[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]
Humpday was a rough day for Vol fans.
The Tennessee football team, though it signed three of its four JUCO commitments, lost 4-star DE and likely immediate starter Davonte Lambert to Auburn, continuing the trend of swings and misses on the recruiting trail against the Tigers.
[/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]
Photo Credit: Austin Penny 247Sports
Then the Tennessee basketball team, though it battled back, lost to N.C. State 65-58, continuing the trend of unintelligible and uninspired basketball that is becoming the status quo for the Cuonzo Martin and these Tennessee Volunteers.
In a game where they really, really needed to show up, the Vols fell really, really flat. Fueled by a less-than-raucous home environment, the Vols shot below 30 percent from the field, including an abysmal 3-24 from 3-point range. They allowed the Wolfpack to get up by as many as 17 in the first half and lead the game from start to finish. Winter break or not, crowd energy or none, there’s little excuse for this sort of performance.
THE GOOD
Well, um, let’s see. Something good… Something good…
What about… Effort? Nah, that was bad.
Yeah. So…offense? Wait, no, that was bad, too. That was really bad actually.
Okay, what about…defense…? Uhh, nope. That was, also, bad.
WAIT I’VE GOT IT.
Offensive rebounding
Tennessee more than doubled the number of offensive rebounds it collected in Saturday’s matchup with Witchita State. Against the Wolfpack, Tennessee gathered 20 offensive boards, 15 of which came from either Jeronne Maymon or Jarnell Stokes. So, the improvement is good.
FT Shooting/Blocks
10 of those 15 offensive rebounds came from Maymon, and he added 17 points including his 7-10 mark from the FT line. As a team Tennessee managed to hit 15-20 FTs, eclipsing its season average of 68 percent. Tennessee also tied its season high with seven blocks (despite having no defensive presence on the interior), though that tally is somewhat overshadowed by the Wolfpack blocking 12 shots and setting a Thompson-Boling arena record in the process.
THE BAD
Deciphering where to start this segment is like dumping out a 1000-piece jigsaw puzzle. You scour the mayhem, searching for a threshold of same-color, edge pieces to begin your construction. Tennessee did a lot of things bad against N.C. State so, like the puzzle, we’ll find a corner, dive in and wade through it.
[/fusion_builder_column][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]
Well, those 20 offensive boards? I mean that’s great, but Tennessee wasted them. In the end the difference it made in the game was negligible. What good are all those boards if you don’t clean them up? The Vols converted those rebounds, and several other chances around the rim, into 26 points in the paint. As is the running theme, UT’s wide men were negated by the size and length of the opposition’s big men, and Tennessee — again — displayed that glaring inability to score on, through or around any size near the hoop.
UT didn’t play any defense early; N.C. State scored on six of its first seven possessions, including a couple layups in transition and uncontested shots near the rim. The Wolfpack shot 50 percent from the field in the first half, propelling it to a 17-point halftime lead that would prove insurmountable for the Vols.
TJ Warren scored in a variety ways, tallying 21 on an efficient 8-16 from the field. Anthony Barber added 12 as he and the other N.C. State guards navigated through UT’s half-court and transition defense with relative ease.
The defense was bad, and the offense managed to be worse. UT had 15 points through the first 16 minutes of the game, including a nearly six-minute scoring drought during which Tennessee abandoned any sort of offensive cohesion, opting for 3-pointers and long two-point shots in lieu of attempting to score the ball inside. Apparently “Brick-by-brick” isn’t just a football buzzword anymore; it’s at the heart of the basketball team’s offensive philosophy. The Vols looked content to jack 3s, not to be bothered by the fact that the ball wasn’t actually going in the basket.
To Tennessee’s credit, there was a stark contrast in the team’s look, feel and tempo from the first half to early in the second. Jordan McRae hit a few jumpers, cuts and passes were made with more purpose, turnovers were forced and the Vols attacked the offensive glass early eventually scaling the deficit down to as little as five points. But they couldn’t dig themselves out of the hole they dug into such a poor start to the game.
Following the loss to Wichita State, the Vols were already treading NCAA tournament water. That situation is no better now. They’ve failed to take care of business in non-conference play, and their SEC schedule likely won’t pack the wallop needed to save them come tourney time. There’s simply not enough potential wins in conference play to make up for non-conference missteps. That is unless of course, the Vols pull several rabbits out of several hats and steal a couple from the likes of @LSU, @Mizzou, @Kentucky, @Florida. (I wouldn’t get my hopes up as this team is not full of magicians, though the repeated disappearing acts on the floor may suggest otherwise.) To do this, the Vols will need a much more focused effort. Gliding through half the game just won’t cut it.
No graphics this time, but they’ll make a return for the Virginia game.
[/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]