Game Thread: #11/12 Lady Vols vs. Memphis, Home, Monday, 6:32PM, SEC+ (stream)

#576
#576
WinnerCircle said:
The negaVols aren’t having a good morning = in their feelings.

Not one true fan loss sleep last night and the LVs woke up ranked #15 in the country.

They here talking about no elite talent outside of a projected lottery pick in Rickea Jackson when this is a 1 of 1 player.

I’ve seen Jillian Hollingshead dominate LSU so I’m not worried.

I’ve seen Destinee Wells score 30 points in 5 consecutive games so I’m not worried.

I’ve seen Jewel Spear drop 34 on y’all portal fav and through 3 games average 19.0 points a game! Spear is the best shooter on the team take a look at her percentages.

In addition, as the 4th ranked portal transfer she is averaging more points than the top 3!
Elite.
I’m not worried.

Sara Puckett = Buckett. Same player that hit the legendary 3pt game winner against Belmont as a freshman in the NCAA tourney. Led the victory on the road at Virginia Tech as a freshman.
Scored her career high 24 pts last night.
I’m not worried.

This team scored 84 points without a 20 ppg scorer and you folks won’t even mention this but complain about everything.


This level of contradiction speaks volume. These same people discrediting every single player on this roster beyond the 1 of 1, will glorify the #1 ranked portal transfer that is averaging less than double figures on another team. Is that player still elite?

The other one.. the #2 portal transfer that is averaging just over 10pts and about 5rebs.. is that player still elite?

Don’t tell me you are only concerned with TN’s roster because all some of you do is glorify other teams and their roster when they aren’t doing any better than TN.

The negaVols going out sad lol..
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Obviously your glass is not just half full but overflowing. We all will observe what happens the rest of the year but I am on record as saying multiple times ,if Key does not return to full form by at latest Feb1 this will not be a successful NCAA journey in March.Post play is critical by Tourney time and right now our post play is mediocre at best.
 
#577
#577
volforlife10 said:
how would anyone know who is entering the portal this early.. there’s girls who enter the portal that no one would expect every year. there will be options in the portal, trust.
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Post options ? We shall see what we shall see .....and I hope there are some but if you examine post players across the country and who they play for right now which posts do you think will be in the portal....maybe some of the good ones can be enticed by appropriate NIL .....maybe not .
 
#578
#578
madtownvol said:
There is an entirely different vibe with Kellie than Holly. Those comparisons are getting tiresome.
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I agree they are two different coaches and vibes, but

Not taking timeouts during runs
not visibly working the refs
erratic subbing
not putting blame on themself during pressers
going home after losses with timeouts in their pockets
Not immediately addressing players for mistakes/mental lapses

unfortunately
the similarities are there
And Coach Kellie has to see them and realize them


I said it and I stand by it "this org 1st, players 2nd, coaches 3rd"
On this forum that will not change for me
I am a coach, of 43 years, I am going to be toughest on what I know best
 
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#579
#579
Coach Jumper said:
Not once does she say, I failed to, I should have,,,NOT ONCE!

A coach has to take some of the responsibility,,,personally
especially in a <5 pt win loss
Otherwise what the team here's it is all "Their" fault

Teams win and lose blowouts,,coaches win, lose close games
its a hard fact, but it is a fact
As a coach, I have to realize and accept this

Holly did this (we, they, it's hard, scratch) and lost the respect that a coach needs
Kellie has to not make the same mistake
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A coach takes the grenades (accountability). In practice, behind closed doors or cutting minutes however it needs to be addressed is handled with away from the camera. But when asked it starts and ends with the HC/staff.
 
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#581
#581
It is troubling to have to go to OT with Memphis..... Rickea injury or not.... I too like many of you am hopeful each year but i think i would classify self as "realist"

It has been 16 years since we made a Final Four. Several of the Final Four participants in that time are teams we wouldn't consider an equal program to ours. Realistically where is the hope... where is the promise?

I look back often at videos of Pat's teams. There was an intensity to how they played. They did not play in pedestrian fashion. Their defense was tenacious. I haven't seen a lot of that in the Holly or KJH years. Perhaps it is a different game now.

I see on the forum talk of need for "elite" players... that is nice to have... but a team such as Alabama beat us a few times in a row with regular players who played as a team, minimized mistakes, and were well coached.

I have always said that WCBB starts with good coaching and good guard play. Hopefully these and other areas will improve soon.
 
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#582
#582
Majors said:
A coach takes the grenades (accountability). In practice, behind closed doors or cutting minutes however it needs to be addressed is handled with away from the camera. But when asked it starts and ends with the HC/staff.
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I agree on everything but on camera
If I have a player on the floor doing absent-minded or bonehead things,,,they WILL hear, feel and know I am not a happy camper,,,right then!
 
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#583
#583
Coach Jumper said:
I agree on everything but on camera
If I have a player on the floor doing absent-minded or bonehead things,,,they WILL hear, feel and know I am not a happy camper,,,right then!
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That’s not what I’m saying. I’m saying if you need to address a kid or lay blame it’s behind closed doors but as the coach you take the public grenade. In game tough love coaching isn’t what I’m saying….that should be obvious
 
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#585
#585
Volfan2012 said:
We've had a few surprises early in the season that no one was expecting. I thought we would be solid in the post. Tamari blocking 100 shots and Jill and then Karoline as a third wheel helping to elevate that position to a high level. Looks to me like Tamari should not be playing any minutes, but should be in a rehab program to try and regain her coordination and conditioning. Surprise number two has been the play of Destinee Wells who played very well against some top P5 opponents including our team suddenly looks a little lost and her 45 percent three point shooting somehow totally gone. Surprise number three which we only found out about last night is that Rickea has some kind of lower leg problem that she's had for a while which could clear up or be a lingering problem. Those three surprises take high expectations way down the ladder and again make this look like sweet sixteen will be the ultimate we can hope to reach again this season.

I know we can't get to concerned about what happened in just one game. Memphis had a very good press and the best on the ball pressure we have played against this season. Still based mostly on past seasons under Coach Kellie seems to be trending in the same direction. Maria tried to ask the question about the last 12 seconds all the players went around answering it. How do you not just hold the ball or pass it out to the perimeter when you have a two point lead. Why you trying to score with 12 seconds left and the lead? Besides some players playing way below their level of past ability we still have way to much shaky decision making and unlike any other season this is Kellie's team. Everyone on the team other than Tamari was recruited here by Kellie. So really not anymore excuses for coaching or players. If we are not there then guess we can now almost assuredly say with certainly enough information Coach Kellie is not going to get us there meaning final four and SEC Championships. Which if that is not what you care about and are ok with third and fourth place league finishes and a trip to the NCAA sweet sixteen then nothing is wrong. Otherwise it may be time if coaches can't do it this season to go in another direction. I don't really like it because I like Coach Kellie wanted her to succeed. Everything just seems to be repeating season after season. High expectations turning quickly. Hopefully we can still turn it around if Rickea can get back and Wells finds her game. Tamari is not going to help us this season that is obvious she has a long way to go to get back to the player she was before she became ill. So here we are on to the next game.
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I agree with all your points. Sara stepped up big in Rickea's absence but had some inexplicable moments of brain freeze. Her TO which led to the tying bucket was one of them. Should not happen to an experienced player. On the flipside, she usually does not have the ball in that situation. Last season it would have been RJ or Jordan. This season Spears or RJ.

As it turned out, I think the OT was a blessing in disguise. Instead of eeking out a win, they played their best ball in that last five minute stretch and Spears got to take over the game by going to the rim. I think there could be some enduring pluses there.

As with Powell last season, PGs need time to adjust to new schemes and players. Hopefully, Wells can move along the learning curve a bit faster.

In the presser, Kellie made it clear that Jillian is going to have to step up as a paint protector. She has the potential to do so. And though we think of RJ as a scorer, she has proven to be a good shot blocker and defender down low. So, her injury is a kind of double blow.

I do worry that this injury-- calf strain, Achilles?-- might take a while to heal. If so, the next few games are going to be a gut check. As you point out, the optimistic expectations were contingent on a healthy TK, RJ playing like an All-American, and Wells providing the solution at PG.
 
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#589
#589
The off-court sweet and kinda shy Jillian had some moments of disappointing body language last night that I didn't like seeing. At all.

Like others, I fear Tamari's season is over, but unlike others, I do not see her coming back next season for another year. I cannot imagine her not being ready to move on to the next phase of her life after this season.

But back to Jill, she has got to make a strong effort to carry herself on the court like an even bigger presence than she physically is if Tennessee hopes to make a deep run in post-season. She cannot, and must not be giving off "I suck for making that mistake" or "we are in trouble and I feel hopeless" vibes on the court.

Players feed off each other, and through her facial expressions and body language Jill needs to throw her teammates red meat to chew on, not limp noodles.
 
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#590
#590
glv98 said:
Love you Lucy, but WTF? Everyone knows players come and go. But we have exactly one truly elite player and she is leaving. We have zero truly elite player to replace her. Simple math of subtraction, plus last night's preview of life without Rickea does not paint a hopeful picture.

Meanwhile, truly elite young players are the story of the early season in WCBB. We are not in that storyline.
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Thank you!! I hope you meant that because it’s the nicest thing anyone has said to me today! Do you per chance know how to bake a pumpkin pie? But I digress!
My comment may make more sense if you find a previous one where I said in no way were the recruits coming in next year going to replace Rikea 100%. But, so far, we have a 4 and a 5 star so hopefully they will bring some positives to the team. Nope, we will miss Rikea for sure but I am always excited and hopeful for the new young ladies joining the LV family! My glass is almost always half full.
 
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#591
#591
Lucy said:
Thank you!! I hope you meant that because it’s the nicest thing anyone has said to me today! Do you per chance know how to bake a pumpkin pie? But I digress!
My comment may make more sense if you find a previous one where I said in no way were the recruits coming in next year going to replace Rikea 100%. But, so far, we have a 4 and a 5 star so hopefully they will bring some positives to the team. Nope, we will miss Rikea for sure but I am always excited and hopeful for the new young ladies joining the LV family! My glass is almost always half full.
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Per next season, we also have redshirt Talaysia Cooper waiting in the wings.

  • No. 18 overall player, No. 4 point guard, five-star rating in espnW 100 (2022).
  • No. 22 overall player, No. 8 guard, 4.5-star rating by Prospects.Nation.com (2022).
  • McDonald’s All-American (2022).
  • South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year (2021).
 
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#592
#592
lvocd said:
The off-court sweet and kinda shy Jillian had some moments of disappointing body language last night that I didn't like seeing. At all.

Like others, I fear Tamari's season is over, but unlike others, I do not see her coming back next season for another year. I cannot imagine her not being ready to move on to the next phase of her life after this season.

But back to Jill, she has got to make a strong effort to carry herself on the court like an even bigger presence than she physically is if Tennessee hopes to make a deep run in post-season. She cannot, and must not be giving off "I suck for making that mistake" or "we are in trouble and I feel hopeless" vibes on the court.

Players feed off each other, and through her facial expressions and body language Jill needs to throw her teammates red meat to chew on, not limp noodles.
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I agree I think TK may be done.

Jill was the player Rickea interacted most with on the bench. Was pointing out things very coachlike. Hopefully that helped her. Jill being consistent is so big for us.
madtownvol said:
Per next season, we also have redshirt Talaysia Cooper waiting in the wings.

  • No. 18 overall player, No. 4 point guard, five-star rating in espnW 100 (2022).
  • No. 22 overall player, No. 8 guard, 4.5-star rating by Prospects.Nation.com (2022).
  • McDonald’s All-American (2022).
  • South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year (2021).
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Coops the real deal fm what I saw in practice. But we gotta get more. These young players that other teams are stockpiling are terrifying.
 
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#593
#593
lvocd said:
The off-court sweet and kinda shy Jillian had some moments of disappointing body language last night that I didn't like seeing. At all.

Like others, I fear Tamari's season is over, but unlike others, I do not see her coming back next season for another year. I cannot imagine her not being ready to move on to the next phase of her life after this season.

But back to Jill, she has got to make a strong effort to carry herself on the court like an even bigger presence than she physically is if Tennessee hopes to make a deep run in post-season. She cannot, and must not be giving off "I suck for making that mistake" or "we are in trouble and I feel hopeless" vibes on the court.

Players feed off each other, and through her facial expressions and body language Jill needs to throw her teammates red meat to chew on, not limp noodles.
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You could be 100% but if she has WNBA aspirations, coming back next season would make a lot of sense.

Also, after someone has pulmonary embolism, they are put on blood thinners for an extended period of time.

Side effects include weakness and coordination and reflex issues.
 
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#594
#594
madtownvol said:
Per next season, we also have redshirt Talaysia Cooper waiting in the wings.

  • No. 18 overall player, No. 4 point guard, five-star rating in espnW 100 (2022).
  • No. 22 overall player, No. 8 guard, 4.5-star rating by Prospects.Nation.com (2022).
  • McDonald’s All-American (2022).
  • South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year (2021).
Click to expand...


Talaysia Cooper is going to thrive on Rocky Top.
And Kaniya Boyd is every bit an elite G as any other G in the 2024 class. She plays for a program that has won 8 straight State Championships.
She is a natural born leader. The thing that happens with these recruiting services in this AAU era is that if a player doesn’t attend all these circuits or accept invitations to certain camps they’ll drop them down the rankings lists.
Boyd’s focus isn’t on trying to earn rankings and stars… this player is legit.
Cooper, Nyla Brooks, Boyd, and Finley Chastain the LVs are stockpiling!
That’s scary hours🍊.
 
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#598
#598
glv98 said:
I agree I think TK may be done.

Jill was the player Rickea interacted most with on the bench. Was pointing out things very coachlike. Hopefully that helped her. Jill being consistent is so big for us.

Coops the real deal fm what I saw in practice. But we gotta get more. These young players that other teams are stockpiling are terrifying.
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Ain’t skeered. Ya ain’t got a hair on yer azz GLV.. 🤣
 
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