Previewing Virginia’s basketball’s Round of 32 battle with Tennessee

Mar 20, 2026; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Virginia Cavaliers forward Thijs de Ridder (28) takes a shot during the first half against the Wright State Raiders during a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Xfinity Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images The Virginia Cavaliers took care of business on Friday, surviving 14-seeded Wright State behind a late surge, and now they will be faced with a much larger test to advance to the second weekend — 6-seeded Tennessee. The Volunteers are coming off of an impressive Round of 64 victory themselves, dominating 11-seeded Miami Ohio by a score of 78-56.

As a Vegas consensus, the Wahoos are slight underdogs, with some books offering virtually a pick-em. Sunday’s tip-off is scheduled for 6:10 pm ET. What to know about Tennessee Tennessee is not your average six seed, sitting at 15th in overall KenPom efficiency, and 13th defensively.

They are 23-11, having finished fifth in the SEC at 11-7, with wins over Houston, Vanderbilt, Alabama, and others on their resume. Despite having entered the dance coming off of four losses in their previous six, the Miami win silenced any sort of doubt, as the Vols held the RedHawks to 7-of-29 (24. 1%) from behind the line, while shooting 9-of-20 (45.

0%) themselves. Tennessee’s biggest strength, though, is their front court. Head coach Rick Barnes regularly plays three bigs who are listed in the 6-f00t-10 to 6-foot-11 range.