Making a case for Furman to beat Tennessee in the NCAA men's tennis tournament opener Saturday would be tough.

A three-week layoff since the SEC tournament does open the door to some uncertainty.

"The truth is that's a long time to sit around and think about playing in this tournament,'' UT coach Sam Winterbotham said.

And there was, on paper at least, a difficult challenge at the No. 2 doubles against an unbeaten Furman tandem. That could potentially get things off to a rough start for the 8th-ranked Vols.

Both worries, however, proved unfounded.

The Vols blasted Furman 4-0 at UT's Varsity Courts to advance to today's 2 p.m. second-round match against Virginia Tech. The Hokies beat Kentucky 4-0.

Today's winner heads to the round of 16 in Tulsa, Okla., on Friday.

"I'm very impressed the way we came out,'' Winterbotham said. "They were ready to go.''

UT (22-3) won the doubles point, then closed out the Paladins (16-11) with singles wins by J.P. Smith, Davey Sandgren and Matteo Fago.

"Furman,'' said Winterbotham, "is always very strong in doubles and that was the one thing we thought we had to be ready for.

"We jumped on them early and it was going to be a tough day for them after that.''

The Vols won at No. 1 doubles, 8-4, on a Kaden Hensel ace. Hensel and Smith are ranked No. 4 in the nation.

At No. 2 doubles, Furman's 9-0 tandem of Bo Ladyman and Jordan Walters squared off against Sandgren and freshmen Jeremy Tweedt, with a modest 4-5 slate.

UT jumped out 7-2 but Furman rallied to 7-6. Sandgren and Tweedt dug in, breaking service to win 8-6 and assure Tennessee of a 1-0 lead.

The Vols are 20-0 when they win doubles, 2-3 when they don't.

"We started really strong,'' Sandgren said. "I sort of lost my focus and did a bunch of stupid stuff.

"Jeremy kept the same level and we knew we had to close it out because we wanted to clinch the doubles before we go on to singles.''

Singles posed no threats.

Smith won, 6-1, 6-0, at No. 2. Sandgren made it 3-0 with a 6-1, 6-2 win at No. 4. Fago clinched, 6-2, 6-1, at No. 5. Hensel, Tweedt and Boris Conkic were all leading their matches when it ended.

Sandgren, though only a sophomore from Gallatin, Tenn., has an elder-statesman status because he's the only American in a lineup that includes four foreign freshmen. Smith is Australian, same as senior Hensel. Conkic is Serbian, Fago is Italian and Tweedt is from France.

"It was a huge adaptation for me,'' Tweedt said. "It's very different from tennis in other countries.

"The attitude on the court, the way people fist-pump all the time. Even the rules are different. Now, I think I'm in it, but you really have to change your ways.''

One big adjustment is learning there's no "I" in team.

"All of 'em,'' said Sandgren, "played ITF (International Tennis Federation). You're by yourself, winning for you. Here, you have the crowd cheering for your team.

"It's a lot of stuff to learn but they did a great job. They all know more than me now.''

But they don't know everything yet.

"J.P. wants to drive my car all the time,'' Sandgren said, "but I won't let him. He doesn't know which side of the road to drive on.''

Rematch Today: Tennessee beat Virginia Tech 4-3 here on March 15, one of only two matches the Vols won after losing the doubles point.

The 30th-ranked Hokies (16-10) are led by Spaniards Albert Larregola and Nicolas Delgado de Robles.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.