Published Jan 16, 2023
Tennessee drops to No. 9 in latest AP Top 25 hoops poll
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Noah Taylor  •  VolReport
Managing Editor
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Tennessee basketball is down four spots in the latest Associated Press Top 25 poll.

On the heels of a 63-56 upset loss against Kentucky at Thompson-Boling Arena on Saturday, the Vols dropped out of the top five on Monday — coming in at No. 9 with 1,019 votes.

It was an uncharacteristic performance for Tennessee, which was outrebounded 43-23 and missed 11 layups — resulting in its first SEC loss and first home loss in 26 games.

Tennessee still sits as the second highest ranked SEC team behind Alabama, which stayed steady at No. 4 after beating LSU 106-66 on Saturday. The Vols will play the Crimson Tide on Feb. 15 in Knoxville.

Other teams on the Vols' upcoming schedule that are also ranked as this week are No. 7 Texas (Jan. 28) No. 16 Auburn, (Feb. 4 and March 4) and No. 25 Arkansas (Feb. 28).

Tennessee (14-3, 4-1 SEC) will try to bounce back with back-to-back road games looming this week at Mississippi State and LSU.

Tennessee plays Mississippi State (12-5, 1-4) at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville on Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2. The Vols beat the Bulldogs 87-53 on Jan. 3 in Knoxville.

Mississippi State is coming off a 69-63 loss at No. 16 Auburn on Saturday.

LSU hosts Tennessee at the Maravich Center on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN.