LEXINGTON, Ky. — After finishing a memorable regular season and coming within a game of capturing the Southeastern Conference tournament title, No. 2 seed Tennessee will be on upset alert when it battles No. 15 Wofford in a Midwest Region first-round game Thursday.Tennessee (27-7) finished conference regular season play by winning 13 of 19 games and finishing fourth behind Auburn, Florida and Alabama. The highlight came in the SEC tourney when the Volunteers upset No. 1 seed and regular-season champ Auburn in the semifinals before falling to Florida on Sunday in the title game.Wofford (19-15) had a much different route to the NCAA Tournament, finishing sixth in the Southern Conference. But they caught fire in their conference tournament, beating East Tennessee State, Virginia Military Institute and Furman to earn their first NCAA appearance since 2019, and sixth overall.The two teams have met eight times previously, with Tennessee winning all eight, including 82-61 early in the 2023-24 season.”Obviously, we played them last year, the game before we went to Maui,” Tennessee assistant Rod Clark said of last season’s game. “And we were up five at half. And I just remember them slowing the game down, being really physical, screening, cutting really hard, played with a lot of force.Tennessee went to the Sweet 16 in 2023 and Elite Eight in 2024, but head coach Rick Barnes is taking nothing for granted. He knows about nervous first-round games. Barnes is 30-28 all-time as a head coach in the NCAA Tournament with 11 first-round exits.”No matter the seeding we get, you’ve still got to go out there and handle business,” senior guard Zakai Zeigler said. “I think everybody really understands that now after what just happened in the SEC tournament. I think everybody is really locked in and really understands what’s at stake now.”With All-American Dalton Knecht now in the Lakers lineup, another transfer arrived to headline the Vols’ offense.Shooting guard Chaz Lanier, who spent four seasons at North Florida, averages 17.7 points per game and filled the role of primary scorer for Tennessee.