1980–81 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team

The 1980–81 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee as a member of the Southeastern Conference during the 1980–81 college basketball season. Led by third-year head coach Don DeVoe, the team played their home games at the Stokely Athletic Center in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers finished with a record of 21–8 (12–6 SEC, 2nd) and received an at-large bid to the 1981 NCAA tournament as the 4 seed in the East region. After an opening round win over VCU, Tennessee was defeated by No. 1 seed and eventual Final Four participant Virginia, 62–48.[2]

1980–81 Tennessee Volunteers basketball
NCAA tournament, Sweet Sixteen
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionEast
Ranking
CoachesNo. 15
APNo. 15
Record21–8 (12–6 SEC)
Head coach
Home arenaStokely Athletic Center
1980–81 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 4 LSU171 .944315  .861
No. 8 Kentucky153 .833226  .786
No. 15 Tennessee126 .667218  .724
Alabama108 .5561811  .621
Georgia99 .5001912  .613
Ole Miss810 .4441614  .533
Vanderbilt711 .3891514  .517
Florida513 .2781216  .429
Auburn414 .2221116  .407
Mississippi State315 .167819  .296
1981 SEC tournament winner
Rankings from AP Poll[1]

This was the third of five straight seasons of NCAA Tournament basketball for the Tennessee men's program. The Volunteers would not reach the Sweet Sixteen again until the 2000 NCAA tournament.

Roster

1980–81 Tennessee Volunteers men's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearHometown
G 10 Tyrone Beaman 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)
Fr Niagara Falls, New York
F 14 Dale Ellis 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)195 lb (88 kg) So Marietta, Georgia
G 21 Michael Brooks 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Fr Memphis, Tennessee
G 30 Gary Carter 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Jr Johnson City, Tennessee
C 33 Dan Federmann 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m)
Fr Cincinnati, Ohio
F 40 Willie Burton 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Fr Millen, Georgia
F 44 Howard Wood 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)230 lb (104 kg) Sr Southampton, New York
F 53 Steve Ray 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Jr Collinsville, Illinois
F/C 54 Randy Bates 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)
Fr Old Hickory, Tennessee
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster

    [3]

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Regular season
    Nov 29, 1980*
    Rollins W 94–58  1–0
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Dec 3, 1980
    at Auburn L 65–75  1–1
    (0–1)
    Memorial Coliseum 
    Auburn, Alabama
    Dec 6, 1980*
    Purdue W 78–69  2–1
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Dec 9, 1980*
    Lafayette W 72–42  3–1
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Dec 13, 1980*
    Colorado W 87–69  4–1
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Dec 19, 1980*
    Iona W 80–54  5–1
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Dec 20, 1980*
    No. 18 Brigham Young W 81–65  6–1
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Dec 28, 1980*
    vs. No. 11 Arizona State
    Sugar Bowl Tournament
    W 69–53  7–1
    Louisiana Superdome 
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    Dec 29, 1980*
    vs. Duke
    Sugar Bowl Tournament
    W 90–69  8–1
    Louisiana Superdome 
    New Orleans, Louisiana
    Jan 3, 1981
    No. 18 at Alabama W 70–69  9–1
    (1–1)
    Memorial Coliseum 
    Tuscaloosa, Alabama
    Jan 7, 1981
    No. 13 Ole Miss W 73–68  10–1
    (2–1)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Jan 10, 1981
    No. 13 at No. 4 Kentucky L 47–48  10–2
    (2–2)
    Rupp Arena 
    Lexington, Kentucky
    Jan 14, 1981
    No. 13 Florida W 78–64  11–2
    (3–2)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Jan 17, 1981
    No. 11 at Vanderbilt W 72–66  12–2
    (4–2)
    Memorial Gymnasium 
    Nashville, Tennessee
    Jan 21, 1981
    No. 11 Mississippi State W 81–57  13–2
    (5–2)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Jan 24, 1981
    No. 8 at No. 5 LSU L 63–80  13–3
    (5–3)
    Maravich Assembly Center 
    Baton Rouge, Louisiana
    Jan 28, 1981
    No. 8 Georgia W 72–67  14–3
    (6–3)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Jan 31, 1981
    No. 11 Alabama W 62–58  15–3
    (7–3)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Feb 4, 1981
    No. 11 at Ole Miss L 52–71  15–4
    (7–4)
    Tad Smith Coliseum 
    Oxford, Mississippi
    Feb 7, 1981
    No. 10 No. 6 Kentucky W 87–71  16–4
    (8–4)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Feb 11, 1981
    No. 10 at Florida W 53–52  17–4
    (9–4)
    Stephen C. O'Connell Center 
    Gainesville, Florida
    Feb 14, 1981
    No. 9 Vanderbilt W 79–72  18–4
    (10–4)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Feb 18, 1981
    No. 9 at Mississippi State W 73–70  19–4
    (11–4)
    Humphrey Coliseum 
    Starkville, Mississippi
    Feb 21, 1981
    No. 8 No. 4 LSU L 65–66  19–5
    (11–5)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    Feb 25, 1981
    No. 8 at Georgia L 75–76  19–6
    (11–6)
    Stegeman Coliseum 
    Athens, Georgia
    Feb 28, 1981
    No. 10 Auburn W 75–63  20–6
    (12–6)
    Stokely Center 
    Knoxville, Tennessee
    SEC tournament
    Mar 5, 1981*
     TVS
    No. 10 vs. Ole Miss
    Quarterfinals
    L 71–81  20–7
    BJCC Coliseum 
    Birmingham, Alabama
    NCAA tournament
    Mar 15, 1981*
    (4 E) No. 15 vs. (5 E) VCU
    Second round
    W 58–56 OT 21–7
    Charlotte Coliseum 
    Charlotte, North Carolina
    Mar 19, 1981*
    (4 E) No. 15 vs. (1 E) No. 5 Virginia
    East Regional Semifinal – Sweet Sixteen
    L 48–62[2]  21–8
    The Omni 
    Atlanta, Georgia
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    E=East.
    All times are in Eastern Time.

    [4] [5]

    Rankings

    [6]

    NBA draft

    Round Pick Player NBA Club
    227Howard WoodUtah Jazz

    [7]

    References

    1. sports-reference.com 1980-81 Southeastern Conference Season Summary
    2. "Virginia Routs Tennessee". The Washington Post. March 20, 1981. Retrieved February 24, 2023.
    3. "1980-81 Men's Basketball Roster". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
    4. "1980-81 Men's Basketball Schedule". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
    5. "2019-20 Tennessee Men's Basketball Media Guide" (PDF). University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
      • ESPN College Basketball Encyclopedia: The Complete History of the Men's Game. Random House. 2009. pp. 921–922. ISBN 978-0-345-51392-2.
    6. "1981 NBA Draft". Basketball-reference.com. Retrieved February 19, 2023.
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