Schedule and winnable games

[CNeagleVolFan]

The SEC this season is completely unpredictable, so predicting the rest of this season is hard. I don’t care though!! I think this is what are season will end up looking like.
January;
Home vs. Ole Miss
At Kansas
Home vs. A&M
Realistically I think it’s feasible to win 2/3 of these games which would put us at 13-7(5-2), so we would remain in a decent position coming out of January.
February;
At Miss St.
At Bama
Home vs. Kentucky
Home vs. Arkansas
At USCjr
Home vs. Vandy
At Auburn
At Arkansas
Home vs Florida
February is where we can either get better and stay alive for a possible tourney bid, or completely fall apart and have a putrid season. I see lots of for sure losses, some games we should win, and a few toss-ups. Say we go 5-4 in this stretch. This would have us at 18-11(10-6) which I believe is pretty reasonable to hope for.
March;
At Kentucky
Vs. Auburn
Now both of these games are far from a sure thing, but if we protect home court and have grown over the course of the season I believe we can beat Auburn at home. So split in March. We end 19-12(11-7) going into the SEC tournament. Now, to me this is the best case scenario. The worst is finishing 15-16 overall and just flaming out early in February. I honestly don’t know which one is more likely. We beat Mizzou pretty good at their place 69-59 then they go and beat Florida. We beat USCjr and then they go and beat Kentucky. Then Auburn has last 2 in a row to Alabama, and totally beat down at Florida by 22. Also, they only put up 47 points in that game. The point I’m trying to make is that there are no truly elite teams in the SEC this year, and we have chances in more games than what we all think we do. The key is for this team to keep growing, and to keep gelling down the stretch. JJJ has proven enough to be our best PG option, so honestly Vescovi should be our kick out guy hitting open 3’s. He’s got a clean shot, and he’s been very consistent out there. We will all see what happens, but I thought I’d just throw my two cents out there. It may not mean much, but I still have hope. Even though we are very inconsistent lol. How many of Volnation are optimistic with me? How many think I hit the peace pipe this morning? Lol

 

[the6chambers]

This......this is a lot.

 

[cwbytruckers]

I looked at our schedule and thought 4-10 down the stretch. That was before Uros became available. If he continues his growth and can be a threat in the paint. That comes with game minutes. And if they can protect the ball more. Then your completely right. All of college ball is up in the air. We beat Washington, VCU. Almost beat Florida State. This team isnt awful. They just got turnover prone and couldnt throw it in the ocean. They need to relax and just play. Anything is possible.

 

[ColinS]

One game at a time. With steady improvement we could be in the hunt but that's the only way. We just simply aren't good enough at this moment to navigate that schedule.

 

[calban]

You saw in the Vandy game 2 different teams. If team #2 shows up the rest of the season then yes, miracles are still possible. But, if team #1 shows up for even a half in the last 11 games they're headed at best to the NIT.

 

[Probably_in_Class]

Winning 2 of 3 vs Kansas, Ole Miss, and TAMU would be pretty impressive to me. I'm not that down on this team, but even I'm not that optimistic.

 

[Tennesseefan2019]

The SEC this season is completely unpredictable, so predicting the rest of this season is hard. I don’t care though!! I think this is what are season will end up looking like.
January;
Home vs. Ole Miss
At Kansas
Home vs. A&M
Realistically I think it’s feasible to win 2/3 of these games which would put us at 13-7(5-2), so we would remain in a decent position coming out of January.
February;
At Miss St.
At Bama
Home vs. Kentucky
Home vs. Arkansas
At USCjr
Home vs. Vandy
At Auburn
At Arkansas
Home vs Florida
February is where we can either get better and stay alive for a possible tourney bid, or completely fall apart and have a putrid season. I see lots of for sure losses, some games we should win, and a few toss-ups. Say we go 5-4 in this stretch. This would have us at 18-11(10-6) which I believe is pretty reasonable to hope for.
March;
At Kentucky
Vs. Auburn
Now both of these games are far from a sure thing, but if we protect home court and have grown over the course of the season I believe we can beat Auburn at home. So split in March. We end 19-12(11-7) going into the SEC tournament. Now, to me this is the best case scenario. The worst is finishing 15-16 overall and just flaming out early in February. I honestly don’t know which one is more likely. We beat Mizzou pretty good at their place 69-59 then they go and beat Florida. We beat USCjr and then they go and beat Kentucky. Then Auburn has last 2 in a row to Alabama, and totally beat down at Florida by 22. Also, they only put up 47 points in that game. The point I’m trying to make is that there are no truly elite teams in the SEC this year, and we have chances in more games than what we all think we do. The key is for this team to keep growing, and to keep gelling down the stretch. JJJ has proven enough to be our best PG option, so honestly Vescovi should be our kick out guy hitting open 3’s. He’s got a clean shot, and he’s been very consistent out there. We will all see what happens, but I thought I’d just throw my two cents out there. It may not mean much, but I still have hope. Even though we are very inconsistent lol. How many of Volnation are optimistic with me? How many think I hit the peace pipe this morning? Lol

I think the BasketVols finish 18-13 and wind up in the NIT Tournament

 

[IPleadInsanity]

This team is unpredictable, they could lose to or beat any team in the league. Lot of things could happen as young players progress like the 7footer. They could also start hitting some shots, still holding out for that.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

IMO: 8-10, loss to KU, 1-1 in the SECT, and NIT here we come. It would be great to get to MSG.

 

[Kingofkodak]

The SEC this season is completely unpredictable, so predicting the rest of this season is hard. I don’t care though!! I think this is what are season will end up looking like.
January;
Home vs. Ole Miss
At Kansas
Home vs. A&M
Realistically I think it’s feasible to win 2/3 of these games which would put us at 13-7(5-2), so we would remain in a decent position coming out of January.
February;
At Miss St.
At Bama
Home vs. Kentucky
Home vs. Arkansas
At USCjr
Home vs. Vandy
At Auburn
At Arkansas
Home vs Florida
February is where we can either get better and stay alive for a possible tourney bid, or completely fall apart and have a putrid season. I see lots of for sure losses, some games we should win, and a few toss-ups. Say we go 5-4 in this stretch. This would have us at 18-11(10-6) which I believe is pretty reasonable to hope for.
March;
At Kentucky
Vs. Auburn
Now both of these games are far from a sure thing, but if we protect home court and have grown over the course of the season I believe we can beat Auburn at home. So split in March. We end 19-12(11-7) going into the SEC tournament. Now, to me this is the best case scenario. The worst is finishing 15-16 overall and just flaming out early in February. I honestly don’t know which one is more likely. We beat Mizzou pretty good at their place 69-59 then they go and beat Florida. We beat USCjr and then they go and beat Kentucky. Then Auburn has last 2 in a row to Alabama, and totally beat down at Florida by 22. Also, they only put up 47 points in that game. The point I’m trying to make is that there are no truly elite teams in the SEC this year, and we have chances in more games than what we all think we do. The key is for this team to keep growing, and to keep gelling down the stretch. JJJ has proven enough to be our best PG option, so honestly Vescovi should be our kick out guy hitting open 3’s. He’s got a clean shot, and he’s been very consistent out there. We will all see what happens, but I thought I’d just throw my two cents out there. It may not mean much, but I still have hope. Even though we are very inconsistent lol. How many of Volnation are optimistic with me? How many think I hit the peace pipe this morning? Lol

Nice work! I predict 9-9 SEC and 18-14 Regular Season. 2 -1 Sec Tournament. 20-15.
A True Bubble Team because of SOS. If I had to guess NIT but with an upset and 21-14 NCAA. JMO.

 

[rickyb712]

after Kansas we don't lose again til at Florida

 

[TrumpedUpVol]

after Kansas we don't lose again til at Florida

Our only game against the Gators this year is in Knoxville, but I like your bravado. Personally, I think that Tennessee has much more of a chance to beat Kansas than people are giving them and would kill to get Tennessee +15 (BPI) right now.

 

[zaqhhh]

I maybe a pessimist here but I see us at 16-15.

Would love to be wrong though.

 

[BigOrangeMojo]

Much like 2016-17, I think we will struggle big time in February. During that grind, talent and depth takes on added importance and we just don't have enough of that this year. I think we will smoke and mirror our way into bubble discussion by end of January but by the end of February, I think we are fighting for NIT bid.

 

[Rickyvol77]

The SEC this season is completely unpredictable, so predicting the rest of this season is hard. I don’t care though!! I think this is what are season will end up looking like.
January;
Home vs. Ole Miss
At Kansas
Home vs. A&M
Realistically I think it’s feasible to win 2/3 of these games which would put us at 13-7(5-2), so we would remain in a decent position coming out of January.
February;
At Miss St.
At Bama
Home vs. Kentucky
Home vs. Arkansas
At USCjr
Home vs. Vandy
At Auburn
At Arkansas
Home vs Florida
February is where we can either get better and stay alive for a possible tourney bid, or completely fall apart and have a putrid season. I see lots of for sure losses, some games we should win, and a few toss-ups. Say we go 5-4 in this stretch. This would have us at 18-11(10-6) which I believe is pretty reasonable to hope for.
March;
At Kentucky
Vs. Auburn
Now both of these games are far from a sure thing, but if we protect home court and have grown over the course of the season I believe we can beat Auburn at home. So split in March. We end 19-12(11-7) going into the SEC tournament. Now, to me this is the best case scenario. The worst is finishing 15-16 overall and just flaming out early in February. I honestly don’t know which one is more likely. We beat Mizzou pretty good at their place 69-59 then they go and beat Florida. We beat USCjr and then they go and beat Kentucky. Then Auburn has last 2 in a row to Alabama, and totally beat down at Florida by 22. Also, they only put up 47 points in that game. The point I’m trying to make is that there are no truly elite teams in the SEC this year, and we have chances in more games than what we all think we do. The key is for this team to keep growing, and to keep gelling down the stretch. JJJ has proven enough to be our best PG option, so honestly Vescovi should be our kick out guy hitting open 3’s. He’s got a clean shot, and he’s been very consistent out there. We will all see what happens, but I thought I’d just throw my two cents out there. It may not mean much, but I still have hope. Even though we are very inconsistent lol. How many of Volnation are optimistic with me? How many think I hit the peace pipe this morning? Lol

If we win 18 or 19 games, I believe we are in the NCAA, otherwise we are NIT-bound unless something just really hits the fan

 

[VolAmerican]

after Kansas we don't lose again til at Florida

Very Optimistic, but I agree that this is possible. Kentucky and Arkansas are Homes games and both have shown to be average in several games this year. At Bama and Auburn may be our toughest road games during this stretch.

 

[BruinVol]

If we win 18 or 19 games, I believe we are in the NCAA, otherwise we are NIT-bound unless something just really hits the fan

the gap between the dance and the NIT is razor thin. Maybe only one game. It’s just hard to get an NIT birth from the SEC these days. I’d say it’s most likely that we dance or no post season at all

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Much like 2016-17, I think we will struggle big time in February. During that grind, talent and depth takes on added importance and we just don't have enough of that this year. I think we will smoke and mirror our way into bubble discussion by end of January but by the end of February, I think we are fighting for NIT bid.

One difference this year though... instead of players fighting thru injuries and trying to hang on (Hubbs, Blackmon, Turner, Punter) the young players could be growing into bigger roles (Uros, Vescovi, JJJ, ORN, Pember, Gaines). TN might be a much more competitive team a month from now.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

the gap between the dance and the NIT is razor thin. Maybe only one game. It’s just hard to get an NIT birth from the SEC these days. I’d say it’s most likely that we dance or no post season at all

I think that as long as TN finishes at least with a 16-16 record that the NIT will invite them. Good fan following and The Deacon are intangible selling points.

 

[BigOrangeMojo]

One difference this year though... instead of players fighting thru injuries and trying to hang on (Hubbs, Blackmon, Turner, Punter) the young players could be growing into bigger roles (Uros, Vescovi, JJJ, ORN, Pember, Gaines). TN might be a much more competitive team a month from now.

Dont disagree with ya since I think our season will likely end up in the range you indicated earlier (7-11 or 8-10ish). I think we will be competitive in February but will lack the talent/depth to win more than 3 games that month.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Dont disagree with ya since I think our season will likely end up in the range you indicated earlier (7-11 or 8-10ish). I think we will be competitive in February but will lack the talent/depth to win more than 3 games that month.

Tough schedule. Maybe they can steal 2 or 3 in the SECT. It would be great to finish several games above .500 and at least be on the bubble.

There are 100 spots in the NCAAT and NIT and a couple more if that sub-NIT tournament hasn't folded yet. I will be disappointed if it ends with the SECT. Making the NIT FF and winning the consolation game in 1985 was kind of fun.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Pretty impressive names in the 1985 NIT.

1985 National Invitation Tournament - Wikipedia

 

[BruinVol]

I think that as long as TN finishes at least with a 16-16 record that the NIT will invite them. Good fan following and The Deacon are intangible selling points.

I’d bet we don’t get in at 16-16. Just don’t think there are enough spots for that.

 

[BigOrangeMojo]

I’d bet we don’t get in at 16-16. Just don’t think there are enough spots for that.

Werent we 16-16 in 2016-17 and no postseason play? (Too lazy to Google)

 

[IPleadInsanity]

This is the strangest team we have had in a long time. After so many games no real identity has emerged as we don't seem to do anything really well but we have some capability in every facet of the game. Makes us hard to scheme against!