Selection Sunday... Sweet!

Yes, I borrowed one of Bert Bertelkamp's favorite expressions. But it works

My initial reaction, the Vols got a nice deal on Selection Sunday. They won't travel far, and their seeding was fair, although their first-round opponent is an unknown challenge. Much will be made of five-seeds getting upset. Something called the Bleacher Report says there has been a 5/12 upset every year since 2000. In the last decade, they say it's happened in 35% (14 of 40) of the games.

Tonight's selection party was held at Neyland Stadium because Thompson-Boling Arena is being renovated. The Vols didn't celebrate quite like they did last year-- their first tournament bid under Bruce Pearl. The Vols are happy to be in this year's tournament, but they're not satisfied. They want a trip to the Sweet 16.

A month ago, the Vols were playing like a bubble team. Now, despite their stumble in the SEC Tournament, the Vols are playing better. The magic of the NCAA Tournament is that the match-ups are a mystery. But Pearl's got a long history in this game-- and told me that yes, he's already coached against Long Beach State's head coach. And the results were good. Pearl beat Larry Reynolds for a national title (Division II) when Pearl was at Indiana State and Reynolds was an assistant at Cal-Riverside.