‘It’s a disadvantage to us.’ -Is he playing mind games? Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes admits that Kentucky holds a slight advantage ahead of the sweet 16 encounter due to……..

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. (WZTV) — The Tennessee men’s basketball has never faced an SEC opponent in the NCAA Tournament.

That will change Friday night.

The two-seeded Vols advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament in the Midwest Region where they will face long-time rivals Kentucky Wildcats on Friday night at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

The two storied programs have faced each other on the basketball court 241 times, with the Wildcats leading the overall series 163-78.

More importantly, the Vols and Wildcats played each other twice in the regular season, with the Wildcats walking away victorious both times.

“It’s a disadvantage and an advantage because we know them, they know us, so we can’t really say that it’s easier,” says forward Igor Milicic. “But just being a rivalry, that makes us want it more, so I feel like that’s the positive in this and we are seeking revenge for sure.”

The winner of the Tennessee and Kentucky game will move on to the Elite 8 and face the winner of top-seeded Houston and 4-seeded Purdue.