Has Vescovi found his lost shot?

[walkenvol]

Coming into this season I anticipated Vescovi benefiting with a lot of open 3’s off of the attention given to Knecht. He’s gotten those good looks but has either been passing them up or missing more than his historical rate. I’ve been anxiously awaiting all season for him to find his groove from distance as I believe he will be key in our March success or lack there of. Last night he looked like his old shooting self! If this is the start of a hot streak for him then hang on for a great run by our VOLS!

 

[hatingbamaisawayoflife]

Let’s hope march is his best month ever

 

[LibertyVol]

I was looking at his stats and comparing them to last year. His percentages are basically the same. It does seem like he is not shooting as well though.

 

[Lankykong]

I was looking at his stats and comparing them to last year. His percentages are basically the same. It does seem like he is not shooting as well though.

I think it looks worse because he’s been wide open more often this year and there are fewer attempts? Haven’t looked up stats but that’s my read from watching

 

[LibertyVol]

I think it looks worse because he’s been wide open more often this year and there are fewer attempts? Haven’t looked up stats but that’s my read from watching

Yes. With the quality of shots he is getting as compared to last year his % should be higher.

 

[VOLtaism]

Vescovi has not been looking for his shot. I am piecing together what Santi and Coach Barnes have said over the last 3 weeks about building team work and trying to get Aidoo more involved. In watching the replays, when Santi is getting the ball on his spot, he has been more focused on the 2 man game with Jonas than getting his shot off. He can't create his own shot so if he misses it at the catch point he has no shot. Looks like its paying off. His shots were so wide open last night he had to take them. Everyones shots were wide open. Hard to believe we had that many open looks in an SEC game.

 

[LibertyVol]

Vescovi has not been looking for his shot. I am piecing together what Santi and Coach Barnes have said over the last 3 weeks about building team work and trying to get Aidoo more involved. In watching the replays, when Santi is getting the ball on his spot, he has been more focused on the 2 man game with Jonas than getting his shot off. He can't create his own shot so if he misses it at the catch point he has no shot. Looks like its paying off. His shots were so wide open last night he had to take them. Everyones shots were wide open. Hard to believe we had that many open looks in an SEC game.

They looked really good. I try not to get too excited because the competition makes a big difference. I would love for Tennessee to win the league this year. I feel like Tennessee is the best team. Of course I am prejudiced. With the unbalanced schedule sometimes the best team may not win it.

 

[Zues1]

SV has been a favorite for me since he stepped on the court in Knoxville.
I see something different/missing in his game. Occasionally he shows spots of previous seasons.
Some people peak at different times. Highschool , college, freshman year. You never really know until you're finished and you look back at your career.
One other note, he went home last year for his grandmothers funeral. He's seemed different since then.

 

[BACKDOC]

Coming into this season I anticipated Vescovi benefiting with a lot of open 3’s off of the attention given to Knecht. He’s gotten those good looks but has either been passing them up or missing more than his historical rate. I’ve been anxiously awaiting all season for him to find his groove from distance as I believe he will be key in our March success or lack there of. Last night he looked like his old shooting self! If this is the start of a hot streak for him then hang on for a great run by our VOLS!

Seems odd that people keep talking about this; he is only 0.7% behind his shooting from last year, and that's even with the cold shooting that he had at the beginning of the season.

 

[walkenvol]

Seems odd that people keep talking about this; he is only 0.7% behind his shooting from last year, and that's even with the cold shooting that he had at the beginning of the season.

Anyone only comparing the stats between this season and last are discounting that last season he was often taking tougher shots and shots late in the shot clock as we were depending on him as maybe the primary scoring option. I don’t recall him having to take more than a few late shot clock attempts this season. A true comparison would be to remove all the guarded and forced shots from both seasons then compare. I think we all know his perimeter shooting has been off this season.

 

[Delmar]

Vescovi has not been looking for his shot. I am piecing together what Santi and Coach Barnes have said over the last 3 weeks about building team work and trying to get Aidoo more involved. In watching the replays, when Santi is getting the ball on his spot, he has been more focused on the 2 man game with Jonas than getting his shot off. He can't create his own shot so if he misses it at the catch point he has no shot. Looks like its paying off. His shots were so wide open last night he had to take them. Everyones shots were wide open. Hard to believe we had that many open looks in an SEC game.

I think teams are now so focused with helping on Knecht that it is leaving open shooters. Knecht had 5 assists last night in 20 minutes mostly passing out of double teams. If we have Santi, ZZ and JJJ shooting like that consistently, they’ll be hard to beat.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I think teams are now so focused with helping on Knecht that it is leaving open shooters. Knecht had 5 assists last night in 20 minutes mostly passing out of double teams. If we have Santi, ZZ and JJJ shooting like that consistently, they’ll be hard to beat.

That’s been The Deacon’s evil plan the whole time.

Knecht will be a decoy in the NCAAT.

 

[knox73]

Vescovi and JJJ are terrific teammates and all around valuable to the squad. Glad they returned and are poised for a deep tournament run with this great team. They have had a few off games but you know they will be there in crunch time. Both guys are stepping up along with ZZ, Aidoo, Mashack, Gainey and Awaka. Oh I forgot Knecht. Man that is some talent and experience coming at an opponent!

 

[TennEddie]

Vescovi has not been looking for his shot. …….His shots were so wide open last night he had to take them. Everyones shots were wide open. Hard to believe we had that many open looks in an SEC game.

Opponents are determined to shut down Dalton K.
That will be the game plan the rest of the season .

 

[VolNGA1]

Our offense is like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get during any game. Knecht is about the only constant. Last night SV, JJJ, ZZ, and JA all were on. Whereas, JG and JM were tossing up bricks. We seem to be fine in any game where we have 3 guys making shots.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

Our offense is like Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. You never know what you are going to get during any game. Knecht is about the only constant. Last night SV, JJJ, ZZ, and JA all were on. Whereas, JG and JM were tossing up bricks. We seem to be fine in any game where we have 3 guys making shots.

Mashack was practicing his touch shooting while Barnes was on the post game radio show last night.

 

[aWhiteLoftonChism]

Coming into this season I anticipated Vescovi benefiting with a lot of open 3’s off of the attention given to Knecht. He’s gotten those good looks but has either been passing them up or missing more than his historical rate. I’ve been anxiously awaiting all season for him to find his groove from distance as I believe he will be key in our March success or lack there of. Last night he looked like his old shooting self! If this is the start of a hot streak for him then hang on for a great run by our VOLS!

So you anticipated DK to be the top scorer in the conference and garnering a lot of attention did ya? Impressive…
Santi has been the same player he’s been for the last 3 years. Hes been a terrific defender, a great passer, solid rebounder, and an overall All-SEC type player.
The biggest differences from the last 2 years to this one are that he’s playing a few minutes less per game, not handling the ball near as much, and having fewer plays designed to get him shots.
Teams have still guarded him like he’s been the primary scorer for most of the year ( not as much since middle of January), and he’s still typically guarding the other teams top wing player.
As far as shooting he has been fine. Santi is 1, yes 1, made three from being at his career average %!! Also, he is exactly 3 made 3’s away from shooting the same % as Knecht! So everyone chill out on him not shooting well. He’s just not shooting as much. DK, Gainey, and Aidoo are getting more opportunities and that’s all.
The only guy who shots a lot who is not shooting well is Gainey. He’s a career .382% from 3 and is at .290 here.
VolNation is lucky to have had Santi & JJJ for 5 years. We need to appreciate them while they are here!

 

[wmcovol]

Opponents are determined to shut down Dalton K.
That will be the game plan the rest of the season .

I hope so but I doubt it. Both Ky in Lex & Vandy last night focused on Knecht (per coaches comments post game). Those are the 2 best games the Vols have played this SEC season besides Alabama.

Some teams have taken the approach to play Knecht straight & stop the other guys. SoCarolina & A&M did this. I realize this is a small sample size but the most effective strategy to defend Tennessee thus far hasn’t been to focus on DK IMO.

Rarely does SV’s defender leave him to double or defend a drive. Vandy did last night & he hit 4 of 5. Ky did the same & he hit 3 of 4. SV misses the off ball screens that the team last yr ran that Uros & Nk provided.

 

[aWhiteLoftonChism]

I hope so but I doubt it. Both Ky in Lex & Vandy last night focused on Knecht (per coaches comments post game). Those are the 2 best games the Vols have played this SEC season besides Alabama.

Some teams have taken the approach to play Knecht straight & stop the other guys. SoCarolina & A&M did this. I realize this is a small sample size but the most effective strategy to defend Tennessee thus far hasn’t been to focus on DK IMO.

Rarely does SV’s defender leave him to double or defend a drive. Vandy did last night & he hit 4 of 5. Ky did the same & he hit 3 of 4. SV misses the off ball screens that the team last yr ran that Uros & Nk provided.

Very astute post. You are a coach or a terrific student of the game.
As I mentioned in a previous post. They have still guarded Santi hard. They chase him around like he’s scoring 20pts a game. I think it’s because they know that not only can he hit big shots but that he can get the defense into scramble mode once he has it with his ball fakes, dribble drives, and passing abilities.
There is no one we want throwing the ball into the post more than Santi. He’s incredible at post entry passing which isn’t as easy as most people think. Touch, angle, and especially timing all have to be at a high level.

 

[walkenvol]

So you anticipated DK to be the top scorer in the conference and garnering a lot of attention did ya? Impressive…
Santi has been the same player he’s been for the last 3 years. Hes been a terrific defender, a great passer, solid rebounder, and an overall All-SEC type player.
The biggest differences from the last 2 years to this one are that he’s playing a few minutes less per game, not handling the ball near as much, and having fewer plays designed to get him shots.
Teams have still guarded him like he’s been the primary scorer for most of the year ( not as much since middle of January), and he’s still typically guarding the other teams top wing player.
As far as shooting he has been fine. Santi is 1, yes 1, made three from being at his career average %!! Also, he is exactly 3 made 3’s away from shooting the same % as Knecht! So everyone chill out on him not shooting well. He’s just not shooting as much. DK, Gainey, and Aidoo are getting more opportunities and that’s all.
The only guy who shots a lot who is not shooting well is Gainey. He’s a career .382% from 3 and is at .290 here.
VolNation is lucky to have had Santi & JJJ for 5 years. We need to appreciate them while they are here!

No, I didn’t anticipate DK to have the level of success he’s enjoyed. I had heard enough good reports from preseason that I thought he would be a strong scorer which would take some of the defensive attention off our other shooters.

As I stated before, he isn’t shooting as well this year because he’s not having to shoot near as many guarded or late clock shots this season yet still shooting a lower percentage. Anybody who’s watched this season knows Vescovi isn’t shooting as well.

Every other accolade you mentioned I agree with completely.

 

[aWhiteLoftonChism]

No, I didn’t anticipate DK to have the level of success he’s enjoyed. I had heard enough good reports from preseason that I thought he would be a strong scorer which would take some of the defensive attention off our other shooters.

As I stated before, he isn’t shooting as well this year because he’s not having to near as many guarded or late clock shots this season yet still shooting a lower percentage. Anybody who’s watched this season knows Vescovi isn’t shooting as well.

I’ve watched every game, including the ones in Italy. Like I said in my post you replied to, he is 1made 3 from being at his career % and 3 made 3s from shooting as good as DK. He’s been fine.
Has he had games where he’s missed open looks? Yep
Has he hit tough shots in hostile environments? Yep
Has everyone on this team missed wide open 3s in multiple games? Absolutely! We all wonder how they could’ve missed them .
It happens… shooting averages out over time and can’t be counted on to always show up.
Defense travels all day and all night. If we make a Final 4 run it will be because we play great D and we hit timely shots

 

[Prayivm3rcy]

The biggest problems he is not taking shots. Too many times he is pump faking and trying to be a playmaker. It will be the downfall of this team come March.

 

[livefaith]

Seems odd that people keep talking about this; he is only 0.7% behind his shooting from last year, and that's even with the cold shooting that he had at the beginning of the season.

I think the idea is that last season his looks were far tougher than this. He has had dozens of open looks. I'd have to agree with that idea.

 

[wmcovol]

Very astute post. You are a coach or a terrific student of the game.
As I mentioned in a previous post. They have still guarded Santi hard. They chase him around like he’s scoring 20pts a game. I think it’s because they know that not only can he hit big shots but that he can get the defense into scramble mode once he has it with his ball fakes, dribble drives, and passing abilities.
There is no one we want throwing the ball into the post more than Santi. He’s incredible at post entry passing which isn’t as easy as most people think. Touch, angle, and especially timing all have to be at a high level.

Thank you. Kind of you to say that. I played some in high school but I’ve always had a huge interest in game plans, strategy, scouting reports, etc in football, Bb& baseball. I also enjoy listening to opposing coaches post game comments. Often you learn more about your team that way than you do listening to our programs.

Ark coach had the game plan to stop ZZ & SV & he said so after the game. That part worked but Unfortunately his team didn’t respond anywhere else, especially vs Aidoo.

Game performance often is determined by how your opponent plays you. In football this year, defenses were determined to take the deep ball away in most cases. Most teams played 2 safeties deep. In basketball, the defense determines in most cases where your shots are.

I do believe opponent’s will force DK to finish on the left side if possible. He can finish either side but he’s absolutely lethal from the right side.

 

[WhenUrVolUrVFL]

I think Vescovi’s best basketball is yet to come for this season. I don’t know why but I feel like everyone is gonna come together starting now.

I think we seriously could win every game we play for the rest of the season. Missouri gonna tell me a lot about this team, because itnshouldnbe the tune up game we need against an inferior opponent where a dominant team like ours just absolutely continues where we left off against Vandy.

Texas a&m needs to get absolutely smacked up in Knoxville. Like we need to mercilessly beat them.