Rick Barnes sends strong message to Tennessee fans ahead of SEC Tournament
Tennessee basketball is heading to the SEC Tournament as the No. 4 seed. The Vols earned a double bye with their win against South Carolina in the season finale.
The SEC Tournament will take place in Nashville, down the road from Knoxville, at the Bridgestone Arena. With the tournament being in the Volunteer State, Rick Barnes is expecting Tennessee fans to show up in support.
Barnes was asked after the season finale win what he was hoping for with the SEC Tournament this year, and he sent a strong message to Vol Nation.
“I hope it’s not a neutral site,” Barnes said. “I’m hoping Nashville is all a sea of Volunteers when we’re there. Again, I want to thank our fan base for today (Senior Day). I didn’t know how this would turn out going into the game. Our fan base showed their support again. It’s just really unbelievable.
“But I shouldn’t be surprised because we’ve got the best fan base in the country,” Barnes continued. “You get to tournament play; you hope that, again, we expect our fans to be with us, and we want to play, and certainly, we don’t want to disappoint them.”
While the tournament is technically neutral site for every team, Barnes has set clear expectations for Tennessee fans ahead of the tourney.
Tennessee fans usually show up for the Vols at the SEC Tournament, especially as the team advances deeper into the tournament.
The Vols will play its first game on Friday in the Quarterfinals Round at 3:30 PM ET. Tennessee will play the winner of Texas A&M and Texas/Vanderbilt. If Tennessee wins, they will move on to play in the Semifinals on Friday, and the Championship Game will be held on Sunday.
