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How To Watch: No. 1 Tennessee Basketball vs. Western Carolina

IMG_3593by: Grant Ramey12/17/24GrantRamey
Tennessee Basketball | Tennessee Athletics
Tennessee Basketball | Tennessee Athletics

No. 1 Tennessee is back home to start a stretch of four straight games at Food City Center, starting with Tuesday night’s game against Western Carolina. It’s a 7 p.m. Eastern Time start and can be streamed on SEC Network+.

Follow along for all the live updates before, during and after tonight’s game on The General’s Quarters

The Vols (10-0) are coming off wins over Miami and Illinois last week. Western Carolina (3-6) has lost five of its last six and is ranked No. 315 in the KenPom.com ratings.

Tennessee is ranked No. 1 for a second straight week and is No. 2 in the NET and No. 2 in KenPom. The Vols are No. 1 in adjusted defensive efficiency, according to KenPom, and No. 16 in adjusted offensive efficiency.

After Western Carolina, Tennessee will host Middle Tennessee State on December 23 and Norfolk State on December 31, before SEC plays starts at home against Arkansas on January 4.

No. 1 Tennessee vs. Western Carolina: How To Watch

Start Time: Tuesday, 7 p.m. Eastern Time

Streaming: SEC Network+

Radio: WNML-FM 99.1 in Knoxville. The Vol Network radio broadcast can be heard on local affiliates across the state of Tennessee.

KenPom Prediction: Tennessee 87, Western Carolina 53 (99.9% chance to win)

The Line: Tennessee -36.5

Last Time Out: No. 1 Tennessee 66, Illinois 64

Jordan Gainey went the length of the floor with 5.7 seconds left and scored on a tough layup in traffic as time expired to lift No. 1 Tennessee to a 66-64 win over Illinois Saturday at State Farm Center in Illinois.

Gainey scored 23 points, his most at Tennessee, and had 18 points in 18 minutes in the second half without committing a turnover. Gainey took over at point guard with Zakai Zeigler sidelined by four fouls with just over 18 minutes left in the second half.

Chaz Lanier was limited with foul trouble in the second half, too, scoring 15 of his 17 points in the first half. 

Igor Milicic scored seven points on just 2-for-13 shooting, going 0-for-8 from the 3-point line, but he grabbed a game-high 14 rebounds. Milicic stole an inbound pass with 1:36 left and dunked in transition to give Tennessee a 64-62 lead.

Vols off to best start in 25 years

The win over Illinois extended Tennessee’s perfect start to the season to 10-0. The Vols are one win away from matching the 11-0 start to the 1999-2000 season, the third best in program history.

Tennessee’s 1922-23 team holds the record with a 14-0 start in a 17-game season. The win streak included games against Camp Benning, Maryville, Tusculum, Milligan, Georgetown (Ky.), Centre, Transylvania, Centenary and Emory & Henry. 

The 1915-16 went a perfect 12-0 in a 12-game season with wins over Johnson Bible College, Chattanooga, Cumberland, Murphy College in Sevierville, Emory & Henry and Centre.

The 1997-98 team also started 10-0, finishing the season 20-9, with the season ending in the first round of the NCAA Tournament in an 82-81 loss to Illinois State. 

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