KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – With its fourth 7-0 start since the turn of the century, including its second in five years, third-ranked Tennessee men’s basketball takes the floor Tuesday night to face Syracuse in the annual SEC/ACC Challenge at Food City Center. The launch date is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET.

Fans can watch Tuesday’s game between the Volunteers and Orange on ESPN. Dave Pasch (play-by-play) and Sean Farnham (analyst) will host the interview.

Fans can also listen live on their local Vol Network affiliate as Bob Kesling and Bert Bertelkamp describe the action.

In its final game, Tennessee capped a perfect November with a 78-35 win on Wednesday against UT Martin. The Volunteers never trailed, leading for more than 38 minutes, including by more than 20 minutes in the final at 11:35 and by more than 30 minutes in the final at 5:56 in the domestic matchup. Fifth year guard Chaz Lanier scored a game-high score of 18 points for the winner.

THE MATCHUP
• After a 3-1 series loss to Syracuse, Tennessee is 3-0 this century, with each win coming at a different location.
• Tennessee defeated Syracuse 73-56 in the opener of the 2023 Maui Invitational in Honolulu by a total of 32 points Dalton Knecht (17) and Josiah-Jordan James (15).
• This is the second time in two consecutive years that the two sides have met. The Orange won a home game on December 9, 1992 and November 28, 1993.
• With a 20-12 (11-9) performance in Adrian Autry’s first season at the helm, Syracuse was ranked No. 11 in this year’s ACC preseason poll.
• The Orange are led by junior guard JJ Starling, who is second best in the ACC with a 19.8 ppg average.
• Tennessee is 123-101 all-time against current ACC schools and has beaten all but one of them, Notre Dame (0-1), at least once.
• Rick Barnes is 83-77 against the current ACC membership, including 13-5 in his tenure at Tennessee and 6-1 over the last four seasons (2021-25).

NEWS & NOTES
• The Volunteers and Orange play in two of the three largest campus arenas in the country. Further information can be found on page 11.
• Tennessee Darlinstone Dubar and Chaz Owens of Syracuse were prep teammates at Scotland Campus (Pennsylvania) in 2019-20.
• Syracuse is the third of four ACC teams Tennessee will face in non-conference play. It won in Louisville (9/11), beat Virginia (21/11) in the Bahamas and faces Miami in New York (10/12).
• UT leads the nation in field goal percentage defense (33.6), ranks second in scoring defense (54.7) and ranks second in both scoring margin (26.9) and field goal percentage -Percentage (52.3) ranked sixth.
• Zakai Zeiglerwho comes from a New York city 290 miles southeast of Syracuse, achieves 7.86 apg. That’s 3.0 more than any other player in the SEC, as Boogie Fland and Jaylen Murray are tied for second at 4.86, good for the sixth-best mark in the country.
• Chaz Lanier leads the SEC and ranks eighth among all DI players with 3.86 3PM per game.
• In the first seven games, Tennessee led 266:15 out of a possible 280 minutes and was only 4:39 behind.
• Through seven games, the Vols’ largest deficit is three points. They now had a lead of at least 26 points in every game and won all games by more than 15 points.
• With 178 wins over the last eight years (2017-25), Tennessee ranks ninth nationally alongside Saint Mary’s. Only Gonzaga (220), Houston (212), Kansas (198), Duke (190), Purdue (189), San Diego State (181), Virginia (181) and Liberty (179) have more.
• Tennessee is seeking an 8-0 start for the first time since starting the 2000-01 season at 9-0.
• This will be the Vols’ 600th game at Food City Center, where they have a 457-142 (.763) record since opening in 1987-88. In their last game, a 78-35 win over UT Martin (11/27/24), they set a stadium record for fewest points allowed.
• UT has allowed just 15 fast break points in seven contests (2.1 ppg). It has allowed zero in four of its seven games. The Vols are plus-68 overall in this statistic, 83-15.

HIGH CALIBER COMPANY
• Tennessee and Kansas are the only two teams to earn an AP top-five ranking in each of the last four seasons (2021-25). Only two others, Arizona and Purdue, entered the 2024-25 season on a three-year winning streak.
• UT is one of just four schools, along with Alabama, Houston and Kansas, to finish in the AP top six in each of the last four seasons.
• Tennessee is one of just five programs to finish in the AP top six in at least six of the last seven seasons (2018-25): Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas and Kentucky. Additionally, over the same period, the Volunteers, Bulldogs, Jayhawks and Wildcats are the only four teams to have finished in the AP top five in at least five different seasons.
• Tennessee joins Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Kentucky and North Carolina as one of just six schools to earn an AP top 20 ranking in each of the last eight years (2017-25). Only two others, Houston and Purdue, have even cracked the AP top 25 in each of those seasons.

COLLECT RANKING WINS
• TOP 25: Over the last four years (2021-25), Tennessee has posted an SEC-best 21 AP Top 25 wins, good for second nationally alongside Connecticut, Iowa State and Purdue, behind only Kansas (23). Only Marquette (18) is even within three of the Volunteers, while the nearest SEC school is four behind (Alabama at 17).
• TOP 20: Tennessee has an SEC-high 19 AP Top 20 wins during that span, the third-most of any DI school, trailing only Kansas (21) and Connecticut (20). The only other schools with at least 16 students are Purdue (18) and Iowa State (16). The next closest SEC programs are at five (Alabam and Texas at 13).
• TOP 15: The Volunteers have earned an SEC-best 16 AP Top 15 picks over those four seasons, tied for second-most in the country, behind only Kansas (19). Only Purdue (13) and Iowa State (13) are even within three points of UT, while the closest SEC team is four points behind (Alabama at 12).
• TOP 10: Since 2021-22, Tennessee has joined North Carolina in eight AP Top 10 triumphs, top spots in the SEC and fifth nationally. Only Kansas (11), Connecticut (10), Iowa State (10) and Purdue (10) have more. The eight such wins during this time are #1 Alabama (02/15/23), #3 Kansas (11/25/22), #3 Auburn (02/26/22), #4 Kentucky (02/15/22). ), #5 Kentucky (03/12/22), #6 Arizona (12/22/21), #10 Texas (01/28/23) and at #10 Kentucky (02/03/24). The closest SEC teams trail by one (Alabama, Kentucky and Texas by seven).
• TOP FIVE: Over the same four-year period, UT has earned five AP Top 5 wins, tied with Alabama and Arizona for the most in the country. Only three other schools have even four: Gonzaga, Iowa State and Purdue.

… AND EFFICIENTLY
• Tennessee has the best record against AP Top 25 opponents at 21-14 (.600) over the past four seasons (2021-25). Auburn (12-9; .571) is in second place while no one else has even a mark of .500.
• The Volunteers have 10 games over .500 (19-9; .679) against AP top-20 teams during that span, while only one other SEC team, Auburn (10-7; .588), has even Clip is over .433.
• UT is also 10 games over .500 (16-6; .727) against AP Top 15 opponents during that time, while only one other SEC team, Auburn (8-5; .615), is even one game lies above it. 500 during this time.
• At 8-5 (.615), the Volunteers are the only team in the SEC with a winning record against AP top-10 opponents over these four seasons. Kentucky (7-8; .467) is a distant second.
• Tennessee (5-4; .556) and Arkansas (3-2; .600) are the only SEC programs to hit .500 or better against AP top-five teams in this four-year period.
• The Volunteers have played the third-most games against AP Top 25 opponents of any SEC team over the last four years (2021-25), despite their excellent winning percentage. In such games, they trail only Texas (41) and Oklahoma (38), while they are tied with Alabama (35). No other SEC school is over 30 years old.

WAYS TO WIN
• Over the last eight seasons (2017-25), Tennessee has surpassed all SEC programs in total wins (178) and is tied for first in postseason wins (18), while falling just short in overall winning percentage (.730). second place. During that span, UT has won three SEC titles (2018 and 2024 regular seasons, 2022 tournament).
• Over the same eight-year period, the Vols are one of only three SEC teams with an overall winning percentage above .700, along with Auburn (.731) and Kentucky (.706).
• In SEC play over the same eight-year period, Tennessee (86-39; .688) ranks second in the league in both wins and winning percentage, behind Kentucky (87-38; .696). Only Auburn (81-45; .643) and Alabama (78-48; .619) even have over 70 wins.
• In the last four seasons alone (2021-25), UT holds an overall record of 86-28 (.7544). That’s good for the most wins in the SEC during that span, with Auburn (83-27) in second place. The Vols’ winning percentage is just a fraction of a point behind Auburn (.7545) for the best mark during that time.
• Over the same four-year period, Tennessee (39-15; .722) is tied with Kentucky for the best record in conference play among SEC teams.

POLL PRESENCE
• Tennessee has played 210 games as a ranked team in the AP Poll Rick Barnes‘ tenure with a record of 158-52 (.752). Over 67.0 percent of the Volunteers’ 310 games since Barnes’ arrival in 2015-16 have been played by the team in the AP poll, all since 2017-18 (210 of 244, 86.1 percent).
• UT is 137-47 (.745) while in the AP top 20 under Barnes, 106-34 (.757) while in the top 15, 80-25 (.762) while in the top 10, 36-12 (.750) while in the top five, 17-2 (.895) while in the top three and 7-1 (.875) while ranked No. 1.
• The Vols are 29-22 (.569) in AP Top 25 matchups under Barnes, including 23-15 (.605) with both teams ranked in the top 20, 14-9 (.609), with both were in the top 15 and 7-6 (.538) with both being in the top 10.

INAM: “IT’S NOT ABOUT ME”
• In each of Zakai Zeiglers In three full seasons, Tennessee ranked top 15 nationally in assist percentage, according to KenPom. It ranked 13th in 2023-24 (61.0), second in 2022-23 (66.2), and sixth in 2021-22 (63.0).
• So far in 2024-25, the Volunteers have recorded more than 20 assists three times. Her best mark is 24 against Montana (11/13/24).
• Tennessee delivered more than 20 assists 11 times during the 2023-2024 season and reached more than 25 three times, with a high of 28 against Vanderbilt (02/17/24).
• During the 2022-23 season, Tennessee collected more than 20 assists in seven contests, including more than 25 four times. It reached a high of 29 against South Carolina (02/25/23).
• The Volunteers recorded 20+ assists 10 times and 25+ assists four times during the 2021-22 season. They had a high of 29 against Longwood (3/17/22) in the NCAA Tournament opener and against USC Upstate (12/14/21).