Official Game Thread: #9 Tennessee at #4 Michigan State (3:30 BTN)

#527
#527
Nice win--like the transfers, plus Mashack is getting better. We can score and play defense.

Biggest weakness is the usual: We're not very formidable inside. We gave up 16 offensive rebounds and 21 second-chance points--or was it more than that. So one quarter of MSU's total points came on second-chance baskets.
 
#529
#529
Lukusw said:
Finally got to watch a replay (thanks Freak). Here's my 2 cents:

1. Knecht: holy freaking cow. He can shoot. He can handle the ball. What I was surprised at was his passing -- multiple lovely dimes, including on PnR. Defense already looks passable. Just might be our best player. And he did it about 7 different ways, so I don't see the potential fizzle like recent transfers-after-exhibitions. That dunk, man.

2. We have multiple drivers: knecht, gainey, mashack. ZZ when he is back. Both Aidoo & Awaka cab play PnR. This factors should immensely help on the night when the 3s don't fall.

3. Ball-handling: got more options than expected. ZZ, Gainey, Mashack, Knecht, Dilione. I'm not worried about the end of the game. We missed 2 of our best end of game players.

4. We won't hit 50% from 3 every game but MAN we have shooters. Knecht & Vescovi in at the same time is going to cause teams headaches. Remember complaints last year about Vescovi "disappearing" in games because the entire defensive blueprint is centered on him? Yeah, teams won't be able to do that this year.

5. Frontcourt:
Based on comments during the game, I thought our guys got destroyed inside. Watching it, we got outplayed by their bigs but Awaka & Aidoo did ok. It wasn't completely one-sided. That might be the best frontcourt we play all year

6. Dilione:
Likewise, I thought Dilione did ok. Freshman for sure. Forced things a few times but you can see the skill set. Made a few nice correct reads. Could still get into the paint. Playing against not top-10 talent will help settle him in

7. How cool was this for an exhibition? Full crowd. Loud. Competitive. So much better prep than beating a little school by 30. I'm so ready for basketball.
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Looking forward to #4, that is going to be a very nice problem we will create for opponents. Hopefully, Vescovi can move his shooting average up a few percentage points having an extra second or so to get set.
 
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#530
#530
The Dog said:
I understand, but the Vols were still ranked all year and made the Sweet 16. So nothing to worry about, imo
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Yeah, but we still went into an offensive funk many times last year after shooting the lights out versus Gonzaga.
 
#531
#531
TheMookieMonster said:
Based on what I saw tonight, when fully healthy I would expect our starting 5 will be:

Zakai
Santi
Knecht
JJJ
Aidoo

With Gainey, Mashack, and Awaka first off the bench and Dillione getting some run, too. That’s a solid 9 players.
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Good call. 9 guys that will play a lot of minutes. I hope Estrella earns enough to get at least 8 minutes per game but that may be wishful thinking. We could use another big in the rotation. This team is deep and can be fresh at the end of the year, if we stay healthy and Barnes commits to it.
 
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#532
#532
The Dog said:
I understand, but the Vols were still ranked all year and made the Sweet 16. So nothing to worry about, imo
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This has been my thought. I understand pumping the breaks bc its an exhibition, but I dont understand the "Well we beat Gonzaga last year in an exhibition and look how that turned out." Turned out pretty good, all things considered!
 
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#533
#533
I didn’t get any results in the ticket forum so posting here. I’ve got a free pair in 311 vs Lenoir. Let me know if you’re interested.
 
#540
#540
turbovol said:
Nice win--like the transfers, plus Mashack is getting better. We can score and play defense.

Biggest weakness is the usual: We're not very formidable inside. We gave up 16 offensive rebounds and 21 second-chance points--or was it more than that. So one quarter of MSU's total points came on second-chance baskets.
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Also, fast break points and points off the bench. Got out rebounded by 8 or 9. I think MSU got off about 10 more shots. Lots to work on, but I believe all those things are correctable. Tennessee playing this game in that environment will pay dividends the whole year. Gotta love the dividends.
 
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#542
#542
This was an exhibition game. The environment didn’t feel like one and the way the teams played looked like it was a late season conference game. But it was still an exhibition where we saw a lot of things that we won’t see much of after conference play starts. Missing two starters and playing a lot of freshman. Maybe Estrella or another young guy can step up and earn a few minutes but we’re not going to see what we saw yesterday, of course. The main guys will consist of:

Vescovi
ZZ
Knecht
JJJ
Aidoo
Awaka
Mashack
Gainey

And then I feel like we will have Dillione and Estrella grab a few minutes to help bridge the gap throughout the season if they can progress. But the guys above will be the main ones in conference play. The rotation will shrink and we’ll see 9-10 guys at the most. If all 9-10 guys can plug in and play at an SEC-level, that will be a deep rotation.

With ZZ and Vescovi in the lineup, the turnovers and defense will be improved. But the thing I’m pleased with and excited about is the fact that the main ball handlers will be ZZ, Gainey, and Vescovi meaning Mashack won’t have to carry that load. I liked what I saw from Gainey at the point.
 
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#543
#543
BACKDOC said:
Awesome game today; the only thing that worries me is the fact we beat Gonzaga last year in an exhibition game.
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In my mind, there's a difference this year....the roster. We've got so many options that it's hard to see an off night by ON or JJJ being the difference in a game. Same deal with injuries. We're much better prepared to handle those things. Finally, there's someone pretty darned good nipping at the heels of every starter. Competition will make sure we show up with an edge for each game. Now we face one heckuva tough OOC schedule so we'll take some lumps as the team learns to play together and rotations/roles are decided, but if we stay healthy, we'll be a tough nut to crack come tournament time. This might be the year Barnes is able to break through and get that 800lb March gorilla off his back. The one type of team that I can see posing a problem is a big, physical bunch. Their dilemma is can those big ol' boys hang with us for a full game? Gonna be a lotta fun this year. I just hope I'm not living in a fantasy world.
 
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#544
#544
Biggest question for me is can JJJ hold up at the 4 for the whole season. Small ball looks to be our best lineup this season, but need another guard to help out at the 4 imo. Mashack can some, but definitely undersized. Can knecht defend/rebound at the 4?
 
#546
#546
ndubvols said:
Biggest question for me is can JJJ hold up at the 4 for the whole season. Small ball looks to be our best lineup this season, but need another guard to help out at the 4 imo. Mashack can some, but definitely undersized. Can knecht defend/rebound at the 4?
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If we’re saying JJJ can hold up at the 4 then Knecht surely can. When JJJ is at the 4, it’s always a stretch 4 and more 4-guard oriented which is what Knecht already does anyways. And I think Knecht is more physical already. I’ve rarely seen JJJ get into the paint and bang with anyone and come away with rebounds against the big guys in the paint. And if the plan is to continue playing a 4-out offense, Knecht already looks more capable of driving and getting to the basket.

Regarding defense at the 4 position, I think that’s still TBD with Knecht. Will depend on the teams we play and if they play small ball or have 2 traditional big guys down low.
 
#547
#547
Great lookin team. This game has me excited. On the positive - the bench looks like it's amazing. Doesn't even look like a bench. Looks like we got about 10 starters. Knecht was a pleasant surprise for me. Gainey looks good too. On the negative - it still feels like we don't have muscle. Aidoo seems too slow and lackadaisical at times. Looks like we're getting overpowered on the boards and on opponent drives to the basket. Beating #4 on the road for an exhibition game (didn't feel like an exhibition) gave me the vibes man!
 
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#548
#548
BallerVolFan said:
If we’re saying JJJ can hold up at the 4 then Knecht surely can. When JJJ is at the 4, it’s always a stretch 4 and more 4-guard oriented which is what Knecht already does anyways. And I think Knecht is more physical already. I’ve rarely seen JJJ get into the paint and bang with anyone and come away with rebounds against the big guys in the paint. And if the plan is to continue playing a 4-out offense, Knecht already looks more capable of driving and getting to the basket.

Regarding defense at the 4 position, I think that’s still TBD with Knecht. Will depend on the teams we play and if they play small ball or have 2 traditional big guys down low.
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Not worried about him offensively, obviously. Moreso meant defensively and on the boards, where I guess we disagree on jjj’s effectiveness there as an undersized 4. Hopefully knecht can, as it would give us a lot of options with lineups.


Edit: I’ll also add that I thought Estrella looked like he moved really well. Didn’t do a ton, but looked like he could help down low as the season goes along.
 
#549
#549
BallerVolFan said:
This was an exhibition game. The environment didn’t feel like one and the way the teams played looked like it was a late season conference game. But it was still an exhibition where we saw a lot of things that we won’t see much of after conference play starts. Missing two starters and playing a lot of freshman. Maybe Estrella or another young guy can step up and earn a few minutes but we’re not going to see what we saw yesterday, of course. The main guys will consist of:

Vescovi
ZZ
Knecht
JJJ
Aidoo
Awaka
Mashack
Gainey

And then I feel like we will have Dillione and Estrella grab a few minutes to help bridge the gap throughout the season if they can progress. But the guys above will be the main ones in conference play. The rotation will shrink and we’ll see 9-10 guys at the most. If all 9-10 guys can plug in and play at an SEC-level, that will be a deep rotation.

With ZZ and Vescovi in the lineup, the turnovers and defense will be improved. But the thing I’m pleased with and excited about is the fact that the main ball handlers will be ZZ, Gainey, and Vescovi meaning Mashack won’t have to carry that load. I liked what I saw from Gainey at the point.
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Gainey has a bunch of positives, but he committed 6 turnovers yesterday. He’s going to have to be stronger with the ball because Rick abhors turnovers.
 
#550
#550
ndubvols said:
Not worried about him offensively, obviously. Moreso meant defensively and on the boards, where I guess we disagree on jjj’s effectiveness there as an undersized 4. Hopefully knecht can, as it would give us a lot of options with lineups.


Edit: I’ll also add that I thought Estrella looked like he moved really well. Didn’t do a ton, but looked like he could help down low as the season goes along.
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I think we’re in agreement. The only thing with JJJ is he’s not a contact guy. He’ll get us some rebounds and do some dirty work but that’s if he shows up to play. There were many times last year where he just didn’t play strong. He’s a finesse player and is a guy that operates in space, not in traffic. That’s where I think him and Knecht are different. Defensively, I think JJJ is more experienced and knowledgeable of how to defend, that’s where he makes up for his lack of size at the 4 but sometimes its asking too much depending on the opponents lineup down low.
 
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