponents, and it only played two NCAA Tournament teams in No. 12 Akron (29-5) and No. 13 Wright State (23-11).
While SMU had an 8-10 record in the ACC, the Mustangs regularly contended with some of the top teams in the country. They earned two big conference wins over North Carolina and Louisville, and added a victory over Mississippi State of the SEC. SMU only lost by four points to Louisville (without second-leading scorer Mikel Brown Jr.) in the second round of the ACC Tournament.
Tennessee can bully Miami (Ohio) on the interior
The RedHawks’ frontcourt consists of 6-foot-9 center Antoine Woolfolk, 6-8 forward Brant Byers and 6-8 forward Almar Alatson, who comes off the bench. Eian Elmer, a 6-6 guard, leads the RedHawks with six rebounds per game. As a team, Miami (Ohio) totaled 35.5 rebounds per game, but averaged a league-worst 8.3 offensive rebounds per contest.
Starting guards Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament may be the stars of Tennessee, but the Vols’ identity is rooted in the post. J.P. Estrella and Felix Okpara both come close to 7-feet, yet the 6-10 Ament leads the Vols with 6.6 rebounds per game. Jaylen Carey and DeWayne Brown II, both 6-8 forwards, platoon off the bench.
Tennessee is third in the nation in total rebounds with 42.6 per game and is second in offensive rebounds at 16, essentially doubling the RedHawks. The Vols already lean heavily on their frontcourt in SEC play, and would do so even more against Miami (Ohio).
Miami (Ohio) luck may be running out
Nine of the RedHawks’ wins were determined by five points or less. They went 4-0 in overtime, and their final three wins were all decided by two points. The late game luck for Miami (Ohio) dried up in the MAC Tournament, when it lost 87-83 to UMass in the quarterfinals.
The Vols are overdue for some late game magic. They are 4-7 in games decided by five points or less and had one-score losses Syracuse, Alabama and twice against Kentucky.
Wynton Jackson covers high school sports for Knox News. Email: wynton.jackson@knoxnews.com
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Tennessee combo guard Troy Henderson is entering the transfer portal after spending just one season inside the Volunteer program, On3’s Joe Tipton first reported and Henderson posted on his Instagram.
Henderson played in 28 games during his freshman season at Tennessee, averaging 1.8 points and 1.1 assists in seven minutes per game. The combo guard proved to be a solid three-pointer, making 15 triples at a 34% clip over the course of the season. He made just a pair of two-pointers during the season.
The 6-foot-1 guard competed with Ethan Burg for Tennessee’s backup point guard spot behind Ja’Kobi Gillespie. At points throughout the season, Henderson was the Vols’ backup point guard. However, Burg ended up winning that job down the course of the season with Henderson playing just four minutes in Tennessee’s final five games played.
Henderson suffered a left shoulder injury and played through it the back half of his freshman. Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes that Henderson would have to undergo shoulder surgery this offseason.
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The best moment of Henderson’s freshman season came early in SEC play when he scored eight points and hit two crucial late game three-pointers in Tennessee’s 87-82 double overtime win against Texas A&M at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center.
Henderson was a late addition to Tennessee’s 2025 recruiting class. He originally signed with Fordham but requested a release from his NLI after the Rams fired head coach Keith Urgo. Tennessee brought in Henderson for a visit between the 2025 Round of 32 and Sweet 16 and he committed to Barnes and his staff after the thought.
Point guard is perhaps the biggest question for Tennessee this offseason. Gillespie is out of eligibility and Tennessee will look for another starting point guard in the transfer portal to replace him. The only point guard currently on the Vols roster next season is three-star signee Marquis Clark.
Henderson is the sixth Tennessee player to enter the transfer portal this offseason, joining Cade Phillips, Clarence Massamba, J.P. Estrella, Bishop Boswell and Jaylen Carey.
Tennessee has four incoming players including Belmont transfer sharpshooter Tyler Lundblade. The Vols currently have six scholarships to work with in the transfer portal and it will be seven if Nate Ament declares for the NBA Draft as expected.
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The 2025-26 college basketball season will conclude Monday with a national championship game between Michigan and UConn at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. Tipoff is slated for 8:50 p.m. EDT (TBS).
Tennessee advanced to its third consecutive NCAA Tournament Elite Eight in 2026.
The NCAA transfer portal will open Tuesday after the national title game.
Tennessee freshman guard Clarence Massamba plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, according to Joe Tipton of On3.
“Tennessee guard Clarence Massamba plans to enter the NCAA transfer portal, Joe Tipton reports,” On3 announced Monday.
Three players from Tennessee’s 2025-2026 roster are graduating: point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie, shooting guard Amaree Abram and center Felix Okpara. Tennessee has three commitments in its 2026 basketball recruiting class: small forward Ralph Scott, power forward Manny Green and point guard Marquis Clark.
Former Belmont shooting guard Tyler Lundblade committed to the Vols on April 1. Power forward Cade Phillips was the first member of Tennessee’s 2025-2026 basketball team to declare his entry into the transfer portal on Friday.
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Tennessee Basketball Loses A Freshman Guard To The Transfer Portal | Rocky Top Insider
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