Simple question

[LVJeff]

Is this a trick question? Take away the best player from any team and of course they are less than what they were.

It wasn't a trick question necessarily, but there was a pointed nuance to the question you might have missed.

 

[Volfan2012]

The major problem with this year's Lady Vol team was offensive inconsistency. Team had no consistent shooters and usually won when Massengale was shooting the three well and lost when she wasn't. Last night she wasn't.
As WCCB basketball goes there is UConn, next level Notre Dame and SC, next level Tennessee, Maryland, and Baylor.
We can beat Maryland and Baylor on a given night. We would never beat UConn with the present team. We might be able to upset Notre Dame or SC on a given night.
We are on the same level with Baylor and Maryland in the second tier of teams.
The game last night was about making open shots they made them we didn't that simple.
It is my belief that next season we move up to level one with UConn. I think we pass SC and maybe Notre Dame. I believe that if Holly can't at least get to the final four with the players she has next year she will never be capable of doing it.
This years group I think she did exactly what the team was capable of after injuries to Jones and Harrison.

 

[Volicity]

With regards to the Duke win against Tennessee in 1999, it wasn't just Holdsclaw that was misfiring...it was Catchings and Randall as well. Three players that were All-Americans their freshman year. Only Randall was able to score with efficiency. So it wasn't a case of players standing around as much as at it was that the two best players were having bad shooting nights, and the remaining players couldn't put enough points on the board to overcome that. It also didn't help that Geter, who had a big game in the regular season win, was coming off an injury and played limited minutes, and they had a freshman playing C in her place who made a lot of freshman mistakes.

This team didn't need a star. They needed the players on the bench that they lost over the course of the season to injuries. Forget about Russell/Tucker...just Harrison and Jones would have helped offset Maryland's size advantage.

Do you honestly think that this team was as good without Izzy as they were with her? Not having THE ONLY player with size and length on the floor to challenge MDs posts on offense and stop them from getting easy buckets on defense was a huge issue in this game.

Carter and Reynolds can't shoot. Unfortunately, neither could the guard that was recruited to be a shooter (Middleton). The inability to score from the perimeter just caused MD to pack in the middle, and eventually it wore down Burdick and Graves on both ends of the court. It was a winnable game, but not one that Tennessee was favored to win.

Shooting specialists don't usually shoot 28% on the year.

 

[Amb3096]

Shooting specialists don't usually shoot 28% on the year.

Your talking about Middleton, right? That's my point. She was recruited to strengthen Tennessee's 3-pt capabilities, but she hasn't lived up to her billing for her freshman year.

 

[Darth_Vol]

I swear you only comment on things to be an ass. My point is she was our best player, so that is why I chose those two.

I intended to challenge the implication of your question, not attack you. If you took it personally, I apologize.