The
Tennessee Volunteers basketball team represents the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee in NCAA men's basketball competition. The Volunteers currently compete in the Southeastern Conference. The team last played in the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament in 2008. The Volunteers are currently coached by Bruce Pearl.
The Volunteers have had 16 NCAA tournament appearances with an overall record of 11-16. A record of 8-6 in the first round, 3-5 in the second, and 0-4 in the regional semi finals. They have also been invited to the National Invitation Tournament 11 times. They have won nine regular season SEC championships in 1936, 1941, 1943, 1967, 1972, 1977, 1982, 2000, and 2008. The 1972, 1977, 1982, and 2000 seasons were all shared championships with another team from the Southeastern conference. Their conference tournament record is 54-43 record with 4 championships in the years 1936, 1941, 1943, and 1979. Historically Volunteer basketball has produced several successful National Basketball Association players including Allan Houston, Bernard King, Ernie Grunfeld, Dale Ellis, Tony White, Ron Slay, and Larry Robinson. Bernard King is one of only two players in the Volunteers history to every have a jersey retired (the other being Ernie Grunfeld). He finished his career averaging a "double double" per game of 25.8 points and 13.2 rebounds.
The team has been at the height of their success since hiring coach Bruce Pearl from Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2005. Pearl's assistants Tony Jones, Steve Forbes, Jason Shay, and Ken Johnson round out the winning staff that has helped bring the vols to the NCAA tournament three years in a row. In the 2006-07 season The Volunteers were ranked 4th nationally in attendance with an average of 19,661 fans in Thompson-Boling Arena, which has a capacity of 21,758. Since coach Bruce Pearl arrived in March 2005 the attendance has increased by an average of 7,436 per game. Bruce Pearl's style of fast pace, physical press defense, and up tempo game has fans waiting to watch every game. The Volunteers averaged approximately 80 points per game in the 2006-07 season.
Team Website: http://www.utsports.com
School Website: http://www.utk.edu
