Tennessee emerged from its three-game stretch against power conference teams unscathed and still the No. 1 team in college basketball.

The Vols (10-0) beat Syracuse soundly at home, held off Miami with a strong close in Madison Square Garden and when they faced their toughest challenger to date on the road at Illinois, Jordan Gainey laid in a shot at the buzzer to remain unbeaten.

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Now, Tennessee returns to its home floor for the first time in two weeks to begin its final non-conference stretch against Western Carolina (3-6) at Food City Center on Tuesday.

The Vols are an overwhelming favorite at 38 points and in position to remain perfect by the time the tip-off SEC play against Arkansas in a few weeks.

Here is everything you need to know about the match up.

Who: Western Carolina (3-6) at No. 1 Tennessee (10-0)

When: Tuesday, Dec. 17 | 7 p.m. ET

Where: Food City Center | Knoxville

TV: SEC Network+ (Andy Brock, play-by-play; Steve Hamer, analyst; Sarah Detwiler, reporter)

Radio: Vol Network (Bob Kesling, play-by-play; Bert Bertelkamp, analyst)

Series: Ninth meeting all-time (Tennessee leads, 7-1)

KenPom Projection: Tennessee 87, Western Carolina 53

POINTS PER GAME

Tennessee 80.8

Western Carolina 72.9

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE

Tennessee 49.9%

Western Carolina 43.2%

THREE-POINT PERCENTAGE

Tennessee 36.5%

Western Carolina 31.4%

ASSISTS

Tennessee 16.2

Western Carolina 13.9

REBOUNDS

Western Carolina 39.9

Tennessee 38.7

BLOCKS

Tennessee 5.4

Western Carolina 2.6

-- Tennessee guard Jordan Gainey is coming off of his best game since joining the team as a transfer last season at Illinois. With Zakai Zeigler and Chaz Lanier missing long stretches of the second half on the bench with foul trouble, Gainey stepped in and scored 23 points, including the game-winning shot at the buzzer to win 66-64.

-- Tennessee guard Chaz Lanier continues to make an impact in the Vols' starting lineup in his first season. Through 10 games, Lanier is averaging a team-high 18.9 points. In his last six games, Lanier has averaged 22.3 points and has scored 17 or more points in each of those games. He scored 22 or more four times and 25 or more in three.

-- Tennessee needed a last-second shot to beat Illinois, but it dominated its first nine games. The Vols' largest deficit to date has been eight points and they have led by 18 or more points at one point in nine of 10 games. Tennessee has won nine games by 13 or more points and three by 35 or more.

-- Western Carolina finished 22-10 last season, including an 11-7 mark in Southern Conference play. It was picked to finish eighth in the preseason SoCon poll. Junior guard Ice Emery leads the Catamounts in scoring with 12.0 points, 2.0 assists and 1.1 steals per game.

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