The highly anticipated moment has arrived for the Tennessee Vols basketball team. Following a strong regular season and an impressive run in the SEC Tournament, Tennessee is ready to face Wofford on Thursday night in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament—let the madness begin!
As they prepare to take the court for their March Madness debut, many Vols players have been tuning in to the outside chatter surrounding the team.
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Zakai Zeigler knows there are plenty of Tennessee Vols haters out there
“I feel like we’ve had a target on our backs all season,” Zeigler said. “For a few weeks, we were ranked No. 1 in the country, and that’s about as big of a target as you can have during the regular season.
But having that target isn’t something we stress over—it’s something we embrace. We want people to recognize how good we are. We want teams to come at us with their best effort.”
Zeigler didn’t hold back. It’s easy to forget that earlier this season, Tennessee briefly held the No. 1 ranking. However, that status was short-lived after a crushing 30-point loss to Florida. Now, the Gators enter the NCAA Tournament as a No. 1 seed and a strong contender for a deep run.
Looking at the bracket, if things go according to plan, Tennessee could face top-seeded Houston in the Elite Eight, with a Final Four berth on the line. That matchup would be a must-watch battle. For Zeigler and the other seniors, this is their final shot, and they’re determined to make a statement and prove their doubters wrong.
