​Tennessee will face Maryland at 3 p.m. Eastern Time in the 2026 Players Era 16 Festival in Las Vegas, as announced by the tournament on Friday. The Volunteers will square off against former guard Bishop Boswell and the Terrapins at Michelob Ultra Arena. In Bracket 1, the winner and the loser of this matchup will then encounter Iowa State and San Diego State in subsequent rounds. If Tennessee emerges victorious, the team will play at 1:30 p.m., while a loss would push the game to a 9 p.m. tip-off in the consolation bracket. Both potential follow-up games are scheduled for Nov. 26.
On the opposite side of the bracket, St. John’s, Oregon, Louisville, and Texas Tech are positioned to potentially face Tennessee in the semifinal set for Nov. 27, depending on the results of earlier rounds. This marks Tennessee’s second appearance in the Players Era tournament. Last year, the Volunteers defeated Rutgers and Houston before falling to Kansas in the 2025 edition.
Looking ahead to Tennessee’s 2026-27 schedule, the program has outlined several nonconference matchups. The Vols are slated to host Michigan State and to travel to Purdue on Dec. 11. They will also play a neutral-site game against NC State at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on Dec. 6. In addition, there will be at least three games comprising the Players Era opener in Las Vegas, and Tennessee will conclude the nonconference slate with a home game against Florida State on Dec. 1 as part of the SEC/ACC Challenge. In SEC play, Nashville-area enthusiasts can expect notable home dates against Alabama, Florida, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky as part of the conference schedule.
Wynton Jackson covers high school sports for Knox News and can be reached at wynton.jackson@knoxnews.com. This coverage highlights the importance of strong local journalism and the ongoing commitment to premium perks for subscribers at knoxnews.com/subscribe. The information in this article was originally published by the Knoxville News Sentinel as part of efforts to optimize search engine visibility for Tennessee basketball game time against Maryland in the Players Era tournament.