Tennessee basketball is expecting a 10-round boxing match against Houston in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament on Sunday afternoon.
INDIANAPOLIS — It's not often Tennessee basketball runs into a program that can match its level of physicality that it hangs its hat on.
That's exactly what awaits the Vols on Sunday afternoon in the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament. A Houston Cougars team that is built to go blow for blow, if not land more haymakers.
"They're a tough group," Darlinstone Dubar told GoVols247. "The most physical team is going to win. I kind of think the refs are going to let us play because both teams are physical and they don't want to blow the whistle too much. We got to bring the physicality and set the tone.
"I'm expecting it to be a boxing match. We got to be ready for 10 rounds."
No. 1-seed Houston and No. 2 Tennessee are spitting images of one another. Each program is led by veteran coaches who hold old-school values near and dear to their heart. Kelvin Sampson and Rick Barnes are tough on their players, but the approach brings out their team's best on and off the floor.
The DNA of each team is why both are on the doorstop of the Final Four. It would be Tennessee's first trip in program history, while Houston would advance for the sixth time and the second in the last five years.
"It's gonna be a dog fight," Zakai Zeigler said. "Houston is a super tough team. They hang their hat on defense, hang their hat on toughness, and those are two of the things that we hang our hat on, too.
"The tougher team is gonna win."
Zeigler has already warned his teammates about how difficult the next 40 minutes are going to be. The veteran point guard texted true freshman Bishop Boswell prior to Saturday's practice to make sure the guard was locked in. Boswell is only averaging 3.9 minutes per game this season, but in March, you never know when your number may be needed for 15 minutes.
As for veteran guard Jahmai Mashack, he welcomes the challenge of facing a team that can match Tennessee's physicality. UT typically performs well in these situations.
"We thrive in that," Mashack said. "The more physical, the more competitive the game, the better I feel like we play. So we want to come in with that mindset. We want to be able to do something special in a game like this. It's going to be a tough game. They're not going to make it easier for us, but the goal is to win, the goal is to play hard, and I feel like that's what we've been doing. Why stop now?"
Tennessee is playing in the Elite Eight for the second consecutive season and for the third time in program history. It's the first time that UT has made it this far in the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons.
"I think going into this game, we approach it with confidence, the utmost confidence, to come out and win," Mashack said. "We can do that. It's not going to be easy. It's definitely going to be a dog fight throughout the whole game, but if we just keep on going, keep on wearing on 'em, eventually we want to be able to come out with the outcome of winning the game. We're going to play hard, we're going to play with intensity, because we know it's not going to be easy."
Houston boasts the best defense in the sport. Tennessee ranks No. 3. It sets up for an all-out war between two of the most fierce units in college basketball.
"As long as we play Tennessee basketball, I'm super confident that we can win any single game," Zeigler said.
Tipoff between the Vols and Cougars inside of Lucas Oil Stadium is scheduled for 2:20 p.m. ET on CBS. The winner will play No. 1 Duke in the Final Four next Saturday.
"We just got to rebound," Dubar added. "That's the main thing. Rebound, rebound, rebound. Take care of that and we'll be headed to San Antonio."
This article originates on GoVols247.