Game Thread Lady Vols vs. ETSU

I agree with a lot of that, but in saying that the freshmen are playing below expectations, I think that's because a lot of fans had unreasonable expectations to begin with, not because the freshmen are playing so poorly. They're freshmen after all, and it takes time to get acclimated to the college game. It's also likely that one or two of them will hit the proverbial "freshman wall" hard in a month or two.
 
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I agree with a lot of that, but in saying that the freshmen are playing below expectations, I think that's because a lot of fans had unreasonable expectations to begin with, not because the freshmen are playing so poorly. They're freshmen after all, and it takes time to get acclimated to the college game. It's also likely that one or two of them will hit the proverbial "freshman wall" hard in a month or two.


Re the Freshmen as well...

Last year Ren, E and KK were Freshman. Jaime and Mercedes were team leaders. One consistently disappeared from mid-Q2 till mid-Q4 (Russell),,, The other SR last year would have monster games or non-factor games and could disappear for entire games(Nared),,, That is what our Freshmen's influence was.

This year we have two SR's. Neither of which can be remotely associated with disappearing. Meme has continued to seek improvement and has shown a no-quit in a game persona,,, and Cheridene only disappears when she goes to the bench.

That said, this is the influence for these Freshmen, and so far I have yet to see one of the Fresh get on the floor and not show-up. Yes, they will all hit walls within the season, but their leadership has shown them how to stay relevant in those times.

Fans should have unreasonable expectations for such highly ranked players. There were 412,407 HS girls playing last year. These girls are top 50. . . You want unreasonable,,,these girls are each 1 in 80,000.
 
Re the Freshmen as well...

Last year Ren, E and KK were Freshman. Jaime and Mercedes were team leaders. One consistently disappeared from mid-Q2 till mid-Q4 (Russell),,, The other SR last year would have monster games or non-factor games and could disappear for entire games(Nared),,, That is what our Freshmen's influence was.

This year we have two SR's. Neither of which can be remotely associated with disappearing. Meme has continued to seek improvement and has shown a no-quit in a game persona,,, and Cheridene only disappears when she goes to the bench.

That said, this is the influence for these Freshmen, and so far I have yet to see one of the Fresh get on the floor and not show-up. Yes, they will all hit walls within the season, but their leadership has shown them how to stay relevant in those times.

Fans should have unreasonable expectations for such highly ranked players. There were 412,407 HS girls playing last year. These girls are top 50. . . You want unreasonable,,,these girls are each 1 in 80,000.

Mercedes won Tennessee a lot of games last year because of how efficient she was in scoring. Those disappearing acts had as much to do with poor passing as her tendency to play passively and not really demand the ball. Everyone who couldn't wait for her to graduate can see that Cheridene will not be able to anchor inside the same way MR could.

Jaime played hard 100% of the time. Sure, she had games where her shot wasn't falling, but she would compensate by getting to the FT line. I know you have a soft spot for Meme, but she is nowhere the caliber of player that Nared was. Not even close.
 
Mercedes won Tennessee a lot of games last year because of how efficient she was in scoring. Those disappearing acts had as much to do with poor passing as her tendency to play passively and not really demand the ball. Everyone who couldn't wait for her to graduate can see that Cheridene will not be able to anchor inside the same way MR could.

Jaime played hard 100% of the time. Sure, she had games where her shot wasn't falling, but she would compensate by getting to the FT line. I know you have a soft spot for Meme, but she is nowhere the caliber of player that Nared was. Not even close.


Green doesn't need to do it the way MR could. This team excels in G/F play, not feed the post play. The plays they make are drive and dish plays. Can't do that in a clogged paint,, unless the post backs out and takes the D with them letting a cutter hit that gap. That was not MR's game nor the LV game plan...WIth Green you play her more as a Pwr-Post or a driving post.

Sentiment doesn't factor in in my assessment. I don't compare the players, nor if their shot was falling. It is when the shot isn't falling that I compare leadership. I compare the displayed qualities by the leaders and ramifications, which directly affect the team's chemistry and on-court continuity. Last year's team disappeared. This year's stays the fight.

Lately though, they have been flirting with the same scenario (Q2-Q4 troubles).
The difference is that they have a loss to look at to bring them back to Earth early this time.
And I mean that for both team and staff.
When you go through adversity once, it opens the door for more.
By proxy, you get to examine how you performed and why in the adversity (loss) and build a different type of trust and relationships by the performances during the adversities.

This loss was preventable.
The key will be figuring out how and why.
 
Mercedes won Tennessee a lot of games last year because of how efficient she was in scoring. Those disappearing acts had as much to do with poor passing as her tendency to play passively and not really demand the ball. Everyone who couldn't wait for her to graduate can see that Cheridene will not be able to anchor inside the same way MR could.

Jaime played hard 100% of the time. Sure, she had games where her shot wasn't falling, but she would compensate by getting to the FT line. I know you have a soft spot for Meme, but she is nowhere the caliber of player that Nared was. Not even close.
I disagree with last two sentences. MeMe is close to Nared as a player.
 
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The next test is at Auburn. Not the Auburn team we played last year even though we almost lost. They are a lot better shooters and will probably go into the game with one loss just like us. It will be a very close game decided by the team that can shoot the ball and limit turnover. A very tough way to start the SEC schedule on the road at Auburn. Get ready for the press it is coming they are a master at forcing teams into mistakes. We need to be very patient in this game rushing will spell doom.
 
Wow, TN will play the next 12 games with 3 days apart from each games. They better be ready cause resting days are over.
 
The mens team might be going little forward in today's poll while the lady, have no idea how far they'll fall.
 
Question how is this schedule going to help us down the road? Most of these wins would have happened regardless, just by this team's athletic ability and skills. How have they been prepared to face the sec? If you know going in that you are pry going to win unless there is a complete meltdown how is mental toughness developed? If you think that regardless of how many turnovers you commit, how many free throws you miss or how you play you are going to win-where is the insensitive to get better and learn from mistakes. I hope its there. It had better be. They probably learned more from their loss than all te orher wins over the cupcakes they have played. 9 and 1 looks good on paper and a coach's resume but does it mean anything if the competition is lacking?

Cupcakes are one hallmark of Holly’s OOC schedule. Early exit from the NCAAT is another. Coincidence?
 
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I would like for us to play NC State in a home/away series. They are an up and coming team with a good coach.
 
College basketball is replete with cupcakes.... it is part of everyone's schedule.... the trick is to schedule an OOC schedule which also includes 4 or 5 games that really push the team to the limit Great to prepare for the tournament
 

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