Tennessee Vols could get the chance to prove Bruce Pearl right in latest NCAA Tournament bracket projection

Tennessee could be in potential spot to face off against a Cinderella early in the tourney.

Craig Smith — College Football & NFL Trending News Writer
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Bruce Pearl is understandably a fan of the Auburn Tigers. The former Tennessee head coach took Auburn to two Final Fours and his son succeeded him last year as their head coach.

As such, it wasn’t surprising when he went to bat for Auburn in recent weeks, particularly as they compared to then-undefeated Miami (Ohio) as bubble teams in the NCAA Tournament. Pearl made some waves when he called out the RedHawks’ candidacy publicly, which drew some criticism from his former assistant coach Tony Jones.

“Miami (Ohio), here’s the deal — are we going to select the 68 most deserving teams. Or are we going to select the 68 best teams,” Pearl said during a TNT studio segment. “If we’re selecting the 68 best teams, then Miami (Ohio) is going to have to win their tournament to qualify as a champion. Because as an at-large, they are not one of the best teams in the country. And that’s going to be a difficult choice for the committee to make.”

Pearl walked those comments back a bit afterwards, saying they felt like “Cinderella, and he felt like “the ugly stepmother”.

Well, those same Miami (OH) Redhawks could be on the bubble and near the cut line, as they picked up their first season loss in the MAC Tournament to fall to 31-1. And as an 11-seed and Tennessee as a likely 6 seed, they could be in line to square off in the first weekend of the tournament.

And that’s exactly how ESPN’s Joe Lunardi has things lined up in his most recent bracketology on Selection Sunday.

Tennessee is projected on the same line as Miami (OH) vs. Santa Clara play-in game winner in latest ESPN bracketology prediction

That feels like a distinct possibility, as the Vols are pegged as a 6 seed by both ESPN and CBS Sports on Sunday. That would put the Vols potentially in line to play a play-in game winner, although they could end up playing one of the last teams in the field above the First Four as well or a mid-major conference champion.

Pearl’s Tigers are currently on the outside looking in by both ESPN and CBS Sports on Selection Sunday, and that’s thanks to Tennessee’s 20-0 second half run to bury the Tigers 72-62 on Thursday in the SEC Tournament.

We’ll find out soon enough whether Lunardi is correct, as the NCAA Tournament selection show gets underway at 6:00 pm ET on CBS. And if he is, the Vols could end up with a shot at giving Pearl a little bit of unspoken vindication in retrospect.

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