Despite the Loss to No. 5 Tennessee, Vanderbilt Still has a Case for the Dance

Vanderbilt got dealt a massive blow in their NCAA tournament hopes after the loss to No. 5 Tennessee, but they are still set for the position to end their eight-year drought of not making the dance in the next stretch of games.

Vanderbilt's AJ Hoggard (11) celebrates on the court during a men’s college basketball game between Tennessee and Vanderbilt at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center, Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. | Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Vanderbilt Commodores (17-8, 5-7) had a minor setback losing to No. 5 Tennessee (21-5, 8-5) 81-76 dropping their second straight game and slightly hurting its chances of making the NCAA Tournament.

The issue is that the Commodores continue to have second-half collapses. None more evident than the 16-point lead that they lost in a roaring second half from the Volunteers.

Still, the Commodores have a decent resume (38th in Strength of Record, 2-4 in Quad 1 games, no losses in Quad 3 or 4 games), and wins against the Volunteers and then-No. 9 Kentucky will boost their chances. However, they face the nation’s fourth-hardest schedule for the rest of the regular season.

They are currently projected as the No. 10 Based on ESPN writeJoe Lunardi’s updated bracket projections seed but they have four ranked teams in this gauntlet of a stretch. First, they travel to Kentucky to take on the Wildcats looking to get a series sweep, after a home game against No. 19 Ole Miss, back on the road against No. 8 Texas A&M, and then home again against No. 21 Missouri.

If they can find a way to split those games and take care of business against Arkansas and Georiga in the final two games of the season then they should be a tournament lock and make their first appearance since 2017. A deep run in the SEC Tournament wouldn't hurt either.

The Commodores stay on the road as they travel to No. 15 Kentucky on Wednesday, Feb. 19 at 6 p.m. CT on SEC Network.