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Who Will Tennessee Play in Sweet 16 - Previewing Illinois vs Kentucky

Mar 22, 2025; Lexington, KY, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Rupp Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
Mar 22, 2025; Lexington, KY, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Rupp Arena. Mandatory Credit: Jordan Prather-Imagn Images | Jordan Prather-Imagn Images

The Tennessee Volunteers have already secured their trip to the Sweet 16 with their win over UCLA on Saturday night. We take a look at who they might play next round.

The Tennessee Vols are headed to the Sweet 16 after their nine-point win over the UCLA Bruins in the round of 32. The Vols are set to make their third straight Sweet 16 and with experienced guard play from Zakai Zeigler and elite scoring prowess from Chaz Lanier, on top of an elite team defensive effort, the Vols are looking strong entering the next round.

Now, who will they play? Well, let's take a look at it.

The No. 3 seeded Kentucky Wildcats are set to take on the No. 6 seeded Illinois Fighting Illini on Sunday evening. According to FanDuel, Illinois is actually a 1.5 point favorite in the contest despite being the lower-seeded team. Either way, it's projected to be a tightly contest basketball game, per the FanDuel odds.

The Vols have played both Illinois and Kentucky this season. They beat Illinois 66-64 back in December. And they were (0-2) against the Wildcats in conference play this season.

The Vols currently have the fifth-best odds to win the NCAA Championship per FanDuel. The current favorites are Duke, Florida, Auburn, Houston, and then Tennessee. The good news for Tennessee, the will avoid everyone but Houston until the Elite 11.

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