The Volunteers (commonly referred to as the "Vols") compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

Chris Lofton, Ron Slay, Tyler Smith, and John Fulkerson are also notable players who later played professionally in other leagues.

The hiring of Mears, who was coming off an NCAA small college championship at Wittenberg University, ushered in the most sustained period of success in Tennessee men's basketball history.

[citation needed] In an era where Kentucky was coached by future College Basketball Hall of Fame members Adolph Rupp and Joe B.

Led by A. W. Davis, the Volunteers finished second in the SEC in each of the next two seasons and recorded 20 wins in 1965, reaching that mark for the first time in 17 years.

In the expanded Stokely Center's inaugural season, the Volunteers captured the 1967 SEC championship and made the program's first-ever NCAA tournament appearance.

In 1974, Mears and his trusted assistant Stu Aberdeen were able to recruit New York City standout forward Ernie Grunfeld to Knoxville.

In his freshman season, Grunfeld led the team in scoring, averaging 17.4 points per game, and received first-team All-SEC honors.

Under the watch of interim coach Cliff Wettig, the Volunteers struggled to an 11–16 record, and Mears officially retired for health reasons after the season.

[citation needed] From the beginning of his time at Tennessee, Mears employed marketing tactics to get fans to games—from his patented and provocative orange blazer, to his introduction of the Pride of the Southland Band to basketball games, to his entertaining pre-game warmups that compared to the Harlem Globetrotters for creativity.

[8] At the beginning of his tenure, Mears declared, "This is Big Orange Country," and this slogan has lived on long past his coaching years.

In 1988, the Volunteers moved to the new $30 million Thompson–Boling Arena, which seated over 24,500 people—at the time, the largest facility ever built specifically for basketball in the United States.

His first Tennessee team produced a 20–9 overall record—a nine-win improvement over the 11–16 record of O'Neill's third and final UT team—and advanced to the 1998 NCAA tournament.

In women's basketball, Pat Summitt led the Lady Volunteers to a 39–0 NCAA championship season, the program's third consecutive national title.)

In the NCAA tournament, the Volunteers advanced to the first Sweet Sixteen in school history, where they lost a close contest to North Carolina.

Coupled with his multiple incidents with local media and Tennessee fans,[10] this disappointing finish to the season led to Green's resignation.

Pearl's assistants Tony Jones, Steve Forbes, Jacob Nichols, Jason Shay, and Ken Johnson were part of a staff that would help to lead the Volunteers to the NCAA tournament six years in a row.

All-American guard Chris Lofton was injured and missed a good portion of January and early February, during which time the Volunteers opened 3–5 in SEC play.

[12] Chris Lofton was a preseason pick by some to win National Player of the Year, and he was joined by Tyler Smith, an All-Big Ten freshman transfer from Iowa.

In front the largest TV audience to date to ever watch a game on ESPN, the two teams remained evenly matched for thirty-nine minutes.

On New Year's Day, players Melvin Goins, Cam Tatum, Brian Williams, and leading scorer Tyler Smith were arrested after a traffic stop when police found marijuana and an illegal firearm.

A petition with thousands of signatures surfaced online for the firing of Cuonzo Martin and the re-hiring of Bruce Pearl, whose show-cause order was ending the next year.

[citation needed] Whether the petition motivated the team or not, the Volunteers finished the season 5–1 and earned a place in the "First Four" round of the NCAA tournament.

In front of one of the largest crowds to witness a Sweet Sixteen game, the Volunteers' comeback fell short and UT lost to Michigan by a score of 73–71.

Also, due to Jarnell Stokes's decision to enter the NBA draft and two other players transferring, Tyndall had to recruit and sign nearly one-third of the 2015 team's roster in less than a month.

According to ESPN, Hart and other officials were still smarting from Pearl having to sit out the first half of conference play three years earlier, and were not willing to face the prospect of an equally lengthy suspension for Tyndall.

Purdue's Ryan Cline kept the Boilermakers in the game late and after a controversial call on Lamonte Turner, the Vols lost.

Conference tournament champion Tennessee plays its home games in Thompson–Boling Arena, which was at one time the largest facility ever built specifically for basketball in the United States, with a seating capacity of 24,678 until its 2007 renovation.

Named for the late B. Ray Thompson and former UT President Dr. Edward J. Boling, the arena regularly hosts women's volleyball matches, concerts, camps, conferences, and other special events throughout the year.

The riverfront arena has drawn rave reviews from teams, administrators, and media for its modern facilities needed for hosting major tournaments.