Texas Longhorns Rematch vs. Rival Tennessee In Sweet 16: Preview, How To Watch

Back on Jan 23, the Texas Longhorns hosted the Tennessee Volunteers at the Moody Center, winning 80-76 in what head coach Vic Schaefer called a "knock-down drag out." Now, the two teams will face off again with a trip to the Elite Eight at stake.

A red-hot three-point shooting team, the Volunteers have been on a hot streak following the end of the regular season. Tennessee lost to Vanderbilt in the second round of the SEC tournament and were upset by Georgia in their final regular season game but have bounced back in dominant fashion. Head coach Kim Caldwell led her team to a 101-66 NCAA tournament first-round win and then beat Ohio State 82-67 on their home court to advance to the Sweet 16.

The Longhorns have also been dominant, ending the regular season on a 15-game win streak before falling to South Carolina in the SEC Championship. In the NCAA tournament, they won their first and second-round games in dominant fashion.

Schaefer knows how dangerous this Tennessee team can be, and when they get hot from behind the arc, they're virtually unstoppable.

"Coach Caldwell has done an incredible job with that team this year," Schaefer said. "They're really good. They could have easily won 12 or 13 in our league, they were in just about every game, all year long. They've had two of their better wins, obviously, against Connecticut (on Feb. 6) and Ohio State last week. You don't do that by accident. And she obviously has brought a lot of attention to the game, not only with their success but how they've done it and they've done it really, really well. It's a credit to her and her staff and her players because they they play extremely hard. They're tough, and so we're gonna have to play really well tomorrow."

Caldwell missed the game in Austin due to giving birth to her son, the only game she missed all season. Texas and Tennessee have a storied rivalry dating back to the early days of women's basketball, something both coaches have the utmost respect for.

Jody Conradt and Pat Summit — Dec 21, 2002; Austin, TX, USA; The UT womens basketball team defeated Tennessee 63-62 Saturday night at the Erwin Center. Texas coach Jody Conradt chats with Tennessee coach Pat Summitt before the game. Mandatory Credit: Peter Yang/Austin American-Statesman-USA TODAY NETWORK | Austin American-Statesman-USA TODAY NETWORK

Earlier this season, Schaefer called Tennessee his biggest rival, wanting to continue the legacy that legendary coaches Pat Summitt and Jody Conradt built not just their teams on, but the sport. Both coaches and programs were instrumental to the growth of women's basketball, forming a rivalry in the 1980s and 90s, garnering a world-record number of attendees and viewers.

Schaefer knows how important it is to honor the coaches' legacies and has Conradt traveling with his team this season.

"Tennessee women's basketball, the University of Texas women's basketball, those two institutions, along with just a handful of others, their administrations understood the value that women's basketball had and could bring to an institution, and they invested in it," Schaefer said. "They invested in it with, obviously, two unbelievable coaches. And again, I stand here today so humbled and honored to have that opportunity to now being in an NCAA tournament, having to play against them."

Texas won the earlier meeting between the teams and the first one as conference opponents, but now, it's win or go home. The storied rivalry will continue on Saturday.

How to Watch

WHAT: No. 1 Texas Longhorns vs. No. 5 Tennessee

WHEN: Saturday, March 29 at 2:30 p.m.

WHERE: Legacy Arena at BJCC (Birmingham, Alabama)

CHANNEL: ABC