Tennessee forward Jarnell Stokes (5) works against Mercer forward Daniel Coursey during a first-round game in the NIT college basketball tournament in Knoxville, Tenn.KNOXVILLE – Tennessee’s basketball team took the Thompson-Boling Arena floor on Wednesday night for pregame warmups looking like it wanted to be somewhere else.
The team in black had other ideas.
The Volunteers were sent packing from the National Invitation Tournament by Mercer, the energized Atlantic Sun Conference regular-season champion carving up the Volunteers’ disinterested defense in a 75-67 first-round win.
“It’s a great experience for us to be in the NIT,” coach Bob Hoffman said after his Bears advanced to play at BYU in the second round. “We’re blessed to be here. Obviously, just like everybody else, we want to be in the NCAA tournament.”
The Vols’ hangover of not being there clearly still lingered.