The LVs probably won't win the NC. Enjoy the season for what it is

#1

madtownvol

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 18, 2014
Messages
4,936
Likes
19,620
#1
Hey, to each his own but it must take some of the enjoyment of watching the LVs put together a great SEC run when the primary thoughts are "Well, they will never beat UConn playing like that! They sure won't beat South Carolina playing like that! Wow, let's focus on who had a bad game rather than the overall performance and win!" Yeah, so and so played okay but she is not LIVING UP to my expectations]!!!

News flash: Odds are that the LVs will not win the national championship and, in a match-up with Uconn, any right minded person would bet on Uconn. Now, upsets happen but that is what it will be if the LVs go all the way. Beating South Carolina would be an upset too. I hope those unexpected achievements materialize but they are not my primary evaluative criteria for this team.

And yes, it was different story ten years ago but this team is not as good as it was when it had Candace Parker and company or the Meeks. That is a bummer but all programs have their peaks and valleys. The LVs' valley is still one where they are in ballpark of a top 5 team and competing for an SEC title and are in the conversation about elite teams who have a decent chance to make the final four.

To the last game, Florida @ Gainseville has been a trap game for the LVs in the past. They have a team of really good athletes, get very pumped to beat the LVs and in this game particularly, the atmosphere seems to get the refs wanting to do the gator chomp.

Izzy was outstanding in her limited minutes (Sandvol, she kept her head together and did not the fouls and hacking impact her play on the court, so :hi: to her and the coaching staff). Jamie Nared's improvement curve is so steep she needs rock climbing shoes (maybe Holly and company can develop some players). She looks like an entirely different player than then she did at the start of the SEC season. Yes, Burdick had a bad shooting night but she crashed the boards, played with energy on the defense and made a Sportscenter top ten pass to Graves (at a pivotal game moment). 2H TENN B. Graves made Layup. Assisted by C. Burdick. - ESPN Video - ESPN. Reynolds and Carter were both excellent.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 3 people
#4
#4
Izzy had 6 TO's and Burdick had 5. I am sorry, but neither had a good game.

Turnovers happen in a fast paced game, particularly when the other team can get away with a lot of grabbing.

Izzy had 17pts, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks in 17 minutes. Do the turnovers erase those numbers? [Actually, Florida had 21 TOs as well so maybe the game should have been called a draw?]

Per Cierra, she did not have an SEC player of the week performance but she still had 14 rebounds and made some key plays that turned the game momentum.I remember 2 of her TOs were cases where she tried to receive a not so great pass and the ball went off her knee or something. Once she got her pocket picked dribbling into a crowd (bad on her; she should have learned that lesson by now) but she was not making lots of bad passes that led to fast break points.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#6
#6
Turnovers happen in a fast paced game, particularly when the other team can get away with a lot of grabbing.

Izzy had 17pts, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks in 17 minutes. Do the turnovers erase those numbers? [Actually, Florida had 21 TOs as well so maybe the game should have been called a draw?]

Per Cierra, she did not have an SEC player of the week performance but she still had 14 rebounds and made some key plays that turned the game momentum.I remember 2 of her TOs were cases where she tried to receive a not so great pass and the ball went off her knee or something. Once she got her pocket picked dribbling into a crowd (bad on her; she should have learned that lesson by now) but she was not making lots of bad passes that led to fast break points.

I guess we were watching a different game, so we'll just agree to disagree. I thought Burdick, Massengale, and Harrison played poorly, especially as seniors. I also don't like Harrison's body language during games, she seems to pout a lot. Btw, 6 TO's in 17 mins is ridiculous. Burdick had little to do with changing the game That was all Carter, Reynolds, and Nared.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 3 people
#7
#7
Harrison is a career 4.7 turnovers per 40 minutes played so yes she is a turnover machine. She can also score but her junior season will be her best she is no where near where she was last season for whatever reason.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#8
#8
I guess we were watching a different game, so we'll just agree to disagree. I thought Burdick, Massengale, and Harrison played poorly, especially as seniors. I also don't like Harrison's body language during games, she seems to pout a lot. Btw, 6 TO's in 17 mins is ridiculous. Burdick had little to do with changing the game That was all Carter, Reynolds, and Nared.

Disagreements are what fandom is all about!
 
#9
#9
Should be interesting to see how this turns out. These girls can't shoot, dribble, blow their nose. How did they get scholarships. Oh, yeah, that's right...Holly can't coach or recruit. Slowly back away from the computer. :eek:lol:

GO LADY VOLS!
 
#10
#10
The LV's do not have a player that can take over a game. That is either we don't have one or Holly will not let it happen because they all play within the system. Thats my opinion
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#11
#11
Then what would be considered a successful season? What if they don't win either SEC title? Is a Final Four too unreasonable to expect? Or would Sweet 16 and done again be a great coaching job by Holly?

A great philosophy not to have expectations so you are never disappointed.....
 
#12
#12
Harrison can take over a game. So can Burdick and even A-Mass. But they are so inconsistent that the odds are not in our favor night in and night out. So to sum it up, yeah we are one Diamond DeShields and one Mercedes Russell away from winning it all. However, I do think this yr's team will have a decent shot at making it to Tampa come march, and i won't be surprised if we do. More likely, IMO we'll flame out in the regional final game against #1 seed be it UConn or South Carolina/Baylor. Holly is still evolving as a coach IMO, and I do think she's getting better at it. Even her interviews and post-game analysis are better this year compared to in the past. If she can just better manage all the talents assembled on the team, incrementally it may be, she will win herself a few Natties in the future as a coach of LVs. I thought i'd never say that about her when she first got hired!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#13
#13
Holly is still evolving as a coach? She's 56 and has been coaching for more 30 years. I hope she gets it together soon. Tennessee does not aim to be "in the conversation" about elite teams. We aim to be an elite team--period. Yes, expectations are high--that's the price of creating a great program. That's what the coaches of the men's programs at kentucky, duke, kansas and north carolina deal with. You think they're going to settle for being pretty good? Not a chance.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#14
#14
Then what would be considered a successful season? What if they don't win either SEC title? Is a Final Four too unreasonable to expect? Or would Sweet 16 and done again be a great coaching job by Holly?

A great philosophy not to have expectations so you are never disappointed.....

Darth, I am sure your expectations are going to be the difference maker for the LVs this season. I am so thankful that you are holding the LVs accountable to high standards or else chaos and anarchy would surely descend. Keep exerting your magical force.

However, my post was not saying "don't have expectations." I was pointing out a problem with posters who after every victory, proclaim, "well the LVs won't win a NC playing like that!!!" Well, I am not even sure the LVs would have beaten Texas A&M playing like they did against FL. But the immediate goal is to win the game you are in and every game has its own ebb and flow.

At some point, you have to enjoy the journey a bit and wins on the road are good sight to see.

But I apologize for distracting you from the ongoing downer fest. Hey, the LVs suck, the SEC sucks, Holly sucks, optimistic fans suck, etc., etc. (Is that better?).
 
  • Like
Reactions: 7 people
#16
#16
Darth, I am sure your expectations are going to be the difference maker for the LVs this season. I am so thankful that you are holding the LVs accountable to high standards or else chaos and anarchy would surely descend. Keep exerting your magical force.

However, my post was not saying "don't have expectations." I was pointing out a problem with posters who after every victory, proclaim, "well the LVs won't win a NC playing like that!!!" Well, I am not even sure the LVs would have beaten Texas A&M playing like they did against FL. But the immediate goal is to win the game you are in and every game has its own ebb and flow.

At some point, you have to enjoy the journey a bit and wins on the road are good sight to see.

But I apologize for distracting you from the ongoing downer fest. Hey, the LVs suck, the SEC sucks, Holly sucks, optimistic fans suck, etc., etc. (Is that better?).

And while you're busy singing kumbaya you completely avoided my question.... not surprising.
 
#17
#17
Holly is still evolving as a coach? She's 56 and has been coaching for more 30 years. I hope she gets it together soon. Tennessee does not aim to be "in the conversation" about elite teams. We aim to be an elite team--period. Yes, expectations are high--that's the price of creating a great program. That's what the coaches of the men's programs at kentucky, duke, kansas and north carolina deal with. You think they're going to settle for being pretty good? Not a chance.

This. Holly was well aware of the expectations here when she took the job. And yes, at her age, you have to seriously ask how much higher does her ceiling really go?
 
#18
#18
And while you're busy singing kumbaya you completely avoided my question.... not surprising.

Rats, my entire life is devoted to surprising you! Alas, I failed you for the last time I suppose.

But, the small matter is that your question was irrelevant to my post and hence did not warrant a direct response.

But to your question, success is a challenging outcome to define and various standards could be applied.

By the standard of a national championship, the LVs have had only 8 successful seasons in their entire history and the rest have been unabashed failures. That is also the second most NCs in the women's game so the Stanfords, Notre Dames, LSUs, Dukes of this world have been mired in failure with no genuine differences to teams that have losing records year in and year out. THEY ALL SUCK.

I don't know, I think that is kind of a tough standard. (Kumbaya, Kumbaya no surprise to you of course oh great omnipotent Darth...)

In your Darthy world, the whole of existence is dark, dismal, and perpetually disappointing (except perhaps for the one team each year that wins the NC). If you are "happy" there, more power to you.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 4 people
#19
#19
Several things going against the LV. They have a weak coach, they shoot poorly and they have no leader. Good team but far from elite.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#20
#20
If you modified your subject to read "The LVs have no chance in hell to win the NC" then your post would be just fine. The fact is Geno is infinitely better than Holly and the Huskies are on a whole never stratosphere in how they play TEAM ball than the LV's. Sorry but it is true now, and has been true for a long time.
 
Last edited:
#21
#21
But to your question, success is a challenging outcome to define and various standards could be applied.

I didn't ask you to explain quantum physics or elaborate on the existential meaning of life. The question was actually pretty simple.

By the standard of a national championship, the LVs have had only 8 successful seasons in their entire history and the rest have been unabashed failures. That is also the second most NCs in the women's game so the Stanfords, Notre Dames, LSUs, Dukes of this world have been mired in failure with no genuine differences to teams that have losing records year in and year out. THEY ALL SUCK.

I don't know, I think that is kind of a tough standard. (Kumbaya, Kumbaya no surprise to you of course oh great omnipotent Darth...)

In your Darthy world, the whole of existence is dark, dismal, and perpetually disappointing (except perhaps for the one team each year that wins the NC). If you are "happy" there, more power to you.

When did I ever say a non-championship season was a failure??? If you're going to attempt to mock me, at least mock something I actually said.
 
#22
#22
Wow i guess I'm the only one here who thinks we could give UCONN a little fit if we were to meet them! You never know how the flow of a game will go until its played. Izzy stays out of foul trouble and hits her shots.....Burdick sticks her mid-range jumpers....Ariel makes some 3s....Graves has a ND type game....Carter brings some defensive intensity...Jordan consistently drives to the basket making sound decisions....Jamie realizes what she's capable of and plays has a breakout game, Alexa gives us a 20 ppoint outing unafraid of the UCONN giant....we give a Stanford/TexasA&M team defensive effort! If 3-4 of those things happen on a night we play UCONN I like our chances.....

OR


We could get utterly embarrassed and just hang our hats on next year just like everyone else in the country except for 1 team! And hopefully it'll be the LadyVols this year NEVER KNOW but I can dream! Lol
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person
#23
#23
Izzy gets a lot of bogus calls on her which adds to her normal turnover ratio. One problem she has is she wants to be productive in the small amount of time she has been getting on the floor and is in too big of a hurry. Glory was one other player that the referees treated this way. It's a shame and I don't understand it. Just call the game correctly and Izzy's performance would improve greatly. I'm not saying it's all officiating but a goodly portion is.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 people
#24
#24
Izzy gets a lot of bogus calls on her which adds to her normal turnover ratio. One problem she has is she wants to be productive in the small amount of time she has been getting on the floor and is in too big of a hurry. Glory was one other player that the referees treated this way. It's a shame and I don't understand it. Just call the game correctly and Izzy's performance would improve greatly. I'm not saying it's all officiating but a goodly portion is.

+10000....that's what pisses me off the most about refs with Tenn...idc what nobody says, if you're a troll, not a fan of the LadyVols, hell even my grandmother who just likes Pat Summit and doesn't know a lick about basketball can tell how over the past few years how they've treated our post players. I'll NEVER in my life forget that game I think we were playing Kentucky on our hone floor and Glory Johnson was falling out of bounds and she simply threw the ball off a Kentucky player to save a possession, like almost EVERY basketball player in the country does, and I'll be damned Dee Kantner gives Glory the most despicable look like Glory had committed a crime against humanity and T'd her up!!!!

The way they let these girls kill Izzy and Graves in the post and then let one of them even blow on an oppenent its a foul! They done Glory in her years the same way. And yes I'm playing the "blame the ref" card cause I have plenty reason watching some of these basketball games this year....not only in the SEC but across all conferences! Its a down year for officiating, and its time for another team workshop or a skills camp for Reffing whatever it is that they do cause this isn't cutting it!

Ok rant over! Lol
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 people
#25
#25
Izzy is good for at LEAST 1 phantom foul and 1 phantom travel call....so going into every game I already know in my mind that Izzy has 1 turnover and 1 foul before the game even starts!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 person

VN Store



Back
Top