NCAA WCBB Preseason Polls....

[Pat4life]

Te'a was like her team was too soft! The Lady Vols were too soft. I was tryin to toughen em up! lol

Mercedes needed to be tougher. Jamie needed to be tougher. oh well.

Be Great young ladies.

 

[Pat4life]

TEXAS:

August 6, 2018: Freshman center Sedona Prince suffered a broken leg playing for the United States at the FIBA U18 world championships in Mexico City. The official release from the Longhorns (see below) stated that “no timetable for her return has been established,” but a Austin American-Statesman item included this: “Prince expects to be ready for the 2019-20 season after sitting out this year with a medical redshirt, her mother said.”

 

[bballnut90]

I see Tennessee in the 10-20 range. Most teams (sans Notre Dame) lose a lot of talent from the loaded 2018 graduating class. You look at Tennessee's roster and there's potential, but a lot has to go right for positive results to happen. Davis is a potential star and Westbrook had some good moments last year despite struggling at the end of the season. Beyond that, you have Jackson who is a streaky performer and a bunch of inexperienced unproven players. Talented players, but inexperienced. Unproven players will need to come up big, especially in the post. Tennessee needs a couple of Collins/Green/KK to step up and be reliable defenders and rebounders. They also need better 3pt shooting. I hope Westbrook/Davis/Jackson have focused on improving their percentages in the offseason. The last few years have been painful at times.

The schedule is pretty light once again, with big games being at Texas, vs. Stanford, vs. Notre Dame, @ Mississippi State, @ Missouri, vs. SC, and @A&M. Of those games, I could see Tennessee having a good shot against:
1. at Texas (they're always all over the place despite having a ton of talent. They also lose McCarty and Atkins)
2. vs. Stanford (they weren't very good last year and were really bad without McPhee who is gone)
3. vs. SC (Holly has done well against Dawn and SC is really unproven without A'ja inside)
4. @ A&M (another team that will be a 1 woman show...Tennessee nearly won at A&M last year and took the game at home)

I don't see Tennessee beating Missouri, and it'll take a miracle to upset Mississippi State or Notre Dame IMO.

I also don't see Tennessee beating everyone else on their schedule even though they should. They've had a bad knack of losing to teams they should be beating soundly the last 3 years. I don't see that changing until I'm proven otherwise.

If Tennessee improves perimeter shooting to break a zone, has reliable defenders/rebounders inside, and Westbrook/Davis elevate their games I could see Tennessee in the top 10. Worst case scenario this team is a middle of the pack SEC team and a 7-11 seed in the tournament. Realistically, I'll be happy with a 2nd round year or Sweet 16 season provided we see improved overall hustle, a better offensive system and general player improvement. I'd rather see that than an Elite 8 tournament run like we had in 2016 after playing awful basketball all year. The real potential for this team is in 2 years when Davis/Westbrook are upperclassmen and Horston is a sophomore.

 

[xtpsrh08123]

The bar is set very low for this team so any type of energetic hustle play will be very much so welcomed. I went back and watched Tennessee vs UNC 1998 in that regional Final and in those final 8 minutes of that game ive never seen a team play harder hungrier and as tenacious as that Pat summitt led team . Not living in the past but those were the good ole days folks. If Holly can at least draw half of that energy from her teams these days we could really be in business.

 

[Pat4life]

Nice read the last two post.

Pretty much what I'm looking for, hopefully the addition of two of the the fiercest competitor in Lady Vols history, Bridgette and Nicky will start to rub off on this team.
leadership, hardwork and teamwork.

 

[teacherdean]

Lindy’s Sports Women’s Basketball Preseason Top 25
1. Notre Dame
2. Oregon
3. UConn
4. Louisville
5. Baylor
6. Maryland
7. Stanford
8. Tennessee
9. Mississippi State
10. Oregon State
11. Texas
12. Missouri
13. DePaul
14. South Carolina
15. NC State
16. Georgia
17. Iowa
18. South Florida
19. Marquette
20. Syracuse
21. Duke
22. UCLA
23. Arizona State
24. Texas A&M
25. Miami

Street & Smith’s 2018-19 Preseason Women’s Basketball Top 20
1. Notre Dame
2. Oregon
3. Connecticut
4. Baylor
5. Louisville
6. Mississippi State
7. South Carolina
8. Iowa
9. Maryland
10. Oregon State
11. Stanford
12. Texas A&M
13. Georgia
14. Texas
15. Missouri
16. DePaul
17. NC State
18. Central Michigan
19. Duke
20. California

Do you agree or not?

Tennessee certainly should be ranked in the top 25. Presently, there are way too many unknowns to rank them in the top ten. The talent is there but it will take some time for them to jell as a team. If they play up to their potential they could become a top ten team within the season. I think a lot will depend upon how well they establish their offense and who takes the leadership role. We can talk about coaching but it also takes good floor leadership.

 

[Pat4life]

Another SEC Preseason prediction... From June!

Taking an early look at the favorites for SEC women's basketball in 2018-2019

 

[VA_VOLFAN]

I see Tennessee in the 10-20 range. Most teams (sans Notre Dame) lose a lot of talent from the loaded 2018 graduating class. You look at Tennessee's roster and there's potential, but a lot has to go right for positive results to happen. Davis is a potential star and Westbrook had some good moments last year despite struggling at the end of the season. Beyond that, you have Jackson who is a streaky performer and a bunch of inexperienced unproven players. Talented players, but inexperienced. Unproven players will need to come up big, especially in the post. Tennessee needs a couple of Collins/Green/KK to step up and be reliable defenders and rebounders. They also need better 3pt shooting. I hope Westbrook/Davis/Jackson have focused on improving their percentages in the offseason. The last few years have been painful at times.

The schedule is pretty light once again, with big games being at Texas, vs. Stanford, vs. Notre Dame, @ Mississippi State, @ Missouri, vs. SC, and @A&M. Of those games, I could see Tennessee having a good shot against:
1. at Texas (they're always all over the place despite having a ton of talent. They also lose McCarty and Atkins)
2. vs. Stanford (they weren't very good last year and were really bad without McPhee who is gone)
3. vs. SC (Holly has done well against Dawn and SC is really unproven without A'ja inside)
4. @ A&M (another team that will be a 1 woman show...Tennessee nearly won at A&M last year and took the game at home)

I don't see Tennessee beating Missouri, and it'll take a miracle to upset Mississippi State or Notre Dame IMO.

I also don't see Tennessee beating everyone else on their schedule even though they should. They've had a bad knack of losing to teams they should be beating soundly the last 3 years. I don't see that changing until I'm proven otherwise.

If Tennessee improves perimeter shooting to break a zone, has reliable defenders/rebounders inside, and Westbrook/Davis elevate their games I could see Tennessee in the top 10. Worst case scenario this team is a middle of the pack SEC team and a 7-11 seed in the tournament. Realistically, I'll be happy with a 2nd round year or Sweet 16 season provided we see improved overall hustle, a better offensive system and general player improvement. I'd rather see that than an Elite 8 tournament run like we had in 2016 after playing awful basketball all year. The real potential for this team is in 2 years when Davis/Westbrook are upperclassmen and Horston is a sophomore.

so you would rather see them go out early then actually having a young team who figures it out and is a step away from the final four ?

 

[Pat4life]

I see Tennessee in the 10-20 range. Most teams (sans Notre Dame) lose a lot of talent from the loaded 2018 graduating class. You look at Tennessee's roster and there's potential, but a lot has to go right for positive results to happen. Davis is a potential star and Westbrook had some good moments last year despite struggling at the end of the season. Beyond that, you have Jackson who is a streaky performer and a bunch of inexperienced unproven players. Talented players, but inexperienced. Unproven players will need to come up big, especially in the post. Tennessee needs a couple of Collins/Green/KK to step up and be reliable defenders and rebounders. They also need better 3pt shooting. I hope Westbrook/Davis/Jackson have focused on improving their percentages in the offseason. The last few years have been painful at times.

The schedule is pretty light once again, with big games being at Texas, vs. Stanford, vs. Notre Dame, @ Mississippi State, @ Missouri, vs. SC, and @A&M. Of those games, I could see Tennessee having a good shot against:
1. at Texas (they're always all over the place despite having a ton of talent. They also lose McCarty and Atkins)
2. vs. Stanford (they weren't very good last year and were really bad without McPhee who is gone)
3. vs. SC (Holly has done well against Dawn and SC is really unproven without A'ja inside)
4. @ A&M (another team that will be a 1 woman show...Tennessee nearly won at A&M last year and took the game at home)

I don't see Tennessee beating Missouri, and it'll take a miracle to upset Mississippi State or Notre Dame IMO.

I also don't see Tennessee beating everyone else on their schedule even though they should. They've had a bad knack of losing to teams they should be beating soundly the last 3 years. I don't see that changing until I'm proven otherwise.

If Tennessee improves perimeter shooting to break a zone, has reliable defenders/rebounders inside, and Westbrook/Davis elevate their games I could see Tennessee in the top 10. Worst case scenario this team is a middle of the pack SEC team and a 7-11 seed in the tournament. Realistically, I'll be happy with a 2nd round year or Sweet 16 season provided we see improved overall hustle, a better offensive system and general player improvement. I'd rather see that than an Elite 8 tournament run like we had in 2016 after playing awful basketball all year. The real potential for this team is in 2 years when Davis/Westbrook are upperclassmen and Horston is a sophomore.

Nice post. My expectations raise next year, Final 4 & competing for Championships.
It all depends on how quickly we become a team, the pick up games should help!
This year, I wanna see growth, if that includes a Final 4 fine! If not, not the end of the world but please no losing in the second round or losing on our home floor again!
I will be curious to see how we Finish! I want to see Holly teams get stronger as the year goes on!
I just hopes this team surprise us in a good way, like they did the beginning of last year, at the end of the year. lol



Go Lady Vols. I back Pat and roll with Holly!

 

[bballnut90]

so you would rather see them go out early then actually having a young team who figures it out and is a step away from the final four ?

I'd rather have them go out early fighting hard and playing good basketball while making improvements throughout the year rather than see them play mediocre all season aside from 1-2 good games that propel them to the Elite 8. Basically I'd rather have a 2010 repeat where the team had a good year but was upset than a 2016 repeat where the team badly underachieved all year until the tournament. Yes, in 2016 they were a technically a step away from the Final Four but in all reality they hadn't figured it out and weren't a Final Four team. 2010 didn't get as far as 2016, but they played much better basketball and made bigger strides throughout the year. Look at what happened the next year for each of those squads: 2011 almost made the Final Four and had another fantastic season, 2017 was almost as bad as 2016 despite having everyone back. I guess the gist of what I'm trying to say is I don't think the 2018-19 team has title potential, so as a fan I'm more concerned about seeing overall growth than I am about wins/losses and how far we make it in the tournament. Next year and the year after are a different story though once the team has more talent and more experience.

 

[Pat4life]

We have a been a team of mental midgets. I am waiting to see the Lady Vols, mental giants.
The air of confidence has been noexistent, the last couple of years.

Will our top talent, play like top talent every game?

 

[Pat4life]

Cheers to another woman winning the title.

Muffett was the only lady/women coach in the final four.

 

[sisaq]

Seen Oregon for the first time earlier this year.
I really like them ! Definitely nice to see some west coast teams doing good and getting exporsure.

I was shocked when I saw Oregon state roster.. 6'7. 6'9, 6'6, 6'3 ...i hope they can make use of those heights.

 

[VA_VOLFAN]

I'd rather have them go out early fighting hard and playing good basketball while making improvements throughout the year rather than see them play mediocre all season aside from 1-2 good games that propel them to the Elite 8. Basically I'd rather have a 2010 repeat where the team had a good year but was upset than a 2016 repeat where the team badly underachieved all year until the tournament. Yes, in 2016 they were a technically a step away from the Final Four but in all reality they hadn't figured it out and weren't a Final Four team. 2010 didn't get as far as 2016, but they played much better basketball and made bigger strides throughout the year. Look at what happened the next year for each of those squads: 2011 almost made the Final Four and had another fantastic season, 2017 was almost as bad as 2016 despite having everyone back. I guess the gist of what I'm trying to say is I don't think the 2018-19 team has title potential, so as a fan I'm more concerned about seeing overall growth than I am about wins/losses and how far we make it in the tournament. Next year and the year after are a different story though once the team has more talent and more experience.

But you do remember the Pat team that had 10 losses and won it all. They struggled all year , had talent , but didn’t play up to potential. Now they also had the drive to win but that team was plagued with some bad habits until the tourney (now there schedule was also brutal but that was the norm) .I guess what I’m saying is I want them to get as far as they can whenever they can. In reality now that the 2016 team is gone we see that they didn’t connect off the court and there were some issues brewing under the surface.

All in all I hope they have a great year and I agree I can deal with some mistakes of being young if progression and desire are seen throughout the season.

 

[bballnut90]

But you do remember the Pat team that had 10 losses and won it all. They struggled all year , had talent , but didn’t play up to potential. Now they also had the drive to win but that team was plagued with some bad habits until the tourney (now there schedule was also brutal but that was the norm) .I guess what I’m saying is I want them to get as far as they can whenever they can. In reality now that the 2016 team is gone we see that they didn’t connect off the court and there were some issues brewing under the surface.

All in all I hope they have a great year and I agree I can deal with some mistakes of being young if progression and desire are seen throughout the season.

I'd like the team to get as far as it can go, but I don't want people to look back and say "oh, it was a good year for Holly because we made the Elite 8" if we get there as a 7 seed and have 10+ losses against a mediocre schedule. What's most important to me is that we see progress made by players and the coaching staff.

And 1996-97 Tennessee did have 10 losses, but they were arguably one of the best 10 loss teams of all time even before the tournament. They played probably the toughest schedule in Tennessee history without a point guard most of the year. Some quick stats about their year:

-With 10 losses, they still earned a #3 seed in the tournament and never fell lower than #11 in the polls.
-Only 1 of their losses was to a team outside of the top 25 (Arkansas)
-7 of their losses were against teams that finished in the top 8. Tennessee did win 5 games against those teams, three coming in tournament.
-Tennessee also had a number of very good wins prior to the tournament, beating many teams ranked in the top 10-20 including LSU (#4 seed), Alabama (#2 seed), Texas (#3 seed), Notre Dame (Final Four team), Texas Tech (#8 seed), Vandy 2x (#6 seed), Purdue (#8 seed) and Auburn (#7 seed).
-The team started the year just 10-6, but Jolly made her first appearance the following game. She didn't play every game of the year, but after that mark Tennessee went 19-4 to finish the year, so her presence obviously made a huge difference.

 

[NoBackBoard]

We have a been a team of mental midgets. I am waiting to see the Lady Vols, mental giants.
The air of confidence has been noexistent, the last couple of years.

Will our top talent, play like top talent every game?

Teams take on the demeanor of the head coach. Watch interviews of Oregon’s coach Kelly Graves. Look at his demeanor. Same with Geno. Muffet. Dawn. These people are leaders who instill confidence and will correct issues that need to be fixed. They don’t coddle. They don’t make excuses.

Now look at Holly. Our teams play the way they do because Holly isn’t a strong leader. She’s isn’t a leader period. We may do better due to additional staff members with the intangibles Holly lacks but make no mistake it won’t be because of Holly.

 

[volfanIND]

It's not a one and done. Cooper had multiple infractions and the staff was constantly working with her to make amends each time. She never had a problem taking responsibility for her actions but seemed to lack good judgement during specific situations she found herself in. Her dismissal came about simply because she broke team rules multiple times along with the seriousness of a physical altercation. It was a collection of issues for Cooper, not just one.

With Annie it seems as though she broke team rules and was not willing to take responsibility and face consequences. Something I've heard from a few reliable people is that she was supposedly going to be suspended for a decent amount of time anyway and then additional stuff came about.

Annie and T'ea are talented smart kids with great potential and I wish them nothing but the best. People make mistakes and often find ways to use the road bumps they experience in life to make themselves better. T'ea sure seems to have a clear and focused head going into this season for SC and I look for a great season out of her. Annie hopefully will end up somewhere she can be happy and succeed. She is a good kid and deserves a fresh start.

Thanks for the informative reply. It sounds like our staff is willing to work anybody who is willing to put forth the effort to make the situation right. I'm glad to know this is Holly's philosophy. With CPS - she has to be one of the most transparent coaches/person I've ever known. I'd assume Holly adopted the same mindset when it came to dealing with these situations but 100% sure.

 

[teacherdean]

I see Tennessee in the 10-20 range. Most teams (sans Notre Dame) lose a lot of talent from the loaded 2018 graduating class. You look at Tennessee's roster and there's potential, but a lot has to go right for positive results to happen. Davis is a potential star and Westbrook had some good moments last year despite struggling at the end of the season. Beyond that, you have Jackson who is a streaky performer and a bunch of inexperienced unproven players. Talented players, but inexperienced. Unproven players will need to come up big, especially in the post. Tennessee needs a couple of Collins/Green/KK to step up and be reliable defenders and rebounders. They also need better 3pt shooting. I hope Westbrook/Davis/Jackson have focused on improving their percentages in the offseason. The last few years have been painful at times.

The schedule is pretty light once again, with big games being at Texas, vs. Stanford, vs. Notre Dame, @ Mississippi State, @ Missouri, vs. SC, and @A&M. Of those games, I could see Tennessee having a good shot against:
1. at Texas (they're always all over the place despite having a ton of talent. They also lose McCarty and Atkins)
2. vs. Stanford (they weren't very good last year and were really bad without McPhee who is gone)
3. vs. SC (Holly has done well against Dawn and SC is really unproven without A'ja inside)
4. @ A&M (another team that will be a 1 woman show...Tennessee nearly won at A&M last year and took the game at home)

I don't see Tennessee beating Missouri, and it'll take a miracle to upset Mississippi State or Notre Dame IMO.

I also don't see Tennessee beating everyone else on their schedule even though they should. They've had a bad knack of losing to teams they should be beating soundly the last 3 years. I don't see that changing until I'm proven otherwise.

If Tennessee improves perimeter shooting to break a zone, has reliable defenders/rebounders inside, and Westbrook/Davis elevate their games I could see Tennessee in the top 10. Worst case scenario this team is a middle of the pack SEC team and a 7-11 seed in the tournament. Realistically, I'll be happy with a 2nd round year or Sweet 16 season provided we see improved overall hustle, a better offensive system and general player improvement. I'd rather see that than an Elite 8 tournament run like we had in 2016 after playing awful basketball all year. The real potential for this team is in 2 years when Davis/Westbrook are upperclassmen and Horston is a sophomore.

I believe the Lady Vol's success will depend upon maturity and toughness, they have the talent. The big question is, how long will it take for the talent to come to fruition? If it comes within the first few games, or appears to be strongly headed in that direction, it is not out of the question for the Lady Vols being a top 10 team. I am hoping that some of the positive “IF’s” happen. If they do, this could be a very special year.

 

[ksl415]

The bar is set very low for this team so any type of energetic hustle play will be very much so welcomed. I went back and watched Tennessee vs UNC 1998 in that regional Final and in those final 8 minutes of that game ive never seen a team play harder hungrier and as tenacious as that Pat summitt led team . Not living in the past but those were the good ole days folks. If Holly can at least draw half of that energy from her teams these days we could really be in business.

That was one amazing game! I have it on DVD. Omg you make you want to go back and watch it. The Tar Heels were no slouch either. If you have not seen that game it is one to watch!

 

[Volfan2012]

Tennessee has the talent of about any team that will take the floor in 2018-2019. How quickly the freshmen adapt and contribute will determine our fate. Keys to success are better interior defense make teams earn their points don't give them layups. Force turnovers on defense and try to take the other teams top player out of the game and make lesser players take the shots and try to beat you. On offense limit the turnovers, solid perimeter and three point shooting, Green and KK's play on the inside. We could be great we could be average or somewhere inbetween ready to get it started.

 

[Pat4life]

Hmmmm interesting....

#7 Tennessee Women's Basketball 2018-2019 Preview

 

[Pat4life]

Hmm interesting NCAAW Rankings - ESPN

 

[Pat4life]

Wow, our preseason ranking is all over the place. No one knows how to assess this young talented team. Holly will never be PHS. There will only be one PHS. And watch that UNC game too and 96 and 97 games against UConn semifinals.

 

[Pat4life]

Another poll. 2018-19 Women's College Basketball Top 10

 

[Ladyvol777]

Another poll. 2018-19 Women's College Basketball Top 10

Very nice read. I'm looking for the Lady Vol's to have a great year. Rennia Davis will be unstoppable, Evina Westbrook was the number two girl out of high school in her class and started ever game last year, she will be much improved. Meme Jackson came into her own last year and will be much better this year. Looks like Zaay Green will start that will be the only freshman and all the coaches are really talking her up. Cheridene Green will start at the 5 this year, she had some great games y
last year and is much healthier this year, she was a best at times last year. Kasiyahna Kushkituah will relieve at the 5 and the coaches are saying she is greatly improved over last year. we have a lot of backup this year and Holly said she was going to play a lot of players and may press the whole game.