Postseason Expectations after the Kentucky win

[Pmarav23]

I ll take sweet 16. They can go deeper if they get good matchups of course. Upset here or their.

 

[hUTch2002]

I think this team is capable to run deep in tourney or lose first round. I think expectation is that the defense will always be there and that gives me confidence that we will be able to hang around with anyone. We've seen games like Texas Tech where defense was tough and stout but our offense can't shoot. I fully expect any upcoming losses to be similar to that. Its a weird feeling of confidence I have with this team. Probably more so than the team with Admiral and Grant.

In one way we have almost no weaknesses yet in another way we have no dominant strength. Our D is elite at times and is definitely our most consistent strength and that should keep us in any game, like you said. I’m with you on this. There’s something I’ve liked about this team from the start. I was actually starting to think maybe I was just wrong and then ever since about halftime of the SC game it seems our offense has continually improved (except for the Texas game of course). ZZ coming on, KC cutting the TOs, JJJ stepping his game up, and more have led to the improvement. I didn’t think it when it happened but ON going down may end up helping if Aidoo consistently plays like he did Tuesday.

 

[Namorto1]

Strange things happen at the end of the year. Some teams play desperate and above themselves in efforts to make the post season. We are playing well but I wouldn’t be surprised if we come out flat against an inferior opponent. Happens with young players. Regardless we should be seeded well and have a good opportunity to get into the 2nd week in March if we keep improving. Honestly we can play better as we missed alot of bunnies at the rim against Kentucky. To me it is still about Chandler being consistently good, and reliable contributions from our frontcourt. That will determine how far we go.

 

[vegasvolfan]

They playing at Neyland now?

Not sure what you mean. I think winning on the road is very telling.They are playing at Arkansas where Auburn just lost, and then against Georgia and Missouri. Auburn at home would also be huge obviously.

 

[PandamoniumReigns]

Not sure what you mean. I think winning on the road is very telling.They are playing at Arkansas where Auburn just lost, and then against Georgia and Missouri. Auburn at home would also be huge obviously.

I was simply pointing out that they don't play basketball in Neyland. They play football in Neyland.

 

[vavolfan6]

Right now, I'm more hopeful than not we are a sweet 16 team. We haven't lost to any Quad 2 teams or worse and have shown the capability of beating good teams.

Still need to see some of these top Quad 1 performances outside of TBA.

If Aidoo can come out and be a factor like he was against UK, he could be the missing piece that could be the difference come SECT and March Madness.

 

[walkenvol]

If Aidoo can play 20 minutes and give us 6 points 6 rebounds & 3 blocks then this is a top 10 roster IMO.

 

[ColinS]

Right now, I'm more hopeful than not we are a sweet 16 team. We haven't lost to any Quad 2 teams or worse and have shown the capability of beating good teams.

Still need to see some of these top Quad 1 performances outside of TBA.

If Aidoo can come out and be a factor like he was against UK, he could be the missing piece that could be the difference come SECT and March Madness.

This weekend is a chance for us to prove we can beat a good team in a road/neutral environment. It's the missing piece to our NCAA resume pie.

 

[walkenvol]

If we win tomorrow I for one will really struggle to keep my expectations in check. If we were to also beat Auburn my heart might explode with excitement and there’s worse ways to go. Go Vols!

 

[vegasvolfan]

I was simply pointing out that they don't play basketball in Neyland. They play football in Neyland.

Ha... Total error

 

[VolPack22]

All about matchups. Can’t recall the yr but the #1 and I think #2 seeds both went down. We either lost to Purdue or Loyola. Can’t recall. But it’s all about matchups. Should be a fun ride.

That was 2017-2018 and we were in Virginia’s region. They got upset by UMBC. There were 4 seeded upsets in the first round. Overall, there ended up being 9 seeded upsets throughout that region. By comparison, there were 11 seeded upsets combined between the other 3 regions. The 11, 13, and 16 seeds all won. The Elite 8 matchup was 9th seeded Kansas St vs 11th seeded Loyola Chicago. I could be wrong but I believe that was the lowest seeded Elite 8 matchup of all-time. Of course the year the 16 finally beats the 1, we are in that region and predictably lose to the 11. If we had beaten Loyola, we would’ve made it to the Final Four. In the Sweet 16, we would’ve been playing 7th seeded Nevada instead of 2nd seeded Cincinnati. In the Elite 8, we would’ve been playing 9th seeded Kansas St instead of 5th seeded Kentucky. Typical Tennessee sports. I have a love-hate relationship with March Madness. I love the first round upsets but that year was truly “maddening” to say the least. That was probably my most hated year because everything was lined up about as perfect as you could ask for.

 

[vol94]

That was 2017-2018 and we were in Virginia’s region. They got upset by UMBC. There were 4 seeded upsets in the first round. Overall, there ended up being 9 seeded upsets throughout that region. By comparison, there were 11 seeded upsets combined between the other 3 regions. The 11, 13, and 16 seeds all won. The Elite 8 matchup was 9th seeded Kansas St vs 11th seeded Loyola Chicago. I could be wrong but I believe that was the lowest seeded Elite 8 matchup of all-time. Of course the year the 16 finally beats the 1, we are in that region and predictably lose to the 11. If we had beaten Loyola, we would’ve made it to the Final Four. In the Sweet 16, we would’ve been playing 7th seeded Nevada instead of 2nd seeded Cincinnati. In the Elite 8, we would’ve been playing 9th seeded Kansas St instead of 5th seeded Kentucky. Typical Tennessee sports. I have a love-hate relationship with March Madness. I love the first round upsets but that year was truly “maddening” to say the least. That was probably my most hated year because everything was lined up about as perfect as you could ask for.

Thanks for the update. What could have been.