CHARLOTTE, N.C. — When Tennessee takes the floor for its NCAA basketball tournament opener Thursday night against Saint Peter's inside the Spectrum Center, the Volunteers will do so with an abundance of experience.
Josiah-Jordan James, Dalton Knecht and Santiago Vescovi are fifth-year senior guards, while point guard Zakai Zeigler and forward Jonas Aidoo are juniors. These are the fourth NCAA tourney trips for James and Vescovi, who didn't get to experience postseason play as freshmen due to the outbreak of the coronavirus.
With every tip from here on out signaling that teams may be just 40 minutes away from the end of their seasons, Tennessee's veteran roster should prove beneficial.
"I hope so," Vols coach Rick Barnes said this week. "We've got some experience and guys who have been there, and I think that will help. I certainly hope so. I was proud of this group last year for how hard they fought to get to the Sweet 16 after Zakai went down.
"I expect this team to have the same attitude to get there and hopefully further, but we've got to take care of round one."
The Vols (24-8), who are seeded second in the Midwest Region, and the 15th-seeded Peacocks (19-13) are scheduled for a 9:20 start on TNT. The winner of that matchup will play Saturday against the winner of Thursday night's earlier game between seventh-seeded Texas (20-12) and 10th-seeded Colorado State (25-10).
Tennessee assistant coach Rod Clark was asked this week where he detects the experience advantage.
"I think it shows up most in the first four minutes of the game and in the last eight minutes of the game," Clark said. "To me, that's where it shows up. Their level of urgency. Their attention to detail. Their understanding of the moment. You don't understand the moment of playing in the NCAA tournament unless you've been in the NCAA tournament. It's something that Dalton Knecht and Jordan Gainey are going to have to lean on others for.
"The experience has to kick in. Zakai Zeigler didn't get to play in this tournament last year, so he's extremely excited. The last time he was in this tournament, we lost in the Round of 32, so he's hungry and obviously feels like he's better and that he can lead better."
Knecht is in his only season with the Vols after transferring from Northern Colorado, while Gainey played his first two seasons at USC Upstate before coming to Knoxville.
A decade ago, it seemed as though younger was trending better in NCAA play, with freshmen Anthony Davis and Michael Kidd-Gilchrist leading Kentucky to the 2012 national championship and with freshmen Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow pacing Duke to the 2015 crown.
More veteran teams have won it all and have reached recent Final Fours since Kentucky's 2015 squad with freshmen Devin Booker and Karl Anthony Towns was stunned by Wisconsin in the national semifinals.
The Final Four has remained elusive territory for Tennessee since the Vols first appeared in the NCAA tournament in 1967.
"I think every year you think that's the best team you've been a part of and that you have the best chance," Vescovi said. "I truly feel about this team this year the same way. I think we have all the right pieces, and it would be really fun if we all clicked at the same time.
"We know now is go time, and we feel confident we have the team to do it. Defensively, we're the same team we've been the last two years, and offensively we've added Dalton. Jonas is playing better, and Zakai is, too."
Tennessee has been installed as a 21.5-point favorite over the Peacocks.
Brotherly love
The topic of Zeigler facing his younger half-brother, Armoni, continued to be a popular topic during Wednesday's news conference at the Spectrum Center.
Zakai was asked to comment on Armoni's claim that the older Zeigler has a 6-5 lead in recent competitions between the two.
"To clear the air, he's never beaten me one-on-one," Zakai said. "He's not even close in the series at all, and he's not even close in his scores."
When asked to assess Armoni's game, the older Zeigler said, "I would just say that everything he does, I do a little bit better, except for athleticism and height. That's the only two things that he has better than me. Everything else I do better times probably about five."
Caravan stop
Chattanooga will be among the four Big Orange Caravan stops later this spring, with the Convention Center on Carter Street again hosting the event on the evening of May 1.
There is a meet and greet scheduled from 5:30 to 6:15, with the program beginning at 6:15.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.