NCAA Tournament - Tennessee Vols

https://utsports.com/news/2019/3/18...osen-for-ncaa-march-madness-confidential.aspx

 

I don't think we even make the tourney.

 

So like 2/3 of The Athletic basketball staff has us in the Final Four, and a good chunk of them have us in the title game. We are the 2nd-most popular Final Four pick after Duke. Makes me nervous to have folks believing in us: https://theathletic.com/873833/

 

Every team that has beaten us is a team that forces tempo at every opportunity. Cincy doesn't do that. In 22 of their 28 wins, they scored less than 80.

 

Saw on ESPN that we are the least likely 2 seed to make the Final Four. I thought that was odd, considering:

1. Duke is the overwhelming favorite and we aren't in their bracket.
2. UVA is our 1 seed and has repeatedly underachieved the last 5 years.
3. Gonzaga is still getting tons of love, and Michigan, their 2 seed, has struggled down the stretch.

 

Also, I'm gonna go ahead and go on record saying I have no desire to play UK again this season, but they could very well be our Final Four opponent if we make it that far.

 

There were 16 pickers and we got picked 12 times.

From a comment:
Duke: 13
Tennessee: 12
Gonzaga: 8
Kentucky: 6
Michigan: 6
UNC: 5
Virginia: 4
MSU: 3
Auburn: 2
Iowa State, Utah State, Wofford, Florida State, Marquette: 1

 

Pretty funny to see so many people sucking the collective ACC [ock cay] all season, just to turn around and pick us and Kentucky to advance deep in the tournament over them.

 

Thanks for this.

Was Barn the first team to do this? What is the counter play when that happens - and why aren’t we doing it?

 

Also, they said during the game that Pearl was going on and on about how we weren’t getting back on defense. Why? We’re slow? Lazy? Something else?

 

Good question. First one to do with success at least. I would respond with clearout pick and rolls with spot up shooters on the wing and corner opposite the pick and roll, with the 5th player crashing the boards or cutting late.

 

Tired/emotionally drained from winning what felt like a Final Four match up the day before.

 

Additionally i woulda tried Bone/Turner/Bowden/admiral/Grant v Auburn. Match their speed and see what happens.

 

I just think Auburn is a bad matchup for us. They force us to play faster than we'd like, and they have 5 fast guys to our 3. Grant and Admiral are horrible on ball defenders, Admiral especially. We honestly don't have enough quality guards to run with a team like Auburn. It's why UK can match up with them and we can't. They have several more quality guards than we do.

 

not developing pons as a shooter really hurts our guard rotation. if he was any kind of shooting threat, we'd have 4 guards who could rotate and defend hard with no offensive drop off

 

Agree, but only so much a staff can do. Pons has to be in the gym by himself or with a team trainer putting up 500, 1000 shots a day, which he isnt doing.
Hopefully as some of our teenagers turn to adults and see the end of their careers coming, they will put in the time.

 

Pons’ college hoops 2k8 ratings: athleticism 98 awareness 52

 

Yeah theres 2 parts to the development equation.

 

Hoo buddy. I went through and made picks on lunch. My bracket is wild.

 

Anybody wanna look at mich St or Auburn in this year's tourney and argue against my theory that the committee doesn't watch the conference tournaments?