Tennessee vs. Chattanooga: How to watch, gamethread

Tennessee is back in action tonight at Thompson-Boling Arena, set to take on the Chattanooga Mocs. The 17th ranked Volunteers currently sit at 4-0 on the season.

Rick Barnes and his staff are getting prepared to head south for the Emerald Coast Classic on Friday and Saturday, which will feature a first round matchup with Florida State, then a date with either VCU or Purdue. Before those big tests, he’s got a chance for another tune up against Chattanooga.

The Mocs will take the 90 minute trip north tonight, entering this game with a 3-2 mark. Chattanooga has wins over South Alabama, Troy and Tennessee State this year. They’ve dropped games to Florida State and Eastern Kentucky.

The Seminoles beat the Mocs to the tune of 89-53.

Tennessee needs another game without Zach Kent in the fold to get guys like Olivier Nkamhoua and Drew Pember up to speed. Kent has left the program indefinitely, which obviously hurts the Vols’ depth.

The good news is that Yves Pons has more than picked up the slack, using his elite athletic ability to make up for his lack of size. Guard Josiah James pitched in against Alabama State, grabbing 13 rebounds.

Ahead of a big weekend, we’ll see how Barnes attacks this last opportunity to sort out his bench.

Gameday Information

Location: Knoxville, Tennessee

TV Channel: SEC Network

Tip-off Time: 7 p.m. ET

Radio: Vol Network

Streaming: Watch ESPN

Odds: Tennessee -20.5