Tennessee advanced to the 2011 SEC Tournament Quarterfinals with a 74-68 win over Arkansas, but it was almost not meant to be. The Volunteers were ahead by double digits for most of the half, but somehow allowed Arkansas to go on a 16-0 run to tie the score at 68 with 2:08 remaining. It would have been a sad way for the Volunteers to see their NCAA Tournament bubble hopes disappear.
SEC Tournament 2011 Bracket Update: Tennessee Weathers Arkansas Comeback, Advances To Quarterfinals
Thankfully for Tennessee fans, the Volunteers rallied. Brian Williams hit a layup off a nice pass from Tobias Harris, and after a Julysses Nobles turnover, the Volunteers put the game away with free-throw shooting. Tennessee moves to 19-13 on the year, while Arkansas falls to 18-13 and is likely heading to the NIT.
Tennessee now has a real shot of nailing down its NCAA Tournament spot if they can top No. 1 seed Florida in the quarterfinals Friday night. Of course, it’s Florida, who is very, very good. Still, it’s an opportunity, and an opportunity is all any bubble team wants this time of year.
For more on this game, Tennessee fans should celebrate at Rocky Top Talk, and Arkansas fans should get back to football at Arkansas Expats.
First Round: Thursday, March 10
East No. 4 Georgia Bulldogs def. West No. 5 Auburn Tigers, 69-51
West No. 3 Mississippi Rebels def. East No. 6 South Carolina Gamecocks, 66-55
East No. 5 Tennessee Volunteers def. West No. 4 Arkansas Razorbacks, 74-68
East No. 3 Vanderbilt Commodores vs. West No. 6 LSU Tigers, 10:00 p.m., SEC Network
Quarterfinals: Friday, March 11
West No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Georgia, 1:00 p.m., SEC Network
East No. 2 Kentucky Wildcats vs. Ole Miss, 3:30 p.m., SEC Network
East No. 1 Florida Gators vs. Arkansas-Tennessee winner, 7:30 p.m., SEC Network
West No. 2 Mississippi State Bulldogs vs. Vanderbilt-LSU winner, 10:00 p.m., SEC Network
Semifinals: Saturday, March 12
Quarterfinals game 1 winner vs. quarterfinals game 2 winner, 1:00 p.m., ABC
Quarterfinals game 3 winner vs. quarterfinals game 4 winner, 3:30 p.m., ABC
Championship game: Sunday, March 13
Semifinals winners, 1:00 p.m., ABC
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