Texas head coach Rodney Terry guided his team to an Elite Eight berth last season as interim head coach. This year he won his first tournament game as head coach of the Longhorns, a 56-44 victory over Colorado State on Thursday night in the opening round of the Midwest Region.
Several hours later, Terry and the Longhorns learned their Round of 32 opponent would be former Texas head coach Rick Barnes and the Tennessee Volunteers. Terry and Barnes know each other well, as Terry worked as an assistant coach for nine years (2002-2011) under the veteran coach when Barnes was in Austin.
Texas and Tennessee have played each other eight times and have split the all-time series at 4-4. Barnes has faced his former team twice and is 1-1 against the Longhorns. The last meeting between the two was on January 28, 2023 in Knoxville, with Tennessee defeating Texas 82-71.
The Volunteers are ranked 6th in the Associated Press Top 25 poll and hold a 25-8 record this season. They advanced to the Round of 32 by dismantling St. Peters 83-49, behind fifth year guard Dalton Knecht’s game-high 23 points and Zakai Zeigler’s 11 point/10 assist double-double.
What: NCAA Tournament Round of 32
Matchup: No. 7 Seed Texas Longhorns vs. No. 2 Seed Tennessee Volunteers
When: Saturday, March 23, 2024
Time: 7:00 Tip
TV: CBS
Venue: Spectrum Center
Location: Charlotte, NC
Spread: Tennessee -6.5
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