A Positive Thread

[txvol19]

I just want to say I am grateful. I am grateful for a team that plays hard. I am grateful for a coach who has strong faith, is great at player-development, and loves to be the coach of a school that I love. I am grateful for a fan base that, whether we are in Knoxville, Austin, or Indianapolis, we will have a large crowd of orange there. I am grateful to have a team that makes it consistently to the NCAA Tournament.

So, if you want to gripe and complain about Rick Barnes, any of the players, etc... there are several schools north and south on I-75 that will take you in. Oh, by the way, one of them did not make the NCAAT, and one lost to a 15-seed in the first round.

Signing off,

GBO.

 

[orchidvol]

I think there are a lot of people here that are hurting for the team. This one really, really hurts for some reason, probably because we liked this team so much. I despised Michigan before the game, even more after it. To their credit, they somehow made plays down the stretch and Tennessee went cold. I for one am happy to have Barnes here. He's won a lot of games here and hope he wins a lot more.

I won't ever forget this team for winning the SEC tournament and winning a lot of huge games before all that. GBO.

 

[TomcatVolFan]

Despite the criticism I have for Barnes tonight, I am still proud of this coach and proud of our team. It was a fun season and I will have lasting happy memories. At least we broke that glass ceiling of not winning the SEC tournament in a long time. Oh...and whenever we can beat Kentucky I have joy. GBO.

 

[wmcovol]

Team had a bad day to go cold. Open shots were there, they just didn’t hit them. It happens.

 

[vols 30]

I just wished we could have made it to next weekend at least. Losing to Villanova would have been more acceptable.

 

[vol94]

I’m 51 yrs old and hanging on hope for the Vols to make a final four (win it would be icing on the cake) and football win another national title.

I can honestly say I would pay the ticket prices @ a premium to attend the games as it would be a cool experience to take my son who is now a freshman on the Hill.

Sports do not define my life but Vol athletics is important to me as I fell in love w this university the day I stepped on campus in 1992. I just hope I am alive if and when the Vols make it to either/or sporting event, hopefully both.

 

[vol94]

I just wished we could have made it to next weekend at least. Losing to Villanova would have been more acceptable.

I hear ya. Our Steelers are going through a rebuild and the football program is a few yrs away from being relevant. Hopefully we can find a post player in the portal as I think we will have room w Fulky, Chandler and most likely Powell leaving. Not sure about Bailey.

 

[livefaith]

I hear ya. Our Steelers are going through a rebuild and the football program is a few yrs away from being relevant. Hopefully we can find a post player in the portal as I think we will have room w Fulky, Chandler and most likely Powell leaving. Not sure about Bailey.

Our bigs will be excellent next year IMO. Fully moves on. But Uros should be incrementally better. Aidoo & BHH probably make significant jumps in ability. OK returns ready for an even better season. That's four bigs that can make some waves next season. I expect next year's version to be far better than this seasons.

 

[vol94]

Our bigs will be excellent next year IMO. Fully moves on. But Uros should be incrementally better. Aidoo & BHH probably make significant jumps in ability. OK returns ready for an even better season. That's four bigs that can make some waves next season. I expect next year's version to be far better than this seasons.

I hear what you are saying but don’t think Uros will be a guys that can take over if needed. The other three will improve but enable us to go to the next level? Maybe I’m just bummed and being negative.

 

[DERELICK_MY_VOLS]

Our chess player got checkmated. Vescovi got rattled by how they were guarding him. He will usually take it and drive the lane using his head fakes to draw fouls to loosen defenders off of him. He didn’t do that last night. He would drive to pass immediately not looking for a shot. Ironically when I thought he was fouled their never was a call. That goes for Chandler and ZZ too. Checking the box score Michigan had flawless defense on them. All 3 attempted ZERO free throws. We were 10-12 from the line. Michigan was 16-20…..


Next I really thought we should have went bigger in the paint. Big Plav played strong and hard. Aidoo & BHH needed to be out there to defend the rim. Too many lay ups given up late. I watched a few Michigan games this year. Their guards struggled amongst trees scoring in that respect.

Maybe if we don’t run into 2 of the poorest officiated games at Texas & at Arkansas….have Fulky & Chandler for that Bama game…we end up seeded different to not get that Michigan match up. Then the SEC Tournament Championship win actually makes a difference in that regard. Who knows. Either way….we lost. It is what it is.

I thank the team and Coach Rick Barnes/staff for a fun season with a strong SEC Tournament run. They delivered a SEC Championship. Beat #1 Auburn. Beat mighty Arizona and beat down Blue Blood UNC. Barnes yet again out coached Cal and our biggest rival Kentucky 2/3 this season to now be 10-7 vs Kentucky since arriving. Barnes owns the most dominant conference program and head coach in the SEC. That to me is worth it reflecting back now that I’ve calmed down. Knowing Kentucky fans have to wait until volleyball or underwater basket weaving to beat Tennessee at something….that’s as sweet as soda pop!

 

[JCP201]

Our chess player got checkmated. Vescovi got rattled by how they were guarding him. He will usually take it and drive the lane using his head fakes to draw fouls to loosen defenders off of him. He didn’t do that last night. He would drive to pass immediately not looking for a shot. Ironically when I thought he was fouled their never was a call. That goes for Chandler and ZZ too. Checking the box score Michigan had flawless defense on them. All 3 attempted ZERO free throws. We were 10-12 from the line. Michigan was 16-20…..
View attachment 441015

Next I really thought we should have went bigger in the paint. Big Plav played strong and hard. Aidoo & BHH needed to be out there to defend the rim. Too many lay ups given up late. I watched a few Michigan games this year. Their guards struggled amongst trees scoring in that respect.

Maybe if we don’t run into 2 of the poorest officiated games at Texas & at Arkansas….have Fulky & Chandler for that Bama game…we end up seeded different to not get that Michigan match up. Then the SEC Tournament Championship win actually makes a difference in that regard. Who knows. Either way….we lost. It is what it is.

I thank the team and Coach Rick Barnes/staff for a fun season with a strong SEC Tournament run. They delivered a SEC Championship. Beat #1 Auburn. Beat mighty Arizona and beat down Blue Blood UNC. Barnes yet again out coached Cal and our biggest rival Kentucky 2/3 this season to now be 10-7 vs Kentucky since arriving. Barnes owns the most dominant conference program and head coach in the SEC. That to me is worth it reflecting back now that I’ve calmed down. Knowing Kentucky fans have to wait until volleyball or underwater basket weaving to beat Tennessee at something….that’s as sweet as soda pop!

CBS showing slow motion replays and pictures revealed that while Michigan got fouled if we touched them, they could amputate our guys arm and leg and no whistle.

 

[BP4Prez]

Told my wife last night that this was one of my more sad sports moments. Wasn’t mad, just sad. I thought we had what it takes to make a deep run, but that’s the thing about this tournament. One off game and home you go.

 

[JCP201]

Told my wife last night that this was one of my more sad sports moments. Wasn’t mad, just sad. I thought we had what it takes to make a deep run, but that’s the thing about this tournament. One off game and home you go.

I agree, this one really hurt more then any sports loss in a long time.

 

[ArmchairQB]

A good friend of mine is from Durham NC and a die-hard Heels fan. He's always said he cares a lot more about the ACC (regular season and tournament) than the dance, because the ACC is hard, and full of quality, and winning it is significant. And the dance is a crapshoot. This just brings that into a sharp focus for me.

We won the SEC tournament. There's going to be a banner in the rafters in TBA, and if it was up to me I'd put every single one of the players' names on it, and Coach Barnes too. Because Don DeVoe was here the last time that happened.

Obligatory rant in a positivity thread:
If we want to win the NCAA tournament, we need the SEC to invest deeply in refs. No more disciples of the TV Ted Valentine School of Officiating. That affected us deeply yesterday. It wasn't just our game against Michigan, I watched that Baylor and UNC game and was just floored, too. You don't get to that Brady Manek ejection without a whoooooole lot of stuff not getting called first. We'd have fouled out our entire team by halftime during SEC play, if the way teams are playing in this tourney, was being called the way you sort of get used to seeing an SEC game get called. So if the dance is going to allow jungle ball, tell the SEC refs to learn to swallow the whistle so that teams will at least be accustomed to playing that way by the time they get there. Short of scheduling those Bahamas tourneys in February so teams can get some experience on neutral courts with non-SEC refs after they've had a while to actually gel as a team, I don't know a whole heck of a lot else to do about it. Just adapt. As a conference.

Anyway! We had a spectacular season that nothing can take away, and it ended too soon based on something that it takes a conference, not just a team, to address. This year went from "no idea what to expect" to being one of my favorite teams ever, in a hurry. And the tournament doesn't dim that for me at all.

 

[DERELICK_MY_VOLS]

CBS showing slow motion replays and pictures revealed that while Michigan got fouled if we touched them, they could amputate our guys arm and leg and no whistle.

EXACTLY. Kennedy Chandler misses a lay up, gets his own rebound, gets murdered on the left side of his body & left arm, misses the shot, and ZERO whistle.