Tennessee Volunteers take on Longwood Lancers in first round of NCAA Tournament

Longwood Lancers (26-6, 15-1 Big South) vs. Tennessee Volunteers (26-7, 14-4 SEC)

Indianapolis; Thursday, 2:45 p.m. EDT

LINE: Tennessee -18; over/under is 132.5

BOTTOM LINE: The No. 5 Tennessee Volunteers face the Longwood Lancers in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Volunteers have gone 14-4 against SEC opponents. Tennessee ranks fifth in the SEC with 23.9 defensive rebounds per game led by Josiah-Jordan James averaging 4.5.

The Lancers are 15-1 against Big South teams. Longwood is the top team in the Big South shooting 38.0% from deep. DeShaun Wade leads the Lancers shooting 44.8% from 3-point range.

TOP PERFORMERS: Santiago Vescovi is shooting 39.6% from beyond the arc with 2.9 made 3-pointers per game for the Volunteers, while averaging 13.4 points, 3.1 assists and 1.6 steals. Kennedy Chandler is averaging 9.7 points over the past 10 games for Tennessee.

Justin Hill is averaging 14.2 points, 4.2 assists and 1.5 steals for the Lancers. Isaiah Wilkins is averaging 10.9 points and 5.6 rebounds over the last 10 games for Longwood.

LAST 10 GAMES: Volunteers: 9-1, averaging 69.6 points, 31.7 rebounds, 17.0 assists, 7.0 steals and 2.3 blocks per game while shooting 44.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 58.7 points per game.

Lancers: 9-1, averaging 79.0 points, 36.7 rebounds, 12.7 assists, 7.1 steals and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 44.2% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 64.4 points.

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