UT's number two seeding a disappointment, but life goes on

In my posting last Thursday, I advised Tennessee Volunteer fans not to worry because the Vols likely had already locked up a number one seeding in the NCAA tournament even if they lost early in the SEC tourney.

Obviously, I was wrong. The NCAA wasn't as impressed as I was with Tennessee's overall body of work that included playing one of the toughest schedules in the country and having a high RPI ranking.

Even though that was disappointing, the Vols still earned a number two seed. In looking at this weekend's games, I see some good and bad.

The good: Tennessee gets to stay close to home. The Vols only have to travel down to Birmingham for their games, which should make it very easy for a lot of fans to drive down and cheer them on. Additionally, their opponent in the first round, American University, should be a fairly easy game. Assuming the Vols find their defense (which they seemingly lost in the SEC tournament), they should advance to the second round with little difficulty.

The bad: The second round match up will be a challenging one. If we beat American University, we will play the winner of the South Alabama/Butler game. If South Alabama wins, we will be playing them in their own backyard. Expect a significant home court advantage for them. As for Butler, this is a talented team that beat Tennessee at the start of last season in the pre-season NIT tournament. They will be filled with confidence and won't be intimidated by Tennessee.

I'm sure this will surprise no one, but I expect Tennessee to win both games and advance to the Sweet 16. If that doesn't happen, it will be a disappointing end to a tremendous season.