Vols should be in finals

#26
#26
After watching way too much basketball, I think Tennessee is better than each member of the final four. Tennessee is better than Michigan State, Auburn, Texas Tech and Virginia. Especially Virginia.[/QUOTE
If they were better they would be there. I'm as big a Tennessee fan has anybody but Tennessee had their chances. You can't get to tournament time and then decide to play 20 minutes out of a 40 minute game and do it three games in a row. You would have thought after Colgate they would have woke up but they didn't. That opportunity is lost forever.
 
#27
#27
I don't understand how you can believe that Tennessee is better than Auburn

Pretty simple really .... Tennessee beat Kentucky twice, Kentucky beat Auburn twice - Tennessee overtime vs. Purdue, Purdue overtime Virginia, Virginia beat Auburn ---- those teams are a gnat's hair apart - and any day a break here or a break there and you win. We were and are as good as
Auburn.
 
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#28
#28
Basketball is like that. It takes a lot of luck to have the round ball bounce your way into a FF. I'm still super proud of our guys... This season really was an over-achievement, when you consider the talent level.
I understand being proud of the guys for the regular season. But there is no excuse when it came to tournament time choosing to play 20 minutes of a 40-minute game even once much less 3 games in a row. You would have thought after the Colgate game they would have learned their lesson, but they didn't. The kids are to be commended for a good season however their play in the tournament is a different different story!
 
#30
#30
Basketball is like that. It takes a lot of luck to have the round ball bounce your way into a FF. I'm still super proud of our guys... This season really was an over-achievement, when you consider the talent level.
The problem wasn't a lack of talent. The problem was not putting a full game together for three games in a row at the most important time of the year. You can't play one half a basketball game and and be successful in the tournament. As a matter of fact they proved they did have the talent when they overcome an 18-point lead against Purdue. Or when they built the 25-point lead against Colgate. The problem is they lacked Focus. That's what's so disappointing. The talent was there or they would not have beaten Gonzaga and Kentucky twice. We have to quit making excuses all the time. It's healthy for these players to realize that when you don't give your all bad things to happen. Let's not try to sugarcoat it. That's a problem in society in general.
 
#31
#31
After watching way too much basketball, I think Tennessee is better than each member of the final four. Tennessee is better than Michigan State, Auburn, Texas Tech and Virginia. Especially Virginia.


Calls can go either way in games. Sometimes you benefit & others you dont

In football, we lost on the Gafney, no T D catch vs Florida
 
#32
#32
Well, if we were Bama we could at least claim the natty and hang a banner because we are #1 in the FortSanders Poll.
 
#33
#33
Kinda like the feeling many have about the teams during the Ernie and Bernie era. Best UT team of my lifetime and they crapped the bed in the post season. Been there. Seen that.
I saw those losses too. Some tough outs and I remember King was injured when we lost to VMI and I think Syracuse too. Our Most talented team ever in 1977
 
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#34
#34
Should, could, but we are not. When teams are so even one or two calls decides them and we got the wrong call.
 
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#37
#37
Pretty simple really .... Tennessee beat Kentucky twice, Kentucky beat Auburn twice - Tennessee overtime vs. Purdue, Purdue overtime Virginia, Virginia beat Auburn ---- those teams are a gnat's hair apart - and any day a break here or a break there and you win. We were and are as good as
Auburn.
Auburn is a bad match-up for the Vols. Virginia was a bad match-up for Auburn. I think UT would be a bad match-up for Virginia.
 
#40
#40
Auburn is a bad match-up for the Vols. Virginia was a bad match-up for Auburn. I think UT would be a bad match-up for Virginia.
Virginia plays far, far better defense than Tennessee. The common opponents for Virginia and Tennessee this year were Purdue, Auburn, Louisville, Wake Forest, South Carolina, and Georgia Tech. Tennessee gave up an average of 76 points per game to them, and Virginia gave up 57.9 to the same teams. We allowed 18.1 more ppg to the same teams.

Virginia doesn't worry much about offensive rebounding, preferring to get back on defense. They don't give up a lot of cheap breakaway baskets like we do. They also block a lot of shots and turn teams over. In short, good pitching stops good hitting.

1) Purdue : we gave up 24 more points
2) Auburn: we gave up 22 more points
3) Louisville: we gave up 21 more points
4) Wake Forest: we gave up 21 more points
5) South Carolina: we gave up 19.5 more points
6) Georgia Tech: we gave up 2 more points

See a trend?
 
#43
#43
I'll be honest, guys. Since we lost, maybe like some of you, I have been watching Auburn and wondering "what if?" and thinking "maybe that could be us." His mistakes and character aside, Bruce Pearl is a heckuva basketball coach, as is Coach Barnes. The obvious questions....would Pearl have gotten the same kind of performance with this year's team? Less? More? Would he have taken them farther in the tourney? How would he have coached them differently? Would he have developed a bench of about a 9-man rotation, which is what he did when he was in Knoxville? If so, would that have helped us?

I am not answering any of those questions, just thinking out loud. I love Coach Barnes and feel we definitely have the right coach. It's just weird watching our former coach, who took us closer to the Final Four than we've ever been, actually do it with another team while we sit at home and watch.
 
#46
#46
I'll be honest, guys. Since we lost, maybe like some of you, I have been watching Auburn and wondering "what if?" and thinking "maybe that could be us." His mistakes and character aside, Bruce Pearl is a heckuva basketball coach, as is Coach Barnes. The obvious questions....would Pearl have gotten the same kind of performance with this year's team? Less? More? Would he have taken them farther in the tourney? How would he have coached them differently? Would he have developed a bench of about a 9-man rotation, which is what he did when he was in Knoxville? If so, would that have helped us?

I am not answering any of those questions, just thinking out loud. I love Coach Barnes and feel we definitely have the right coach. It's just weird watching our former coach, who took us closer to the Final Four than we've ever been, actually do it with another team while we sit at home and watch.
Kinda like seeing an old girlfriend with her husband. Quit living in the past. Geez
 
#47
#47
If we played Virginia 10 times, I think we’d go 5-5. Just depends on the day if we advanced or not
 
#48
#48
After watching way too much basketball, I think Tennessee is better than each member of the final four. Tennessee is better than Michigan State, Auburn, Texas Tech and Virginia. Especially Virginia.
That’s not how this works. UVA and TTU would eat UT alive with their defense.
Auburn destroyed UT and won both contests.
Conclusion? You’re FOS
 
#50
#50
Virginia plays far, far better defense than Tennessee. The common opponents for Virginia and Tennessee this year were Purdue, Auburn, Louisville, Wake Forest, South Carolina, and Georgia Tech. Tennessee gave up an average of 76 points per game to them, and Virginia gave up 57.9 to the same teams. We allowed 18.1 more ppg to the same teams.

Virginia doesn't worry much about offensive rebounding, preferring to get back on defense. They don't give up a lot of cheap breakaway baskets like we do. They also block a lot of shots and turn teams over. In short, good pitching stops good hitting.

1) Purdue : we gave up 24 more points
2) Auburn: we gave up 22 more points
3) Louisville: we gave up 21 more points
4) Wake Forest: we gave up 21 more points
5) South Carolina: we gave up 19.5 more points
6) Georgia Tech: we gave up 2 more points

See a trend?

Yeah but how much more did we score than Virginia?
 
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