Kennedy Chandler says he and the Vols won’t be satisfied with anything short of a national title.

-- Photo By Jerry Denham |The Ledger

Kennedy Chandler isn’t putting much thought into his professional future. The Tennessee freshman guard has more immediate concerns.

Chandler wants to help the Vols make a lengthy run in the postseason. If it’s his only year in college, he wants to make it last as long as possible.

“Right now, my main focus is to get wins, get ready for the SEC Tournament,” Chandler says. “Our goal is to play the Monday night game (the national championship game). That’s what coach Barnes says all the time.

“We didn’t get to be SEC regular season champions, but I want to win an SEC Tournament. I want to make it to the Final Four and win March Madness. That’s my and everybody else on the team’s mindset.”

The Vols begin their quest this week as the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament, which opens Wednesday in Tampa. Tennessee plays Friday at 5 p.m. CDT against the winner of the Thursday game between No. 7 South Carolina and No. 10 Mississippi State.

Tennessee (23-7, 14-4) finished the regular season by beating No. 15 Arkansas 78-74 Saturday in Thompson-Boling Arena to secure a perfect 16-0 record at home. The Vols held on for the win down the stretch despite nearly blowing a 24-point lead.

The Vols moved up four spots in The Associated Press rankings this week to a season-high No. 9, tied with Purdue. The SEC is tied with the Big 12 and Big Ten for the most ranked teams with four.

Tennessee has won four straight and nine of the last 10 games, including wins over No. 4 Auburn and No. 5 Kentucky.

“I love all the top four teams in the league,’’ SEC Network play-by-play commentator Tom Hart says. “When you talk about their projections in the big picture, I think they are all Final Four caliber teams.

“No doubt about it. Every one of them is different and has different strengths.”

The Vols hang their hats on defense. They ranked third nationally in Ken Pom’s adjusted efficiency by allowing 84.7 points per 100 possessions. They rank No. 7 in steals (13.6%), No. 17 in turnovers forced (16.2 per game) and No. 18 in blocks (14.1%).

“If there is one concern, it would be that they don’t have one reliable superstar scorer,” Hart adds. “Everybody loves balance, but in the tournament you need a go-to guy and someone who you can put the ball in their hands and tell them to go get you a bucket. For better or worse, they are more balanced.”

Dana O’Neil, a senior writer primarily covering college basketball at The Athletic, says Tennessee’s postseason hopes hinge on finding more offensive stability.

“Tennessee showed what it’s capable of this past month – namely playing with and beating anyone,” she says. “The Vols biggest hurdle is their ability to absolutely disappear offensively for long stretches. The game against Arkansas serves as exhibits A through Z. That’s a real danger come tourney time when everyone is desperate. If Tennessee can find a consistent motor, it will be a tough out. Without it, beware.”

Tennessee’s freshmen have played key roles this season. Chandler and Brandon Huntley-Hatfield are starters while Zakai Zeigler and Jonas Aidoo provide steady minutes off the bench.

Getting the younger players ready for the higher intensity of postseason play is something the Vols have tried to manage leading up to the SEC Tournament.

“I think they will understand the magnitude of it, but it’s totally different when you step foot on that court,” says Tennessee assistant coach Justin Gainey. “Again, with our older guys and being able to lean on them, they’re good players. It won’t take long for them to be like, ‘OK, this is a normal game now.’ Up until that point, we will do everything we can to prepare them before and to make sure we’ve talked them through it and what’s at stake here.”

Entering the week, Tennessee was projected as a consensus No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament by ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, Jerry Palm of CBS Sports, Brian Bennett of The Athletic and Bill Bender of The Sporting News.

The seed lines and teams for the field of 68 will fluctuate with multiple conference tournaments taking place through Selection Sunday.

Having called many Tennessee games this season, Hart likes the Vols’ chances of sticking around in the NCAAs.

“The caveat being that everything depends on matchups and what the bracket looks like,” Hart adds. “Unlike last year when Baylor or Gonzaga were so dominant and it was evident they would be really hard to get past, this year is more wide-open.

“There isn’t one dominant team.”

Tennessee took advantage of its strong finish to the regular season to take a break from the grind. The Vols have been gearing up for what they hope will be a strong postseason run, starting with the SEC Tournament this week and finishing with the Big Dance.

“It is really good. We know that we need to rest our bodies and that we have some really big, really important games coming up,” Zeigler says. “It’s money time right now. March is the biggest time of year, so we know we’re going to need our bodies and rest our bodies, and just get locked in.”