BTO’s Wofford Postgame Report

[bleedingTNorange]

1. The first half was a bit of a slow start, but also not totally shocking given this game was sandwiched in between a hyped up road game and a trip to Maui awaiting. To Tennessee’s credit they came out and played a much better 2nd half and once again ultimately led wire to wire, Tennessee is still yet to trail for a single second yet this season, pretty impressive stuff.

2. Give Wofford credit for some tough shots in the first half, that happens sometimes, but what you can’t excuse was the 1st half rebounding effort. Way too many offensive rebounds allowing 2nd chance opportunists for Wofford, and again to their credit they took advantage. I’ve mentioned before this teams ability to rebound concerns me, we are going small almost exclusively and so naturally that’s a concern, and likely to be a weakness, but gotta be better. JJJ has been solid at the 4, Aidoo & Awaka have been decent, Mashack & Knecht playing 3 & 4 need to be better though it feels like to help the other guys out.

3. Loved seeing Vescovi get more involved offensively as he continues to find his role in this new look Tennessee offense, and Knecht & Gainey both continued to do what they’ve done. I still thought Vescovi passed up probably 3-4 shots that he would’ve often taken in years past that I would like to see him take, he’s more than just a wide open spot up shooter and has a quick trigger, wanna see him have the same confidence as Gainey & Knecht both do.

4. Not sounding the panic alarm, but Zeigler is struggling a bit, and that’s likely to be expected if we are honest with ourselves, but still valid to point out imo. Mashack has done a solid job when running PG imo and so has Gainey, so nice to have options, but it’s going to be a juggling act trying to get ZZ back into a groove and playing well while also having to deal with some of his struggles that he is going through currently.

5. 3-0 and headed to Maui just as we all had hoped to be, this is an incredibly stacked field that we will face. Syracuse is an opening game we should definitely win, probably be 12-14 point favorites would be my guess, after that all bets are off. If you do indeed win that opening game against Syracuse you then play 2 games against a likely field of Purdue, Gonzaga, Kansas, Marquette & UCLA…going 1-1 against that field would have to be considered a success and thus 2-1 overall. Obviously want to win it all, if we did so it would very possibly mean we are the #1 team in the country leaving Hawaii, but that’s definitely a tall task. Excited to see how we match up against what is an absolutely loaded field.



GBO!!!

 

[walkenvol]

ZZZ might do well to focus on facilitating and defense. Don’t worry about scoring for now till he’s feeling closer to 100%?

 

[bleedingTNorange]

ZZZ might do well to focus on facilitating and defense. Don’t worry about scoring for now till he’s feeling closer to 100%?

You can’t be out there though and no threat to score, teams will just slouch off completely which takes away the strength of his quickness…just one of those things we’ll likely have to deal with. He doesn’t need to shoot many 2’s but to his defense he hasn’t, it’s been layups and 3’s which is what it should be for him.

 

[driscokid]

Zz is not full speed from what I can tell. Quickness is his game but he will get there. Takes a while after a blown out knee

 

[TheMookieMonster]

I was pleased with the performance outside of a few lazy stretches in the first half. Wofford is a better team than I think Vegas and our fans want to credit them for. They are a very solid program.

It is encouraging seeing JJJ accept his role and execute to perfection so far. He’s scoring efficiently, playing good defense, and providing that leadership on the floor that you need from a veteran.

I am only slightly concerned about Zeiglar. There is some understandable rust and I am sure he is still not entirely healthy. With that being said, we do need to hope he figured it out eventually and can return to form or it might limit our ceiling. Dillione is either about to miss significant time or play at less than 100% for several weeks. Suddenly, our PG play is back to being a bit of a question mark if ZZ can’t return to form.

However, I am really happy with Gainey so far and I am more than willing to eat crow for being wrong about the impact he is having on this team. We will need his role to only grow moving forward without Dillione. Hope he can sustain his level of play.

Overall, we continue to show just how deep this team is. And we’re going to need 10-11 guys to contribute. My only real concern so far is post play/rebounding which you have already covered. But there is still time to figure all of that out.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Even Barnes looked like he was mailing it in. He was mostly sitting and watching. He probably did his best work tonight in his post game radio show when he was asking Bob about bringing his Speedo to Hawaii.

 

[Ttucke11]

I'm not too concerned about Dillione. They say plantar fasciitis which I know can linger, but he's young and has a great medical staff. At worst he's back by February which gives a month to get acclimated if we need it. But honestly most teams are going to run 8 or less tourney time. As long as we suffer no other big injuries it'll be okay. ZZ, Gainey, Jahmai, Vescovi, Knecht, JJJ can all run the offense to an extent. Carr might moonlight as well as a ball handler. This team is deeeeeeeep. I'm excited. Good win!

 

[Namorto1]

I was pleased with the performance outside of a few lazy stretches in the first half. Wofford is a better team than I think Vegas and our fans want to credit them for. They are a very solid program.

It is encouraging seeing JJJ accept his role and execute to perfection so far. He’s scoring efficiently, playing good defense, and providing that leadership on the floor that you need from a veteran.

I am only slightly concerned about Zeiglar. There is some understandable rust and I am sure he is still not entirely healthy. With that being said, we do need to hope he figured it out eventually and can return to form or it might limit our ceiling. Dillione is either about to miss significant time or play at less than 100% for several weeks. Suddenly, our PG play is back to being a bit of a question mark if ZZ can’t return to form.

However, I am really happy with Gainey so far and I am more than willing to eat crow for being wrong about the impact he is having on this team. We will need his role to only grow moving forward without Dillione. Hope he can sustain his level of play.

Overall, we continue to show just how deep this team is. And we’re going to need 10-11 guys to contribute. My only real concern so far is post play/rebounding which you have already covered. But there is still time to figure all of that out.

I think Zeigler will be fine once Barnes gets into his ear and tells him he doesn't need to be the 1st option on offense at any point unless he has a wide-open layup. In the 1st half, he took one shot from the top of the key and another highly contested layup deep in the paint, and didn't pass the ball once on either possession and it was early in the shot clock. Perhaps he is just pressing too much which has less to do with his knee vs his decision-making. His role is to push tempo, assist others, create havoc defensively, eliminate TOs and be a complementary scorer when he is in rhythm and has a good look at the basket. The only time he may need to create on his own is when the shot clock is running out and even then we have several better options on the floor.

I hope Dilione's injury isn't as bad as some are suggesting. UT never seems to be able to get through a season without an injury in recent years. Gainey and Mashack's level of play may have minimized his impact this season anyway based on what we have seen thus far. Would really be a shame if he is out.

The biggest thing I learned from this game is that I think Barnes understands this team. Wofford kept it close in the first half and we purposefully came out in the 2nd half and got more aggressive, fed the post more often and went to the FT line alot more. When you need a bucket, play through Knecht and let him shoot or create space for others. Post game Barnes spoke about how JJJ and Vescovi understand their roles and really just want to do what is necessary to win games. Without stating it openly, Knecht and Gainey very well may be option # 1 and # 2 for the season. He also stated that he thinks Awaka will improve more than anyone else on the team as the season unfolds. With that I think he knows Awaka gives him both a post presence and rebounding that this group needs. In 3 games, Tobe played 9 minutes, 12 minutes and 14 minutes. I bet that will continue to rise.

 

[rdk4121]

On Zeigler, athletically he seems to be back to 100%. Offensively, he's struggling in all kinds of ways. He's never really been a great 3 point shooter, and I guarantee the knee isn't helping that. He also seems to be hesitant when he goes to try to score inside. Again he's never been super efficient anyway, but he's tentative. He made several really nice moves to beat his man off the dribble, but then just ended up throwing the ball away. It all seems to be mental, and some natural rust/ growing pains. I'm sure he'll figure it out, but the road doesn't get any easier.

 

[Volfan1000]

1. The first half was a bit of a slow start, but also not totally shocking given this game was sandwiched in between a hyped up road game and a trip to Maui awaiting. To Tennessee’s credit they came out and played a much better 2nd half and once again ultimately led wire to wire, Tennessee is still yet to trail for a single second yet this season, pretty impressive stuff.

2. Give Wofford credit for some tough shots in the first half, that happens sometimes, but what you can’t excuse was the 1st half rebounding effort. Way too many offensive rebounds allowing 2nd chance opportunists for Wofford, and again to their credit they took advantage. I’ve mentioned before this teams ability to rebound concerns me, we are going small almost exclusively and so naturally that’s a concern, and likely to be a weakness, but gotta be better. JJJ has been solid at the 4, Aidoo & Awaka have been decent, Mashack & Knecht playing 3 & 4 need to be better though it feels like to help the other guys out.

3. Loved seeing Vescovi get more involved offensively as he continues to find his role in this new look Tennessee offense, and Knecht & Gainey both continued to do what they’ve done. I still thought Vescovi passed up probably 3-4 shots that he would’ve often taken in years past that I would like to see him take, he’s more than just a wide open spot up shooter and has a quick trigger, wanna see him have the same confidence as Gainey & Knecht both do.

4. Not sounding the panic alarm, but Zeigler is struggling a bit, and that’s likely to be expected if we are honest with ourselves, but still valid to point out imo. Mashack has done a solid job when running PG imo and so has Gainey, so nice to have options, but it’s going to be a juggling act trying to get ZZ back into a groove and playing well while also having to deal with some of his struggles that he is going through currently.

5. 3-0 and headed to Maui just as we all had hoped to be, this is an incredibly stacked field that we will face. Syracuse is an opening game we should definitely win, probably be 12-14 point favorites would be my guess, after that all bets are off. If you do indeed win that opening game against Syracuse you then play 2 games against a likely field of Purdue, Gonzaga, Kansas, Marquette & UCLA…going 1-1 against that field would have to be considered a success and thus 2-1 overall. Obviously want to win it all, if we did so it would very possibly mean we are the #1 team in the country leaving Hawaii, but that’s definitely a tall task. Excited to see how we match up against what is an absolutely loaded field.



GBO!!!

Syracuse barely won against Colgate at home and Judah Mints is their go to guy on the offensive end.

I would love to see Tennessee win the Maui tournament but we likely have to go through Kansas and Purdue to win it all.

 

[TNBV]

On Zeigler, athletically he seems to be back to 100%. Offensively, he's struggling in all kinds of ways. He's never really been a great 3 point shooter, and I guarantee the knee isn't helping that. He also seems to be hesitant when he goes to try to score inside. Again he's never been super efficient anyway, but he's tentative. He made several really nice moves to beat his man off the dribble, but then just ended up throwing the ball away. It all seems to be mental, and some natural rust/ growing pains. I'm sure he'll figure it out, but the road doesn't get any easier.

Z is a gym rat and I imagine that this past year is the first time he hasn't been able to play ball everyday since before high school. It may take a few games and maybe the high end competition in Maui will set him off. I have faith he will be a force when we really need him.

 

[cardvolfan]

ZZ was shooting the 3 very well in warm-ups tonight. I still think it’s going to be 6-7 games before he begins to assimilate his whole game. I have to believe that most of his issues starting out are more emotionally related with the bad injury last year.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

ZZ was shooting the 3 very well in warm-ups tonight. I still think it’s going to be 6-7 games before he begins to assimilate his whole game. I have to believe that most of his issues starting out are more emotionally related with the bad injury last year.

ZZ doesn’t have too much practice time at full speed with Knecht or Gainey. I think ZZ will be assimilated very well with those new high end offensive contributors by SEC play in January.

 

[Orange Marlin]

We won they lost,,,, that’s how you do it. Go Vols

 

[bleedingTNorange]

Plus/minus doesn’t always tell the whole story but thought this was interesting given the talk of Ziegler’s struggles, clearly the rest of the team was better with him on the floor than off, which I’m not sure I would’ve thought previously…

 

[TheMookieMonster]

Plus/minus doesn’t always tell the whole story but thought this was interesting given the talk of Ziegler’s struggles, clearly the rest of the team was better with him on the floor than off, which I’m not sure I would’ve thought previously…

Surprised that Santi is only +8 considering just how much he did off the ball last night and how well he played in my mind. That could just be a side effect of him playing with some odd lineups a few times throughout the game though.

 

[Ttucke11]

Awaka's plus minus isn't surprising after watching him. I love the small ball and Aidoo's growth, but man I wish we could see more than 12mpg out of Awaka.

 

[cncchris33]

Awaka's plus minus isn't surprising after watching him. I love the small ball and Aidoo's growth, but man I wish we could see more than 12mpg out of Awaka.

Agree. His minutes have steadily increased every game to a season-high of 14, last night. Per 40 minutes, he's averaging 17 pts/17 rebs. He's our most aggressive rebounder (obviously) and offensive post presence. Fouls hindered him in the first 2 games, where he had 3 in each game in 9 and 12 minutes, respectively. I just wish he were 2" taller and a little more disciplined on defense where he could reliably be used to guard opposing 5s without fouling.

 

[walkenvol]

Agree. His minutes have steadily increased every game to a season-high of 14, last night. Per 40 minutes, he's averaging 17 pts/17 rebs. He's our most aggressive rebounder (obviously) and offensive post presence. Fouls hindered him in the first 2 games, where he had 3 in each game in 9 and 12 minutes, respectively. I just wish he were 2" taller and a little more disciplined on defense where he could reliably be used to guard opposing 5s without fouling.

If he’s not going to get 20+ minutes a game, why even worry about the number of fouls on him? Many times Uros’s fouls were stupid and intentional which contributed to some viewing our team as crossing the line on physicality. Awaka’s fouls all seem to be basketball related and never intended - more of a bull in a china shop situation. I’d play him till he fouled out if he’s being effective and the fouls don’t result in the other team getting free throws making him a net negative. JMO

 

[BACKDOC]

1. The first half was a bit of a slow start, but also not totally shocking given this game was sandwiched in between a hyped up road game and a trip to Maui awaiting. To Tennessee’s credit they came out and played a much better 2nd half and once again ultimately led wire to wire, Tennessee is still yet to trail for a single second yet this season, pretty impressive stuff.

2. Give Wofford credit for some tough shots in the first half, that happens sometimes, but what you can’t excuse was the 1st half rebounding effort. Way too many offensive rebounds allowing 2nd chance opportunists for Wofford, and again to their credit they took advantage. I’ve mentioned before this teams ability to rebound concerns me, we are going small almost exclusively and so naturally that’s a concern, and likely to be a weakness, but gotta be better. JJJ has been solid at the 4, Aidoo & Awaka have been decent, Mashack & Knecht playing 3 & 4 need to be better though it feels like to help the other guys out.

3. Loved seeing Vescovi get more involved offensively as he continues to find his role in this new look Tennessee offense, and Knecht & Gainey both continued to do what they’ve done. I still thought Vescovi passed up probably 3-4 shots that he would’ve often taken in years past that I would like to see him take, he’s more than just a wide open spot up shooter and has a quick trigger, wanna see him have the same confidence as Gainey & Knecht both do.

4. Not sounding the panic alarm, but Zeigler is struggling a bit, and that’s likely to be expected if we are honest with ourselves, but still valid to point out imo. Mashack has done a solid job when running PG imo and so has Gainey, so nice to have options, but it’s going to be a juggling act trying to get ZZ back into a groove and playing well while also having to deal with some of his struggles that he is going through currently.

5. 3-0 and headed to Maui just as we all had hoped to be, this is an incredibly stacked field that we will face. Syracuse is an opening game we should definitely win, probably be 12-14 point favorites would be my guess, after that all bets are off. If you do indeed win that opening game against Syracuse you then play 2 games against a likely field of Purdue, Gonzaga, Kansas, Marquette & UCLA…going 1-1 against that field would have to be considered a success and thus 2-1 overall. Obviously want to win it all, if we did so it would very possibly mean we are the #1 team in the country leaving Hawaii, but that’s definitely a tall task. Excited to see how we match up against what is an absolutely loaded field.



GBO!!!

Yeah, ZZ is a liability.

 

[cncchris33]

If he’s not going to get 20+ minutes a game, why even worry about the number of fouls on him? Many times Uros’s fouls were stupid and intentional which contributed to some viewing our team as crossing the line on physicality. Awaka’s fouls all seem to be basketball related and never intended - more of a bill in a china shop situation. I’d play him till he fouled out if he’s being effective and the fouls don’t result in the other team getting free throws making him a net negative. JMO

I understand that side, too. In game one and two, he would have fouled if he played 20 minutes. I guess I don't think we feel like we can go into any matchup with Aidoo as our only experienced big man, especially down the stretch in close games.

 

[b_gann]

Plus/minus doesn’t always tell the whole story but thought this was interesting given the talk of Ziegler’s struggles, clearly the rest of the team was better with him on the floor than off, which I’m not sure I would’ve thought previously…

That's the one thing that stood out for me against Wisconsin. We got a friendly whistle for a stretch or two that helped mask it on the box score, but I thought we looked a lot worse offensively without ZZ in. I'm hoping he's just getting used to running 5 on 5 with new bodies. Athletically, I think he looks fine.

 

[The Dog]

The more the former high school teammates, Cade and Carr get to play, the better this team will be in the long run, imo.

 

[walkenvol]

The more the former teammates, Cade and Carr get to play, the better this team will be in the long run, imo.

Who are you taking minutes from to give to Cade & Carr?

 

[The Dog]

Who are you taking minutes from to give to Cade & Carr?

Dilione's for Carr and we seem to have in-bounds play just for Cade, any minutes are good minutes