Jerry Tipton on UK basketball

It’s official. The weekly media vote made Tennessee the new No. 1 team in the country. The Vols won that vote after beating the previous No. 1 team, Memphis, on Saturday night.

When asked about this unprecedented stature for UT basketball, Coach Bruce Pearl suggested mixed feelings.

“The response has been overwhelming here,” he said on the SEC coaches’ teleconference on Monday. “There will be a lot of talk: where were you when Tennessee went on the road and beat the No. 1 team to become No. 1. It was that kind of event.

“It’ll have some staying power. But for us, it has very little staying power because we have to go to Vanderbilt.”

Tennessee, which is seeking its first outright SEC regular-season title in 41 years, plays at Vandy on Tuesday night. Vandy has not lost at home this season and beat Kentucky by 41 points there on Feb. 12.

“We’ve turned the page,” Pearl said.

Pearl also noted how the No. 1 ranking for his program does not put it ahead as much as in a catch-up mode with other Tennessee programs. The football team and women’s basketball teams have been No. 1 and won national championships.

“You can point to a number of different sports to show we’re proud to be part of one of the finest athletic programs in the country,” Pearl said, “and this adds to that.”