Tennessee remains in the top five of the NET rankings as a critical final stretch looms.

The Vols (21-5, 8-5 SEC) are No. 5 according to the rankings, which account for game results, strength of schedule, win and loss quality and net offensive and defensive efficiency.

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Tennessee has played two other teams in the top five, losing by two at No. 1 Auburn and splitting games against No. 4 Florida, including a 20-point win over the Gators earlier this month.

The Vols are 6-3 against NET top 30 teams with games against No. 6 Alabama, No. 16 Texas A&M and No. 24 Ole Miss still remaining on their schedule.

Tennessee plays the Aggies (20-6, 9-4) on Saturday in College Station (Noon ET, ESPN) in the first of back-to-back road games before hosting the Crimson Tide on March 1.

Both games, along with the Vols' final road tilt against the Rebels on March 5, are currently Quad 1 opportunities that could further boost Tennessee' resume as it tries for one of the four No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament.

The Vols are 8-5 in Quad 1 games, the second best record among the top five teams in the NET, and are a combined 13-0 vs. Quad 2, 3 and 4 teams. Tennessee's game at LSU next Tuesday and its regular season finale against South Carolina on March 8 are Quad 2 and 3 teams, respectively.

The Vols were solidly in the 1-seed conversation after winning three-straight over Florida, Missouri ad Oklahoma, but their second loss to Kentucky on the road, and a come-from-behind win over Vanderbilt at home have made their margin for error thin going forward.

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Tennessee was on the outside looking in the initial Division I Men's Basketball Committee Top 16, ranking fifth behind Auburn, Alabama, Duke and Florida over the weekend.

The Vols will need to close strong, a good showing in the SEC Tournament in Nashville next month and some teams currently ranked above it to stumble down the stretch.

"We’re disappointed where we are, because our goal every year is to try to contend for an SEC Championship," Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said after the Vols' 81-76 win over Vanderbilt last Saturday. "We know that’s gone. A regular-season championship, that’s gone. But it’s a mindset. And there’s a lot of teams heading into February that would love to be where we are. There’s a lot of teams that probably are already taking inventory. And then there’s those teams that really want to make a run at a national championship.

"And if we’re going to be one of those teams, it goes back to what I’ve talked about, a mindset of getting better and being able to look at each other and talk."

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