The checkerboards at either end of the floor are purely an aesthetic. A visual cue that the Volunteer fan is now comfortably inured to. They are constant. They are consistent. They are wholly unlike anything that transpires on the stained and varnished hardwood floor located in between the two sets of squares.
A psychiatrist could afford a new house treating the multiple personalities that are the basketball team we call our own. The jekyll and hyde traits are everywhere on the court.
Steals... vs... Shots blocked against
Eye popping assists... vs... incomplete finshes at the basket
Monumental effort... vs... Complete lapses
Youth and talent, when combined, do not disrespect consistency.... they simply cannot seem to find it.
This is the team that plays for us this year. An exciting, maddening, talented, unbridled, sometimes clueless, often astounding, boxfull of inconsistency...
To my amazement, I have found that I am absolutely addicted to watching these guys play. There will be more productive years in the future, but I will always remember what this bunch did to my hairline in '06/'07.....
From a fruitcake of a game, here are...
TheNotes...
tfpOnline:Gentry Estes
The scoreboard died at the 3:37 mark of the second half, which was fitting. Not much worked on the court, either.
It was the ugliest classic of the season.
The Volunteers snapped a sevengame losing streak to Crimson Tide, helping their own NCAA tournament resume while knocking the visitors closer to the bubble.
This game was won on effort, UT coach Bruce Pearl said. We had two teams fight for their NCAA tournament lives. There was an awful lot to play for, and for us, the effort that our kids gave tonight was nothing short of outstanding.
Under Pearls orders, the Volunteers (19-9, 7-6 ) were particularly aggressive on defense. They continually leapt into pass lanes, took chances and pressed each ball-handler
That was a big thing coach preached, said UT guard JaJuan Smith, who has fought through a pulled hamstring the past two games. Stay up on them, take them out of their rhythm and not let them get comfortable. I knew if we took them out of their rhythm, it would mess up their offense.
It wasnt only Tennessees full-court press, but half-court defense, as well. The ploy not only spawned mistakes, but limited Tide big men Jermareo Davidson and Richard Hendrix to 18 points on 6-of-18 shooting. Pearl got the strategy from another screening of his final Wisconsin-Milwaukee teams upset of Alabama in the first round of the 2005 NCAA tournament.
If you let them handle the ball in the comfort zone, they can go to post whenever they want to, Peal said. Our ball pressure and our effort was spectacular. Offensively, it was a struggle.
A Duke Crews tip made it 65-64 before Torrance lost a defensive rebound out of bounds and Ramar Smith sank a wild, driving, one-handed bank shot with 38.5 seconds left.
I knew we needed a bucket and everybody was missing, Ramar Smith said. I had my mind set on driving in and hitting a lay-up.
[QUOTE
]I dont know if its enough, Pearl said. We want to work to get better. We want to go on the road and see if we can win.
[/QUOTE]
tfpOnline: Mark Wiedmer Commentary
Bruce Pearl knew it was risky. After all, by his own words, Do you ever tell (No.) 5 not to shoot?
But the wearer of Tennessee basketball jersey No. 5 had been shooting and missing most of Wednesday night against Alabama, at one point making just one of his 11 3-point attempts.
And with each successive miss, the Volunteers lead was slipping away until it was completely gone.
Finally, Pearl had seen enough. His team running offense, the coach screamed A lot of guys can take shots, but how many can make them?
Pearl thought Lofton might think the coach was talking to someone else.
Oh, no, I knew he was talking to me, Lofton said. And he wasnt joking. I hadnt hit anything all night.
Since returning to action against LSU on Feb. 6, he had gone 14 of 36 from the field and eight of 24 from the 3-point line.
Im 80 percent, maybe 85, Lofton said late Wednesday. I just cant cut like I used to.
Still, the Tide made the first few plays of overtime, edging in front 64-60 after two minutes. Then Lofton got the ball on the left wing, guarded tight, but not tight enough to spin back to his left, fade away and let fly a perfect rainbow. Bang! The Vols were within one, 64-63. They would go on to win 69-66, a victory to improve them to 19-9 overall and 7-6 in the SEC.
Did I know it was going in? said Lofton, who hit just three of 15 3-pointers on the night. Not the way I was shooting. But I knew I had to hit one sooner or later.
Said Pearl, We are a good basketball team. With Chris Lofton playing well, we can be a very good team.
Tennessean:Chris Low
"We got in huddles like six or seven times on our own without the coaches, and that's all we were saying, 'Come on, ya'll. Our season's on the line here. Let's step up. Let's man up. Let's make a play,'" junior guard JaJuan Smith recounted. "Every time we went out, somebody different made a play."
And just like that, despite falling behind in overtime and Chris Lofton suffering through one of the worst shooting nights of his career, the Vols survived in a wild 69-66 victory
Tennessee (19-9, 7-6 SEC) won for the 15th consecutive time at home, matching the school record for most wins at Thompson-Boling Arena in a season. It was also the first time the Vols had beaten the Crimson Tide since the 2001 season, ending a drought of seven straight defeats.
"This was required," Tennessee Coach Bruce Pearl said. "Our backs are against the wall to make the tournament.
"You get into the field of 65, and it's special. We've got work to get there. But look at the things we've had to do to put ourselves in position."
"If we keep fighting like this, we're going to go a long way," UT's Ramar Smith said.
"If we keep fighting like this, we're going to go a long way,"
Maybe, but I'm not sure my heart will still be beating if this split personality stuff continues.
Go Vols!!!
