SAN ANTONIO -- A mountain stands between the Tennessee men's basketball team and its quest for history.

The Vols must beat this year's collegiate basketball giant, No. 1-ranked and top-seeded Ohio State (32-3), if they are to become the first UT team in history to reach the Elite Eight round of the NCAA tournament.

It's already been quite a journey for the fifth-seeded Vols (24-10) heading into tonight's Sweet 16 match-up at 9:57 in the South Regional at the Alamodome (TV: WVLT). Tennessee's 24 wins rank as the second-most in any season, and the Vols are riding a school-record string of four wins against top-25 opponents.

"We're very confident right now, but I don't want that to change the way we've been playing,'' said UT coach Bruce Pearl, whose Vols reached this stage of the postseason by beating Long Beach State (12186) and Virginia (77-74) in the first two rounds. "Ohio State is a very complete team.''

The Big Ten champion Buckeyes, who beat Central Connecticut State (78-57) and Xavier (78-71 in overtime) to reach the Sweet 16, feature the projected No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, 7-foot, 280-pound freshman center Greg Oden.

"If we can stop Greg, we can take this team to another level,'' UT freshman center Wayne Chism said. "He's the biggest obstacle in my path. You just can't let him bully you.''

Oden scored 24 points and had 15 rebounds in the teams' first meeting, a 68-66 win in Columbus, Ohio, on Jan. 13 that sparked the Buckeyes' current 19-game win streak.

"I don't think he has grown any, so he looks the same to me,'' UT freshman center Duke Crews said. "He's a big inside presence; he boxes out, blocks a lot of shots and scores around the basket. But as long as we win, I don't care.

"We have to take another step. There have been UT teams make the Sweet 16 before, and we came here to take it a step further.''

Chism and Crews said the key against Oden is playing physical, but the Vols will need to do more than just hold their own around the basket to advance.

Ohio State's backcourt features first-team All-Big Ten point guard Michael Conley Jr. and Jamar Butler, who finished atop their league in assist/turnover ratio.

UT sprung its "Controlled Chaos'' backcourt trap on a Buckeyes' team that was still finding itself in January and forced 20 turnovers. Chris Lofton had 21 points, scoring four consecutive times on drives to the basket in the final four minutes of the game.

Conley Jr. said Ohio State has become all the wiser.

"The first time around we didn't know as much about Tennessee,'' Conley Jr. said. "Chris shocked us with his driving ability, and we'll limit our turnovers against the press.''

Lofton, who missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free-throw situation with 23.9 seconds left in the loss to the Buckeyes, concedes Ohio State wasn't at its best in the earlier meeting. But neither was Tennessee, the SEC Player of the Year said.

"Neither team really played well, and it was kind of a grind-it-out game,'' Lofton said. "But now we have to seize the moment. You don't always get this far, and we have to make the most of it.''

UT point guard Ramar Smith, who had 14 points, nine rebounds and three assists matched against fellow freshman Conley Jr. in January, said UT is not intimidated by tonight's sizable task.

"I know this is a game we can win,'' Smith said. "They're a great team, but it's not like they can't be stopped.

"We've got a chance to make history, and Ohio State is in our way.''

(Players averaging double-digit minutes)

Frontcourt

Tennessee Ohio State

Player (Ht.) Ppg. Rpg. FT% Blks. Player (Ht.) Ppg. Rpg. FT% Blks.

Chism (6-9) 9.1 5.4 .590 21 Oden (7-0) 15.6 9.8 .634 95

Crews (6-7) 8.5 5.1 .589 32 Lighty (6-5) 3.4 2.6 .721 6

Backcourt

(Players averaging double-digit minutes)

Tennessee Ohio State

Player (Ht.) Ppg. A/To 3Pt.% Stls Player (Ht.) Ppg. A/To 3Pt.% Stls

R. Smith (6-2) 10.6 104/87 .310 39 Conley (6-1) 10.6 218/77 .311 79

Tabb (6-4) 3.6 35/43 .286 29 Cook (6-5) 10.4 38/55 .427 25