As a result of their 82-75 victory over No. 3 seed Creighton on Friday night, the Tennessee Volunteers are now back in the Elite Eight for only the second time in program history, as well as for the first time since 2010.
Now only one win away from the program’s first-ever Final Four appearance, the SEC regular season champions will now have to face Purdue, who is the No. 1 seed in the Midwest Region.
The Boilermakers, who have defeated No. 16 seed Grambling, No. 8 seed Utah State, and No. 5 seed Gonzaga so far during the NCAA Tournament, were the 2023-24 regular season champions in the Big Ten. Purdue also sits at 32-4 overall for the season (17-3 in Big Ten), and are averaging 83.8 PPG this year, led by the reigning National Player of the Year in Zach Edey at 24.6 PPG, 12.1 RPG, 2.1 APG, and 2.2 BPG.
A rematch from earlier this season, Tennessee and Purdue previously met in the Maui Invitational back on November 21, a game where the Boilermakers won by a final score of 71-67.
Who will now win the rematch between the two teams to go to the Final Four?
Prediction: Purdue 76, Tennessee 72