Tennessee was given a three-seed on Sunday night during the NCAA Selection Show when the 2022 NCAA Tournament bracket was revealed.

The Vols receiving a three-seed sparked wide debate across the college basketball landscape. Rick Barnes' squad won the SEC Tournament earlier in the day by beating Texas A&M 65-50, leading many to believe they had earned a two-seed.

Instead, Tennessee was slotted as the No. 10 overall seed in the field as the second-best three-seed.

“Everybody said we were a three seed going into the SEC Tournament," Barnes told the media Monday. "It doesn’t look like the tournament helped us. And certainly I don’t understand a team in the SEC that wins 12 games like Texas A&M, and playing its best basketball at the end, not making the Tournament. Baffles me. It really does.”

And if it were up to Barnes, it wouldn't be him who was answering for Tennessee's seeding on Monday. It would be the selection committee itself.

“I do believe after Selection Sunday the chairman or the committee should have a national day of press conferences,” Barnes said, “Where you all can ask questions. Not just for three minutes or two minutes. For people that have really covered college basketball throughout.

“On a national level, and for our game, maybe a press conference where tough questions have to be answered for people going forward."

Tennessee was ranked No. 5 in the AP top 25 poll that was released on Monday, ahead of the NCAA Tournament's four No. 2 seeds in Auburn, Duke, Villanova and Kentucky.

“If conference tournaments don’t mean anything, if the teams already slotted to be in the tournament can’t improve their seeding, we should stay at home and let the teams that are trying to get in the tournament fight for that bid," Barnes said. "Give our league a chance to get more.

“Those are the questions that should really be asked and answered. There are people out there much more thorough than I am in terms of looking at resumes and all that. But from a coach’s standpoint, we’re not going to. This is what we have and we’re going to go from here.”

Tennessee begins its NCAA Tournament run on Thursday afternoon in Indianapolis against 14-seed Longwood at 2:45 p.m. ET on CBS. If the Vols win, they'll face the winner of 6-seed Colorado State and 11-seed Michigan on Saturday.