KNOXVILLE — It’s not hard to perspire in the Southeastern Conference sweatbox commonly referred to as Florida’s O-Dome.

Especially not for Tennessee basketball coach Bruce Pearl, whose light gray suit turned into two-tone charcoal two years ago in the Gators’ indoor swamp.

“No more light suits for Coach Pearl at Florida,” UT’s third-year coach reiterated earlier this week. “We’ve been there and done that.”

The attire will be different, but the intensity won’t.

The fourth-ranked Volunteers (26-3, 12-2) play at Florida (21-8, 8-6) tonight in flip-flopped fashion from the previous two seasons.

UT is now viewed as the national-championship contender. The Gators are now the young team fighting for an NCAA tournament berth.

“I’m not a bracketologist — I have no medical background in bracketology,” Pearl said. “But a win over Tennessee is a sure thing (to get in the NCAA tournament), because of our rating. I remember last year, when we were in that same situation, we knew what the win over Florida about this time of the year was for our resume.

“That got us over the top. This would get Florida over the top.”

With Kentucky proving Sunday in Knoxville that it wouldn’t wilt without injured freshman forward Patrick Patterson, Florida’s daunting final week became even tougher. Many national analysts have said the Gators must win tonight or at UK this weekend (or win the SEC tournament) to avoid the NIT.

“We know we’ve got to win some games to get in the tournament,” Florida freshman Adam Allen told the Gainesville Sun. “Nobody wants to go to the NIT. It’s like the champion of the losers if you win that. Everybody wants to play in the NCAA tournament.”

Coach Billy Donovan said he knew his Baby Gators wouldn’t be NCAA locks. Of course, nearly the entire nucleus of his back-to-back national championship teams left after last season’s title.

Donovan told local media this week that his young team’s inconsistent intensity has been the unexpected issue. He implored his team to finish this week like “crazy men.”

“They’re at home, and they’re playing for the NCAA tournament,” UT senior guard Chris Lofton said of the Gators. “We’re going to have our hands full. We’ll have to match their intensity.”

The Rowdy Reptiles student section sits nearly on top of the court in the O’Connell Center, creating a sweat-soaked setting full of hostility and humidity.

Vols sophomore forward Duke Crews said the O-Dome is “a great environment ... for their team.”

Lofton said it was hotter than his Maysville (Ky.) High School gym — which didn’t have air conditioning.

“That humidity is ridiculous,” Lofton said. “It’s so hot in there, from start to finish. We started hydrating (Sunday) night.”

Pearl said Florida opens the doors to a nearby swimming pool to put as much humidity as possible into “one of the toughest places to play in the country.”

“It can even affect the coaches, as we all remember,” Pearl said.

These Gators have been a puzzling mixture of tantalizing talent and undeniable youth, often in the same game. That was the case in Knoxville on Feb. 5, when they took a 16-3 lead in the opening minutes but lost 104-82.

Donovan’s ball-screen offense is so effective against man-to-man defenses that some teams sink into zones and force them to shoot over the top.

“But that’s not how we roll,” Pearl said. “That’s how we’re trained. Their stuff works best against our stuff, but so be it. We’re going to have to find a way.”

Three consecutive games in the 60s have clearly frustrated the high-octane Vols, who have no desire to sit back and let tonight’s game settle at a moderate tempo.

“We still haven’t put the fast back in fastbreak,” UT senior guard JaJuan Smith said.

So expect some sweat, even if you don’t see it through Pearl’s sport coat.