KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee men's basketball team (14-6, 4-3) is set to continue the 2025-26 slate Saturday, as it hosts the Auburn Tigers (14-7, 5-3) at Food City Center. Tip-off is set for 8:30 p.m. ET.
The contest will serve as the program's annual "Checker" Food City game.
In the most recent contest, the fourth-seeded Volunteers beat top-seeded Auburn, 70-65, in the 2025 SEC Tournament semifinals on 3/15/25 behind 20 points from Zakai Zeigler.
The two series meetings last year, both of which were AP top-eight clashes, were decided by a total of seven points. UT led for 33:25 and the Tigers did so for 35:03.
Tennessee is 4-2 in its last six meetings—both setbacks were on the road—with the Tigers, after dropping six in a row before that.
This contest snaps a 12-game series streak (1/2/18 to 3/15/25) across eight seasons with at least one team ranked.
Auburn head coach Steven Pearl is a Tennessee alumnus. He played for his father, Bruce Pearl, on Rocky Top from 2007-11. The Vols went 99-42 in that four-year span.
After going 32-6 (15-3), winning the SEC regular season title and making the Final Four, Auburn was picked sixth in the SEC.
Senior forward Keyshawn Hall paces the Tigers with 20.9 ppg and 7.4 rpg.