Lady Vols basketball added a signature win to its resume as March Madness approaches, and it got Tennessee back to hosting the opening rounds in the latest NCAA Tournament projections.
No. 17 Tennessee (17-6, 4-6 SEC) split its top-5 matchups last week. The Lady Vols upset UConn, notching their first win in the rivalry since 2007, but then fell on the road in a rematch with LSU. Tennessee now plays a three-game homestand, starting with Auburn (12-12, 3-8) on Thursday (6:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+) at Food City Center.
Here’s where Tennessee stands in the latest March Madness projections.
Lady Vols projected as a No. 4 seed
ESPN’s Charlie Creme moved the Lady Vols back up to the No. 4 seed line after upsetting the Huskies. Creme has said for weeks that Tennessee had the chance to earn its way back into hosting the opening rounds as a top-16 seed, and a win over UConn got it there.
Creme has the Lady Vols as a No. 4 seed in Region 1 Spokane, which has UCLA as the No. 1 overall seed. Tennessee would play No. 13 seed Ball State and also host No. 5 seed Georgia Tech vs. No. 12 seed Middle Tennessee.
The Athletic’s Mark Schindler has the Lady Vols back as a No. 4 seed, too, but he has them in Birmingham 3 where Notre Dame is the No. 1 seed. Tennessee would play No. 13 seed FGCU and host No. 5 seed Oklahoma vs. No. 12 seed Belmont.
Lady Vols basketball’s NCAA Tournament résumé
The Lady Vols have two ranked wins in nonconference play against Iowa and UConn. Florida State was receiving votes when UT beat the Seminoles 79-77, which was a quality win with FSU ranked now No. 24 in the NCAA NET rankings. Iowa is ranked No. 30 in the NET.
Tennessee stayed put at No. 12 in the NCAA NET rankings after Sunday’s loss to LSU. It is 4-6 in Quad 1 games, 4-0 in Quad 2 games and 9-0 in Quad 4. Five of the Lady Vols’ five losses were to teams ranked in the top 10 at the time – Oklahoma, Texas, South Carolina and LSU twice – and all of their losses were by single digits.
Tennessee is now 4-3 on the road with wins over Texas A&M, Arkansas, Missouri and Memphis and is 3-0 in neutral-site matchups with wins over Iowa, Richmond and Tulsa.
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Lady Vols basketball’s NCAA Tournament history
The Lady Vols are the only program never to miss an NCAA Tournament.
Tennessee was a No. 6 seed in the 2024 NCAA Tournament, which was its lowest seeding since being a No. 11 seed in 2019. The Lady Vols were a top-16 seed for three straight seasons from 2021-23. They were a No. 3 seed in 2021 and a No. 4 seed in 2022 and 2023.
Tennessee made back-to-back trips to the Sweet 16 in 2022 and 2023 for the first time since since 2015 and 2016. The Lady Vols bowed out in the second round last year, losing 79-72 to No. 3 seed NC State.
Tennessee has won eight NCAA championships and made 18 trips to the Final Four. All of those happened under coach Pat Summitt, and the last time it did either was in 2008.
Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at cora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on X @corahalll. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee women’s basketball updated March Madness bracket predictions
