Post Maui Thoughts

[VolArmy74]

Agree with all of this. For the season we are shooting a combined 40% from the field. That will flat just not get it done. We have had a number of anemic offensives during his tenure, but none shot worse then 42%. 40% is terrible. Barnes said during pre-season we have more depth then ever and we want to play up-tempo but when we get into the grind it turns into a half-court game and we play 8 guys. Rinse/repeat...we have heard this and seen this all before. We are going to struggle mightily in the half court when shots aren't falling. Given we don't have any post presence and have very few players who can drive the ball and finish, it is up to Barnes to put the players into better positions to score. Nothing looks easy in the half-court and ball movement too often slows. We aren't moving without the ball well enough and rarely cut hard to the basket or fill the lane if someone drives to the bucket.

Knecht had several shots right at the rim that just didn't fall today (and two of them I thought he may have been fouled) but I'm not worried about him. Just a bad day for him scoring. Gainey takes some poor shots at times but I can live with him having a green light too. Aidoo will never be effective in the post. He is better at high post and rolling to the bucket. Awaka needs alot more minutes because he has shown some ability to post and at least he is active. Due to problems on the boards against big teams, we very well may need to play him and Aidoo on the court together and rotate Estrella and Phillips in more often. James had two rough offensive outings and we all know he won't drive the ball, but he is big and strong enough to post up opposing wings, but Barnes rarely runs a play for him. He turnaround fade away jumper in the lane at least is a high % shot. When Vescovi drives he isn't a threat to score unless it is a wide-open layup. He struggles to create, yet we are asking him to create. Mashack can drive but he struggles to finish, but I think we need to encourage him to keep attacking the rim. Losing Dilione's potential to create offense may hurt us more than we think. How to manage Zeigler and what to ask him to do is a big issue. He isn't a threat to score from anywhere currently and his turnover ratio isn't good for the reduced minutes he is playing.

This group can be very good, if everyone just simply plays up to their potential and knows their roles. We don't look like we know what we are doing on the offensive end and the shooting woes confirm it. Barnes is expecting them to work it out on the court and believes the shots will start falling. He really needs to coach a bit more on that end of the court. We shouldn't be struggling this much to score.

If we shoot even 40 percent and none of them are 3s, we score 12 more points today and win the game. We got a ton more shots than they did because we forced a bunch of turnovers and got more offensive rebounds than they did. We just shot absolutely like horse pooey.

 

[livefaith]

IMO playing 3 games in 3 days is about as taxing as it gets especially with the physicality and defensive intensity that we experienced in this tournament playing against 2 of the best bigs in the country.I wasn’t surprised we shot as bad as we did.

Good point, but that doesn't explain yesterday and the 1st 3 quarters v SU. We still can't make open shots!

 

[Smokey7]

I couldn't agree more. This team needs low post scoring. He has the size and ability to provide that, but he stays out around the three point line. He could drive it or post up if he had that mentality. But, he's been that way since he's been here. I guess the coaches are ok with it because they allow him to do it.

Hate to say it but not taking it inside seems really soft. 4pts in the Purdue and I think the Kansas game. I mean really?

 

[Smokey7]

Ziegler needs to start?? Umm what???

Yes he a least has toughness and attacks the rim something we need more of.

 

[Volfan1000]

Clearly we have some issues to be worked on. I want to bear in mind that we lost to the #1 and #2 teams in the country, and both have KenPom top-5ish defenses. We may have faced the two best big men in all of the country in a span of less than 24 hours. So in all of the emotion of losing two games, those are things to consider as we think back on these losses.

1. We have a rebounding problem. After dominating Syracuse on the glass, we got owned by Purdue (44-31, 17-10 ORebs) and Kansas (45-35). Tobe Awaka had 2 rebounds in 3 games. That’s a problem given it is his greatest strength and quality. His size is showing up as an issue against these bigger 5s, which isn’t surprising. He also hasn’t really improved his ability to defend without fouling. Aidoo rebounded better against KU, but for a guy his size, we need him to be more active on the glass.

2. Our offense just doesn’t make much of an effort to get buckets at the rim. It feels like every point we scored in these last two games was earned the hard way. Nothing seems to come easy for this team the way it does KU and Purdue, and not just Dickinson and Edey. KU had the floater game working well today. We just don’t get anything easy going at the rim. We also refuse to push the ball in transition, which only further emphasizes our inability to score in the paint. At one point vs KU, we had a 4 on 2 break and backed out for a 3-pt shot, which was one of the few that we hit. But we had other opportunities to push the ball and get to the rim or force a foul and just settled for backing out and getting into our offense, which was far too often dribble dribble pass for 20 seconds and shoot a 3.

3. Shot selection…we take a lot of bad, low percentage shots. 18-ft jumpers are bad shots, no matter who shoots them, but there is a reason no one guards Aidoo that far out. They want him taking that shot. Gainey passes up several 3s to take an 18-ft jumper. Bad shot! We just don’t seem to run a lot of set plays to get someone a look going to the basket. Our collection of guards is elite, but if they are not hitting shots from outside, we do not seem to adjust to finding better looks.

4. Second-chance points. This goes hand in hand with the rebounding problem, but we almost always only get one look on offense. Given the number of shots we take from outside, we should do a better job a grabbing long rebounds where our lack of size doesn’t necessarily come into play.

5. The Point Guard position is a problem. Zeigler is hurting his team on offense. 14 points, 8 assists, and 11 TOs in three games isn’t going to cut it. He’s still not 100%, so that is to be considered, but he can’t play as much as he did and not be more efficient. 4-22 shooting and 1-12 from 3 is damaging. Gainey was marginally better. 30 points, 5 assists, and 4 TOs on 9-32 shooting and 6-19 from 3. Mashack doesn’t provide much in the traditional sense as a PG, and his stats reflect that, so it isn’t perhaps fair to judge him on that. But he was definitely the most efficient of the three. 17 points, 3 assists, and 2 TOs on 6-14 shooting (0-1 from 3). None of them are doing a great job of being a facilitator of the offense, but I’m not real sure what the design of our offense is, right now.

These are the things that stand out as room for improvement. We were exposed by a couple good teams in some areas. Let’s just hope we can adjust and make changes that show up in March.

On point number 2, This staff should tell Aidoo to live down low and just focus on inside shots and shots up to 10 feet.

No more 3 point looks for Aidoo or 15 to 20 foot jumpers.

Push the damn tempo and get paint points instead of shooting 25 to 30 three ball attempts every game.

Gainey is a solid point guard and Seigler should just worry about playing defense and racking up the assists because Tennessee has so many scoring options.

These 2 losses in Honolulu will help this team in March.

Nice tournament write up.

 

[ColinS]

We have the game time excuse for the Syracuse game and now we are tired excuse lighting up the board. Syracuse started the game at the same time we did and Kansas played 3 games in 3 days just like us. At some point you just didn't get it done and that's just a fact lame excuses or not.

 

[Lankykong]

We have the game time excuse for the Syracuse game and now we are tired excuse lighting up the board. Syracuse started the game at the same time we did and Kansas played 3 games in 3 days just like us. At some point you just didn't get it done and that's just a fact lame excuses or not.

Syracuse lost though? They obviously weren’t getting it done

 

[CAVPUT]

If we shoot even 40 percent and none of them are 3s, we score 12 more points today and win the game. We got a ton more shots than they did because we forced a bunch of turnovers and got more offensive rebounds than they did. We just shot absolutely like horse pooey.

Know it's the game these days, but we are too dependent on the 3 ball. When we hit these cold spells, we need to have the ability to get points in the paint and frankly, we can't really do that. Aidoo and Awaka are so limited. So it's back to living and dying with the 3 ball. Just thought the addition of Knecht and Gainey would mitigate that to a degree. Still, it's early. Better to be playing our best in March. Just need to avoid dropping too far as a seed.

 

[BernardKingGOAT]

Not disagreeing. Actually like the idea. I think we have seen the rotation and I will be surprised if Carr gets in it. Just don’t seem to have guys who can consistently make shots when you need them.

Too early in the season to make that sort of assessment

 

[JALove]

Gainey frustrated me to no end, running off the 3 point line for a pull up from 18 feet. It's the worst shot in basketball.

A positive, we likely won't play anyone as good as either team before a potential elite 8 level match up.

I’m surprised that no one on the bench has recognized that Gainey is an exceptional shooter when he rises straight up keeping his feet under him. His accuracy suffers greatly when he is falling away or to the side. NO ONE follows their shot as there is not a more perfect position on the floor to anticipate where a missed shot may bounce. Dalton is learning he can’t dribble through two defenders and when Barnes allowed him to return to the game I do not recall him trying it again. His away from the ball defense displays zero aggression. Thank goodness we are learning to front the center and James does a good job with this. A lob is not going to beat you with most tall centers having to bring the ball back down against the mites where weak side help can steal or tie him up.

 

[CornbreadVol]

On point number 2, This staff should tell Aidoo to live down low and just focus on inside shots and shots up to 10 feet.

No more 3 point looks for Aidoo or 15 to 20 foot jumpers.

Push the damn tempo and get paint points instead of shooting 25 to 30 three ball attempts every game.

Gainey is a solid point guard and Seigler should just worry about playing defense and racking up the assists because Tennessee has so many scoring options.

These 2 losses in Honolulu will help this team in March.

Nice tournament write up.

I really don’t mind Aidoo taking mid range and 3 pt shots. He’s shown the ability to knock them down and it’s makes the opposing big respect him and draws him away from the basket.

 

[walkenvol]

I really don’t mind Aidoo taking mid range and 3 pt shots. He’s shown the ability to knock them down and it’s makes the opposing big respect him and draws him away from the basket.

Mid range yes, 3 pointers no. We have more than enough guys who can shoot the 3 better than Aidoo

 

[Sudden Impact]

I not an Expert but are we running the same Offense we always do?
Watching other games ours just seems to demand a lot on the players.
In Contrast, it just may all be Chemistry in the early part of the season.

What's more, the 2nd game with the Fouls was a nightmare for both teams. Just Bad officiating in this tournament and that should not be the case. All teams deserve better.

 

[ColinS]

Syracuse lost though? They obviously weren’t getting it done

Outside of the last few minutes I thought it was the worst game we played.

 

[Lankykong]

Outside of the last few minutes I thought it was the worst game we played.

I don’t disagree. I just think a lot of teams didn’t play well either

 

[orangemadam]

In a nutshell, more minutes to Gainey, Mashack, and Philips.

Fewer minutes to JJJ and possibly ZZ and Vescovi until they get back to old selves.

 

[TheMookieMonster]

In a nutshell, more minutes to Gainey, Mashack, and Philips.

Fewer minutes to JJJ and possibly ZZ and Vescovi until they get back to old selves.

Vescovi looked like his old self again yesterday. He’s been fine.

 

[SGMVols]

In a nutshell, more minutes to Gainey, Mashack, and Philips.

Fewer minutes to JJJ and possibly ZZ and Vescovi until they get back to old selves.

Y’all are already starting with the Shiny New Toy Syndrome again.

We aren’t going to be the team we want to be without our veterans.

 

[Chickenfarmer]

James is way underproductive. Needs to become more aggressive.

May just be the Joe Milton III of college basketball. Kennedy Chandler did in year one. JJJ and JM III may never get it gone. You either got or you don’t.

 

[vol9799]

In a nutshell, more minutes to Gainey, Mashack, and Philips.

Fewer minutes to JJJ and possibly ZZ and Vescovi until they get back to old selves.

Not sure about Gainey. He will shoot us out of a lead just as quickly as he shot us into it.

 

[VolXr1]

In a nutshell, more minutes to Gainey, Mashack, and Philips.

Fewer minutes to JJJ and possibly ZZ and Vescovi until they get back to old selves.

If not for Vescovi we get beat by 20+ yesterday. theys more involved in a game then just scoring.. his hustle on both sides of the court alone is more valuable than what most ppl even realize

ZZ I would put at end of the bench. He's been a turnover waiting to happen and his offense/turnovers is hurting more than his defense is helping. Yall pointing out JJJ not scoring. Hell when you have Gainey firing up brick after brick its gonna be hard for anyone else to score lol.. DK his defense offsets his offense. A good high schooler could score on him right now

 

[camp_steveo]

Awaka and Aidoo need to provide more. I know they're limited offensively, but they need to at least get some offensive rebounds and putbacks. If they can't CRB may need to give Estrella and Phillips more minutes to see what they can provide. Wings could do a better job of driving into the paint and finishing too. Need more points in the paint.

I agree and hope they can actually do it. They should look pretty good in SEC play for the most part.

 

[WhenUrVolUrVFL]

James is way underproductive. Needs to become more aggressive.

We’ve been saying this for 5 years it seems like.

Looks like Jesus. Plays like Mary.

 

[DuckInAPen]

We’ve been saying this for 5 years it seems like.

Looks like Jesus. Plays like Mary.

So now it's no longer enough to run down a young man who's given his all for Tennessee? We now have to add blasphemy into the mix as well?

 

[b_gann]

Clearly we have some issues to be worked on. I want to bear in mind that we lost to the #1 and #2 teams in the country, and both have KenPom top-5ish defenses. We may have faced the two best big men in all of the country in a span of less than 24 hours. So in all of the emotion of losing two games, those are things to consider as we think back on these losses.

1. We have a rebounding problem. After dominating Syracuse on the glass, we got owned by Purdue (44-31, 17-10 ORebs) and Kansas (45-35). Tobe Awaka had 2 rebounds in 3 games. That’s a problem given it is his greatest strength and quality. His size is showing up as an issue against these bigger 5s, which isn’t surprising. He also hasn’t really improved his ability to defend without fouling. Aidoo rebounded better against KU, but for a guy his size, we need him to be more active on the glass.

2. Our offense just doesn’t make much of an effort to get buckets at the rim. It feels like every point we scored in these last two games was earned the hard way. Nothing seems to come easy for this team the way it does KU and Purdue, and not just Dickinson and Edey. KU had the floater game working well today. We just don’t get anything easy going at the rim. We also refuse to push the ball in transition, which only further emphasizes our inability to score in the paint. At one point vs KU, we had a 4 on 2 break and backed out for a 3-pt shot, which was one of the few that we hit. But we had other opportunities to push the ball and get to the rim or force a foul and just settled for backing out and getting into our offense, which was far too often dribble dribble pass for 20 seconds and shoot a 3.

3. Shot selection…we take a lot of bad, low percentage shots. 18-ft jumpers are bad shots, no matter who shoots them, but there is a reason no one guards Aidoo that far out. They want him taking that shot. Gainey passes up several 3s to take an 18-ft jumper. Bad shot! We just don’t seem to run a lot of set plays to get someone a look going to the basket. Our collection of guards is elite, but if they are not hitting shots from outside, we do not seem to adjust to finding better looks.

4. Second-chance points. This goes hand in hand with the rebounding problem, but we almost always only get one look on offense. Given the number of shots we take from outside, we should do a better job a grabbing long rebounds where our lack of size doesn’t necessarily come into play.

5. The Point Guard position is a problem. Zeigler is hurting his team on offense. 14 points, 8 assists, and 11 TOs in three games isn’t going to cut it. He’s still not 100%, so that is to be considered, but he can’t play as much as he did and not be more efficient. 4-22 shooting and 1-12 from 3 is damaging. Gainey was marginally better. 30 points, 5 assists, and 4 TOs on 9-32 shooting and 6-19 from 3. Mashack doesn’t provide much in the traditional sense as a PG, and his stats reflect that, so it isn’t perhaps fair to judge him on that. But he was definitely the most efficient of the three. 17 points, 3 assists, and 2 TOs on 6-14 shooting (0-1 from 3). None of them are doing a great job of being a facilitator of the offense, but I’m not real sure what the design of our offense is, right now.

These are the things that stand out as room for improvement. We were exposed by a couple good teams in some areas. Let’s just hope we can adjust and make changes that show up in March.

Great points across the board.

I don't see rebounding or shot selection becoming a ton better. Across the board, we just don't have the level of athlete to where we can get constant rim pressure. We need to get back to pushing the ball though. We were doing that in the other games. If ZZ can get back to where he needs to be, we can still have a great year. We need to have a plan of action on offense in crunch time. Running system is great, but when it comes down to get buckets, the ball needs to be in Dalton or Santi's hands to make a play.