With the start of SEC play, I got to thinking about Barnes’ record at UT against conference opponents. So I dug around, and some stuff lined up pretty well with my memory, and some was more of a surprise. So, without looking it up, how many can you answer? 1. Since coming to Tennessee, Barnes has a losing record against just four SEC opponents. Who are they? 2. Which SEC opponent has the best winning percentage against Barnes at Tennessee? 3. Shifting to the positive side, which SEC opponent has the worst winning percentage against Barnes at Tennessee? 4. Which SEC opponent has Barnes beaten the most since coming to Tennessee?
You got the easy one (Vandy, with eight losses, although Kentucky is close with seven) and two of the four on question one (Auburn, LSU)
you thought barnes had a losing record to UK? My dude, he has the better of Calipari. He leads the series.
I knew we've been good against Kentucky, but I'm surprised we're .500. Although I knew we were pretty close. For #3, I figured that there was some West trash that is 0-5. Guess it isn't Ole Miss.
We’re 7-5 against Kentucky under Barnes (8-3 against Vandy). We’re neither undefeated nor winless against anybody in the conference since he took over, but there is a team that’s only beaten us once in that stretch.
Arkansas is not the answer to #2. We now have collected three answers to #1: LSU, Auburn, and Arkansas. None are the answer to #2.
We’re 6-2 against State, which is the second-best mark against any conference opponent under Barnes. Would be the best if they hadn’t gotten us last year. South Carolina beat us by 25 two years in a row early in Barnes’ tenure (including in their Final Four season). We’re 6-4 overall against them.
I think it was Barnes’ second year, where we kept playing ridiculously tight games against top ten teams and losing (I want to say we had narrow losses to something like UNC, Oregon, Gonzaga, Wisconsin, a couple good SEC teams), we lost by like 27 to South Carolina. Their D ate us alive. That’s the year they made the Final Four, and was one of three consecutive double-digit losses to them, and I honestly don’t recall the other two.
I know Georgia has had his number. I’m guessing they’re one of the ones in #1 and answer to #2. I don’t think he beat them until year 3 or 4.
Despite a 46-point win over Georgia two years ago, we’re just 2-5 against them under Barnes. They join LSU, Auburn, and Arkansas as the only teams with winning records against us, and theirs is the most lopsided (despite getting outscored overall, thanks to said 46-point win). #3 is the only one left on the board. There’s only one SEC team that’s only beaten us once under Barnes.
iir, ga had a little lefty pg we couldn't stop. We were ranked last in the SEC when Barnes took over, with limited talent on the roster and a bullshit culture left over by Clownzo and Chaz Bono.
Yeah given where we were when he took over it’s unfathomable (and hilarious, and awesome) how we have a winning record against Kentucky. Would love to see us just stretch that out this year.