BTO’s Kentucky Postgame Report

[Chris4Vols22]

As Lefty said, the foul was on the floor and we were not in the bonus at the time it was called. The technicals that ensued did put us in the bonus, but the original foul came before that, so it was Tennessee ball under the basket.

The techs, 2 on UK, 2 on Tennessee, all offset. Bradshaw was given a tech for his shove, and Dillingham, Gainey, and Awaka were given techs for what they said in the aftermath (new sportsmanship emphasis on certain antagonizing language that draws an immediate tech).

Thank you for the clarification on this. Even I thought a tech on Awaka was wrong, and much more so Gainey and the peripheral UK player.

 

[BallerVolFan]

Thank you for the clarification on this. Even I thought a tech on Awaka was wrong, and much more so Gainey and the peripheral UK player.

I thought it should have been Bradshaw, Dillingham, and Awaka. Gainey receiving a T was just them evening it up.

 

[TheMookieMonster]

I thought it should have been Bradshaw, Dillingham, and Awaka. Gainey receiving a T was just them evening it up.

The delay was too long and avoidable. It was clear they were going to "even it up" to avoid getting Cal and the home crowd pissed off, so they should have just called double technicals on Awaka and Bradshaw and moved on. Spending 10 minutes on this and deciding to manufacture a technical on Gainey was pointless.

 

[Lefteye]

I thought it should have been Bradshaw, Dillingham, and Awaka. Gainey receiving a T was just them evening it up.

Exactly this... knew that was our best case scenario and was preparing myself for the corrupting to begin right there with our 2 guys getting one but just 1 of theirs.

 

[BallerVolFan]

Exactly this... knew that was our best case scenario and was preparing myself for the corrupting to begin right there with our 2 guys getting one but just 1 of theirs.

I don't even think the corrupting could have helped them. They just better be lucky Dillingham played like he did. If he performs like he has in any other game, they would've lost by 20+. He made it a respectable game by himself.

 

[MinisterofDef#92]

One of Tobe's 4 fouls was the technical, so he really played 10 minutes and only committed 3 fouls on the floor. So to add to your point, that was mildly encouraging. He set the tone with his tech in that moment and essentially told UK and their 25000 fans that this team wasn't and wouldn't be intimidated. They weren't gonna back down and fold. He didn't really do anything to deserve the tech though I understand why they technically had to assess one. But that is one I'm ok with since it was offsetting and we came out of that situation with the advantage and momentum.

Bradshaw didn't want any part of Tobe which is why he didn't have the nerve to do anything to his face. For the refs, I was not surprised they called offsetting technicals but it was such BS...not sure how we got to the point where a 2-handed shove in someone's back during a dead ball is on par with responding to said shove with some choice words.

 

[Volfan1000]

1. That is how you hoped Tennessee would respond after dropping a disappointing midweek game at home. Losing on the road to Kentucky wouldn’t have shocked anyone but it would’ve definitely felt like a setback dropping back to back games and leaving yourself with an uphill climb. Kentucky was coming off a loss as well so both teams were hungry and it was a great game, the Vols were simply the better team.

2. I won’t put a bunch of stock into one game and run with the talk about a players meeting and say everything is suddenly great and that JJJ will be that guy every night. I still want to see as a team what they do against physicality which Kentucky did not provide and has caused those players some trouble, but JJJ obviously was phenomenal and iirc it’s also the first time in recent memory he’s been without the wrap on his hand, maybe that was bothering him to a certain degree. Again, you can’t expect that level of play from ZZ & JJJ every night, but you need those guys to come out with that aggression and shoot open shots, as Barnes said not just pass to Dalton and watch him work. At times ISO is fine and a design play call late, but majority of the games guys have to be aggressive and even use the attention Dalton gets to their advantage.

3. I thought Tobe really played well, again outside of the fouls, even for him 4 fouls in just 10 minutes is impressive lol. But his physicality was needed, guys fed off him and he had some nice buckets as well. Luckily we don’t need huge minutes from him or the fouls would be a bigger concern but it would be nice if he could get those a bit more under control, first half especially so we wouldn’t have to go to JP out of necessity (team worst +/- against UK).

4. I said it a lot earlier in the year and I think it’s still very true, this team is much different than expected even to an extent probably what they as players and coaches expected. They are still figuring things out and how the puzzle pieces fit together, guys are finding and adjusting to new and unfamiliar roles, as I said as well before I don’t know if it all totally every clicks but you can see flashes and Saturday against Kentucky was probably the longest sustained flash we’ve seen. Again UK isn’t a physical team and frankly is bad defensively, but you also don’t put up 100+ at Rupp just days after not breaking 60 at home and not take some confidence and lessons hopefully. We have to continue to push the pace imo, I think our guys are much better and confident in that setting, and guys need to continue to take their shots and be confident when they do, trust themselves and each other.

5. Big picture in many ways that win makes up for the loss to South Carolina, it stings more because if you win that one you’re likely on the 1 seed line as of today so it was a missed opportunity in that regard, but as far as being detrimental to your season and where we were it’s pretty much right back to where we were. We had set a goal of 7-2 to open SEC play, they’re now 6-2 with a home game against LSU upcoming, protect home court and you’ve hit that 7-2 mark. Let’s dive a little further into things though, that 7-2 mark we set was for the first half of the year, setting a goal of 23-7(13-5) which I said would likely have us as a 2 seed imo, so would mean a goal of 6-3 to close out the final 9 of league play. We currently sit at 16-5(6-2) with 10 games remaining, projections have shifted slightly and suggest that 24-7(14-4) is now the most likely outcome for the Vols, which would certainly have them on the 2 seed line and very much in contention for their first ever 1 seed in program history. So how do we get to 24-7(14-4) when we are at 16-5(6-2), simple math says that’s going 8-2 over our final 10 games, if you look at the schedule it’s definitely doable, but likely requires us taking advantage of this upcoming slate of games. Looking at the upcoming 6 games Barttorvik projects us as a double digit favorite in 5/6, with Saturday’s road game at A&M being the only one not with us currently projected as 5 point favorites. Finding a way to go 6-0 over these next 6 would be massive, as the final 4 games of the year will be a brutal stretch, and include some very tough road games. It all starts this week though and hoping our new found offensive confidence continues, LSU & A&M play much better defense and physical than UK, find a way to go 2-0 this week and that 7 game winning streak looks much more plausible.



GBO!!!

JJJ took a good first step toward being a consistent 12 to 15 point scorer a game with this effort.

Awaka's physical play could rub off on Estrella and Aidoo as the season progresses.

 

[BernardKingGOAT]

Hard not to say that we went up there, played big boy ball, and handed their asses to them on a silver platter. I got a touch of nervousness when they cut it to 1 in the second half. Fortunately we responded by making a little run of our own, as we did all night when they cut the gap. It's almost like JJJ knew he had to be aggressive offensively because Dalton was struggling a bit. Vescovi responded big time too. Made me think about some of their comments from an interview they did together a couple of weeks ago. On to Wednesday's game with LSU. One game at a time

 

[BernardKingGOAT]

JJJ took a good first step toward being a consistent 12 to 15 point scorer a game with this effort.

Awaka's physical play could rub off on Estrella and Aidoo as the season progresses.

Don't need him to be necessarily be a 12-15 pt scorer. Need him to pick up offensively when Knecht might be struggling

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I think that TN did a great job at adjusting to the refs.

KY was holding and battering Knecht. When that happens, TN should be allowed to do the same when they are on defense. If the refs call games tight, then Knecht should be unstoppable.

If refs are consistent then TN will either have Knecht go off - or - be able to play lock down defense.

 

[Doctrippin]

1. That is how you hoped Tennessee would respond after dropping a disappointing midweek game at home. Losing on the road to Kentucky wouldn’t have shocked anyone but it would’ve definitely felt like a setback dropping back to back games and leaving yourself with an uphill climb. Kentucky was coming off a loss as well so both teams were hungry and it was a great game, the Vols were simply the better team.

2. I won’t put a bunch of stock into one game and run with the talk about a players meeting and say everything is suddenly great and that JJJ will be that guy every night. I still want to see as a team what they do against physicality which Kentucky did not provide and has caused those players some trouble, but JJJ obviously was phenomenal and iirc it’s also the first time in recent memory he’s been without the wrap on his hand, maybe that was bothering him to a certain degree. Again, you can’t expect that level of play from ZZ & JJJ every night, but you need those guys to come out with that aggression and shoot open shots, as Barnes said not just pass to Dalton and watch him work. At times ISO is fine and a design play call late, but majority of the games guys have to be aggressive and even use the attention Dalton gets to their advantage.

3. I thought Tobe really played well, again outside of the fouls, even for him 4 fouls in just 10 minutes is impressive lol. But his physicality was needed, guys fed off him and he had some nice buckets as well. Luckily we don’t need huge minutes from him or the fouls would be a bigger concern but it would be nice if he could get those a bit more under control, first half especially so we wouldn’t have to go to JP out of necessity (team worst +/- against UK).

4. I said it a lot earlier in the year and I think it’s still very true, this team is much different than expected even to an extent probably what they as players and coaches expected. They are still figuring things out and how the puzzle pieces fit together, guys are finding and adjusting to new and unfamiliar roles, as I said as well before I don’t know if it all totally every clicks but you can see flashes and Saturday against Kentucky was probably the longest sustained flash we’ve seen. Again UK isn’t a physical team and frankly is bad defensively, but you also don’t put up 100+ at Rupp just days after not breaking 60 at home and not take some confidence and lessons hopefully. We have to continue to push the pace imo, I think our guys are much better and confident in that setting, and guys need to continue to take their shots and be confident when they do, trust themselves and each other.

5. Big picture in many ways that win makes up for the loss to South Carolina, it stings more because if you win that one you’re likely on the 1 seed line as of today so it was a missed opportunity in that regard, but as far as being detrimental to your season and where we were it’s pretty much right back to where we were. We had set a goal of 7-2 to open SEC play, they’re now 6-2 with a home game against LSU upcoming, protect home court and you’ve hit that 7-2 mark. Let’s dive a little further into things though, that 7-2 mark we set was for the first half of the year, setting a goal of 23-7(13-5) which I said would likely have us as a 2 seed imo, so would mean a goal of 6-3 to close out the final 9 of league play. We currently sit at 16-5(6-2) with 10 games remaining, projections have shifted slightly and suggest that 24-7(14-4) is now the most likely outcome for the Vols, which would certainly have them on the 2 seed line and very much in contention for their first ever 1 seed in program history. So how do we get to 24-7(14-4) when we are at 16-5(6-2), simple math says that’s going 8-2 over our final 10 games, if you look at the schedule it’s definitely doable, but likely requires us taking advantage of this upcoming slate of games. Looking at the upcoming 6 games Barttorvik projects us as a double digit favorite in 5/6, with Saturday’s road game at A&M being the only one not with us currently projected as 5 point favorites. Finding a way to go 6-0 over these next 6 would be massive, as the final 4 games of the year will be a brutal stretch, and include some very tough road games. It all starts this week though and hoping our new found offensive confidence continues, LSU & A&M play much better defense and physical than UK, find a way to go 2-0 this week and that 7 game winning streak looks much more plausible.



GBO!!!

It was hard to believe we beat Bama by 20 and SC comes in and beats us.

 

[the_great_pumpkin]

Hard not to say that we went up there, played big boy ball, and handed their asses to them on a silver platter. I got a touch of nervousness when they cut it to 1 in the second half. Fortunately we responded by making a little run of our own, as we did all night when they cut the gap. It's almost like JJJ knew he had to be aggressive offensively because Dalton was struggling a bit. Vescovi responded big time too. Made me think about some of their comments from an interview they did together a couple of weeks ago. On to Wednesday's game with LSU. One game at a time

 

[the_great_pumpkin]

Big Orange

 

[VOLtaism]

The delay was too long and avoidable. It was clear they were going to "even it up" to avoid getting Cal and the home crowd pissed off, so they should have just called double technicals on Awaka and Bradshaw and moved on. Spending 10 minutes on this and deciding to manufacture a technical on Gainey was pointless.

I think they were trying to give UK a breather, and did. UK was slowing down before the 10 minute break.

 

[KTrain]

I don't even think the corrupting could have helped them. They just better be lucky Dillingham played like he did. If he performs like he has in any other game, they would've lost by 20+. He made it a respectable game by himself.

Yep, he averages 15 a game and went for 35 he was definingly in a shooting zone, especially first half he over doubled his normal output.

 

[Lefteye]

I don't even think the corrupting could have helped them. They just better be lucky Dillingham played like he did. If he performs like he has in any other game, they would've lost by 20+. He made it a respectable game by himself.

You aren’t wrong about the corrupt factor… but, and I don’t really know how many he scored but it felt like 8-10 we played that Prevent defense not to foul the last couple of minutes of the game and he might have gotten some easier looks than he had the rest of the game. No doubt though, he played lights out all night.

 

[BruisedOrange]

As Lefty said, the foul was on the floor and we were not in the bonus at the time it was called. The technicals that ensued did put us in the bonus, but the original foul came before that, so it was Tennessee ball under the basket.

The techs, 2 on UK, 2 on Tennessee, all offset. Bradshaw was given a tech for his shove, and Dillingham, Gainey, and Awaka were given techs for what they said in the aftermath (new sportsmanship emphasis on certain antagonizing language that draws an immediate tech).

I was unsuccessful in my search, but I assume such a refereeing emphasis requires a list of foul-worthy words.

Where would one find that list, now that George Carlin is dead?

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I was unsuccessful in my search, but I assume such a refereeing emphasis requires a list of foul-worthy words.

Where would one find that list, now that George Carlin is dead?

In every Quentin Tarantino movie ever made?

 

[cncchris33]

I was unsuccessful in my search, but I assume such a refereeing emphasis requires a list of foul-worthy words.

Where would one find that list, now that George Carlin is dead?

Not sure. It was emphasized and mentioned during the review of the scrum by Jimmy Dykes and Tom Hart during the broadcast.

 

[kyvol98]

Question, If Alabama loses to Auburn, Kentucky, and UT again to go 14-4 would that give UT the outright conference title if we are also 14-4 and beat Alabama both times?

 

[NighthawkVol]

Not sure. It was emphasized and mentioned during the review of the scrum by Jimmy Dykes and Tom Hart during the broadcast.

Great rule. Basketball needed more ways to allow officials to make subjective determinations to affect the game. It's certainly not the most offical-impacted game on the planet by far already.

I'm sure they're calling EVERY bad word used during the course of a game and not just using this rule in situations like the other night to "even it up" when needed.

 

[ColinS]

Great write-up!

One additional thing I saw that gave me even more hope: Barnes called a TO when KY was making a run, and again late in the game when our offense was a bit helter-skelter. I know his philosophy has been to play through these runs.
Maybe you can teach an ole dog new tricks after all!

I noticed that and thought has the old man finally learned his lesson. You can't let the crowd take these games over and squander an opportunity like we did against Alabama a couple of years ago.

 

[TMvol10]

It was hard to believe we beat Bama by 20 and SC comes in and beats us.

That’s how college bball is these days. There’s enough talent across the country that if you have a poor shooting night, and a game where everyone is a little off, you can lose to anybody. Especially a team as good and as hot at SC.

 

[Just a VolinTears]

Great write-up!

One additional thing I saw that gave me even more hope: Barnes called a TO when KY was making a run, and again late in the game when our offense was a bit helter-skelter. I know his philosophy has been to play through these runs.
Maybe you can teach an ole dog new tricks after all!

Yup. That was one of the reasons we lost to FAU: his refusal to call TOs in 2nd half

 

[BruisedOrange]

Not sure. It was emphasized and mentioned during the review of the scrum by Jimmy Dykes and Tom Hart during the broadcast.

It's not that I don't like the rule. The structures that support any society have to push back against the natural entropy every civilization encounters--or else things really do fall apart.

As for the list, it's not like there's any consensus in our society about profanities. Back in the days of broadcast TV, a ref could say, "If they can't say it on ABC, NBC, or CBS--you can't say it here!" Then we had to add the further disclaimer "...during the family hour" to TV standards. And then cable TV came... and then internet... and then urban music (where it now depended on who was saying it, not what was said).

There even used to be an observable geography to it, between different parts of the country. A "damn" might still get you a stern look in the South, while who knew how many F-bombs you'd have to string together to earn "profanity" status in NYC or LA?

That's my basketball concern. When we get to the big tournament, will all the refs be consistent, working from the same prohibitive lexicon?