A look at the rest of the year!

[mlindsay]

Seeing Izzy go down last night was devastating, seeing talented players rise to the occasion and prove why they were top recruits and rank so high is what we've all been waiting for! Watching the light bulb go on last night for Ariel was a joy to see and also seeing the coming of age event Nared had last night and the return of the beast on that and 1 late in the second half only makes me excited for whats to come and what we could be! I pray that Izzy's injury isn't a season ending injury and that we can use her to get to Tallahassee, but if it is I think we will be okay if we can get the kind of production we got from the likes of Ariel, The Beast, Nared, Carter, & Burdick! Having Izzy out will open up minutes for Nia (& Possibly Kourtney) and the latter we could use to space the floor! It also allows us to switch the starting lineup and used Nia more at the high post setting the screens like Izzy was doing which opens up more space for Graves! Could we also see some Tucker with this injury? Moving forward I think Holly should have this lineup

Starters
PG-Reynolds
SG-Massengale
SF-Nared
PF-Graves
C-Moore
Because Holly like to sub early and often it allows them to quickly sub in Carter & Burdick which gives thema better unit and against SC next week we are going to need Nia's confidence as high as it can be so allow her to feast on Alabama and hope she'll be ready to go against SC because we will really need her! With all that being said I still like our chances to get to the Final Four if we play like we did yesterday! The only team/teams I truly worry about is UConn (better coach and team is a fine oiled machine) & SC (A lot of size, I think our Guard play will be the difference her and our SEC pride as we want to prove that despite their recruits and everyone annointing them as The Team in the SEC, the league is still ours)! What are your thoughts?

 

[Dave1967]

I worry about South Carolina and UConn

 

[volnationnj]

If Izzy can't play it will be an opportunity for more playing minutes for the other players and it will open up the court for us offensively. However, remember what happened when Izzy was out earlier this season, we lost to Texas and Chattanooga. We will probably have to play SCar two more times this season. The first time at their place and the second hopefully in the SEC final. Izzy was easily our best player against SCar last year. Without her that will be awfully high mountain to climb.

 

[RollerVol]

Well, Izzy is a very important part of our team, offense and defense, and it is very difficult to replace someone like her. Man, just hope we can overcome this. Next Lady Vol(s) up.

GO LADY VOLS!

 

[Tumbleweedvol]

Not to throw a wrench in your discussion but, Nia is going to have to learn to play without being foul prone. She is good player and can score on the break but, she is going to be going against the likes of Wilson and Mitchell in South Carolina which are two big post players. I see Nared having to pick up the slack some. If Nared can make a small leap with her extended minutes she could be the player that gets us over the hump! GBO!

 

[Amb3096]

However, remember what happened when Izzy was out earlier this season, we lost to Texas and Chattanooga.

I think the more important supporting players (Reynolds, Carter, and Burdick) are playing much, much better then they were when Tennessee lost to UTC and Texas. Massengale did not play well in both losses. If one of the other guards can step up if she is struggling, then I don't see Tennessee losing to the teams they are expected to beat.

USC will be awfully hard to beat without Izzy. Graves and Burdick have to be ready to go the full 40 minutes, and Nared has to be a solid contributor off the bench. Truthfully, I didn't expect them to win even with Izzy. I would be delighted, however, if they win the SEC tournament even if SC wins next week at home.

 

[WVU05UT09]

I worry about South Carolina and UConn

I wouldn't worry about UConn--no one is beating them. SC is a concern but I'm slightly more optimistic after the 2nd half performance yesterday. A month ago we lose that game.

 

[Chris89128]

Am I the only one who thinks Moore isn't good enough to be a Lady Vol? She was a 3 star recruit out of high school. The only reason she is here is because when Law was hired we were desperate for a post player. Moore is not strong enough, is a weak rebounder, and constantly turns the ball over, especially if she is bumped on offense or is going for a rebound. If Izzy is out, Holly will and should start Reynolds, Carter, Massengale, Burdick, and Graves.

 

[armchair]

Am I the only one who thinks Moore isn't good enough to be a Lady Vol? She was a 3 star recruit out of high school. The only reason she is here is because when Law was hired we were desperate for a post player. Moore is not strong enough, is a weak rebounder, and constantly turns the ball over, especially if she is bumped on offense or is going for a rebound. If Izzy is out, Holly will and should start Reynolds, Carter, Massengale, Burdick, and Graves.

Moore actually showed a bit of offensive skill early in the year--but once the competition got better one could see why she never plays. She always seems a tick or two slow figuring out what is going on on the court--very weak court awareness--and ALWAYS commits a foul (sometimes two) during her one or two minutes of action. It's uncanny. It's hard to get a real read on her because Warlick takes her out so quickly. She and our others subs would benefit from more PT, of course--but in that sense they are victims of our ugly play in many games and inability to put anybody way early--a problem for years. We are always stumbling around and playing down to the competition--can never build a 20-point lead on ANYBODY--and so the subs never play. UConn puts the hammer down and the subs are getting 10 minutes or more of action many games.