10/15/2023 football Edit

Vols crack top 10 of KenPom preseason basketball rankings

Mar 18, 2023; Orlando, FL, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Santiago Vescovi (25) gets around Duke Blue Devils guard Tyrese Proctor (5) during the first half in the second round of the 2023 NCAA Tournament at Legacy Arena. Mandatory Credit: Russell Lansford-USA TODAY Sports (Russell Lansford-USA TODAY Sports)

Noah Taylor • VolReport

Managing Editor

Noah is a graduate of the UT College of Journalism & Electronic Media and has covered Tennessee football since 2019. He joined Rivals in 2022.

Just weeks away from its season opener, Tennessee debuted in the top 10 of Ken Pomeroy's preseason rankings on Sunday.

The Vols came in at No. 8 and were the highest ranked SEC team as Alabama (10), Arkansas (14), Auburn (15), Kentucky (18) and Texas A&M (24) rounded out the top 25.

Tennessee's non-conference opponents North Carolina, Illinois and Wisconsin were ranked 17th, 19th and 20th, respectively.

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Pomeroy projected the Vols to finished 21-8 in the regular season with a 12-6 mark in league play.

Tennessee won 25 games last season and reached the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 for the second time in five years, which included a second round win over Duke.

The Vols are set to return much of their production from that team, including leading scorer Santiago Vescovi, Josiah-Jordan James, Jahmai Mashack, Tobe Awaka and Jonas Aidoo.

Both Vescovi and James opted to return for a fifth seasons.

Assist leader Zakai Zeigler will also return after suffering a season-ending ACL tear against Arkansas last February.

The Tennessee roster will feature highly touted redshirt freshman Freddie Dilione V and transfer portal additions Dalton Knecht (Northern Colorado) and Jordan Gainey (USC Upstate), among others.

Veteran leadership balanced with talented newcomers has led to high expectations for Tennessee in the preseason.

"The fact is that we have more depth on the perimeter than we have had since we have been here," Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said earlier this month. "Up to this point, we have shown that we can shoot the ball, but I just know that we have a long way to go defensively. The fact is that these guys have proven to us that they want to work and they want to be good. There is definitely a difference right now with the older guys in terms of tempo and the pace we want to play with compared to the younger guys, but actually, at the end of practice (on Oct. 3), I thought there was a glimpse that I will be able to show these guys before we do get on the floor that they can do it.

"They started played with speed and moving the ball the way we wanted it done. There was some good cutting action, some random-type basketball that we want to play with. We just to continue to build each day."

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: How Zakai Zeigler helped Jahmai Mashack trust in himself

Tennessee will play Michigan State at the Breslin Center in East Lansing, Michigan in a high-profile exhibition game on Oct. 29 (3:30 p.m. ET, Big Ten Network) and will round out its exhibition slate against Lenoir-Rhyne on Oct. 31 at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center.

The Vols officially open the season on Nov. 4 vs. Tennessee Tech at 6:30 p.m. ET at Food City Center.

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