The Official #12 Tennessee vs. North Carolina State Game Thread, 10:00 PM ET, ESPN2

[vol94]

I’m critical throughout every game involving my favorite teams, esp the Vols. But a win is a lot better than a loss.

I fell asleep watching the game after watching my Steelers lay another egg (they’re horrible).


I said it in Nov and will say it again. “This team will improve. We may have some losses and questionable play in January, but this team will improve,”imo.

It’s all about March and I think this team will peak @ the right time.


Go Vols!

 

[TennesseeFan07]

Vescovi was good in this game regardless what the box score shows.

He has been just fine since the NC game. Only issue is lacking aggression on offense.

 

[ColinS]

Vescovi was good in this game regardless what the box score shows.

Yeah, in the second half. He seems to be struggling a bit in the first half of games and just comes out and plays solid basketball in the second half. He was strong with the ball and scored when he had an opening in the second half.

 

[walkenvol]

He has been just fine since the NC game. Only issue is lacking aggression on offense.

He’s rebounding great, playing tough D, distributing the ball, and driving the lane better than ever before. His 3 point shot is off for some reason as his percentage is in the low 30’s and he’s passing up open looks from 3. While he’s traditionally started a bit slow, we need him back to the 40% range he shot in conference play the last couple years and aggressively looking for his shots. The team will take another step forward if he can do it. JMO

 

[luthervol]

Can you name 15?

Maybe 8

 

[joevols89]

Anyone know if winning by 9 counts the same as by 20? Asking for a friend because he was confused after reading this thread.

Depends. It matters for max NET points. I’m not sure where this one falls in that.

 

[ColinS]

Depends. It matters for max NET points. I’m not sure where this one falls in that.

Not sure but letting inferior teams hang around instead of putting them away will cost you when it matters the most. Reference FAU last season. This team is good but does lack that killer instinct so far this year.

 

[Col_Cathcart]

I'd love to see the +/- for this one.

NC State (7-3,1-0 ACC) -vs- Tennessee (8-3,0-0 SEC) (PDF) - University of Tennessee Athletics

NC State (7-3,1-0 ACC) -vs- Tennessee (8-3,0-0 SEC) (PDF)

utsports.com

Edit: never mind. Those usually have it but I don’t see it in that one

 

[walkenvol]

Not sure but letting inferior teams hang around instead of putting them away will cost you when it matters the most. Reference FAU last season. This team is good but does lack that killer instinct so far this year.

You talken about the FAU that made the final 4 and has been ranked in the top 10 this season?

 

[cardvolfan]

Vescovi was good in this game regardless what the box score shows.

In particular in the 2nd half. Just huge for us the last 20 minutes.

 

[cardvolfan]

NC State (7-3,1-0 ACC) -vs- Tennessee (8-3,0-0 SEC) (PDF) - University of Tennessee Athletics

NC State (7-3,1-0 ACC) -vs- Tennessee (8-3,0-0 SEC) (PDF)

utsports.com

Edit: never mind. Those usually have it but I don’t see it in that one

Go to utsports.com and click on the game headline. Scroll down about 1/3 of the way and click on boxscore PDF. You will see it there.

 

[Kas232323]

Go to utsports.com and click on the game headline. Scroll down about 1/3 of the way and click on boxscore PDF. You will see it there.

Burns -15….

 

[cardvolfan]

Burns -15….

Funny, isn’t it? Always interesting with these numbers.

 

[Kas232323]

Funny, isn’t it? Always interesting with these numbers.

True. His defense and conditioning are horrible. How many layups did we get because he can’t move on defense?

 

[Col_Cathcart]

Burns -15….

Only 3 negative on the vols were Knecht, Gainey, and Estrella (only played 1min). That matches the eye test

 

[cardvolfan]

Only 3 negative on the vols were Knecht, Gainey, and Estrella (only played 1min). That matches the eye test

And Gainey got, what, 11 minutes plus. His minutes are being ratcheted down, and they should be.

 

[VolGee4]

And Gainey got, what, 11 minutes plus. His minutes are being ratcheted down, and they should be.

I thought he played decent with those minutes. Had a nice move and a three. Only missed a few shots- one he had to take and one was an ackward layup attempt after a rebound.

 

[cardvolfan]

I thought he played decent with those minutes. Had a nice move and a three. Only missed a few shots- one he had to take and one was an ackward layup attempt after a rebound.

He was 2-6 (1-4) from the floor with 2 rebounds in 12 minutes. The price value per minute is going up. As far as guards are concerned, there is more value in the minutes of ZZ and Santi right now. They can impact the game much more than Gainey right now. His shooting has been not-so-good for a while now, he’s not particularly strong with the ball in traffic, and his defense is not as good as the other two.

 

[VolGee4]

He was 2-6 (1-4) from the floor with 2 rebounds in 12 minutes. The price value per minute is going up. As far as guards are concerned, there is more value in the minutes of ZZ and Santi right now. They can impact the game much more than Gainey right now. His shooting has been not-so-good for a while now, he’s not particularly strong with the ball in traffic, and his defense is not as good as the other two.

I get why his minutes have gone down, but SV has been a little shy about shooting. At least Gainey will. I’m just saying that a couple of his shots were fine. ZZ gave him no choice at the end of the first half. The rebound and missed layup was open and just ackward. He has the ability to drive as he showed last night and on a dunk in a bigger game earlier in the year. He’s shooting 32% from 3 with one real bad game at UNC (1-9). Need more consistency.

 

[walkenvol]

He was 2-6 (1-4) from the floor with 2 rebounds in 12 minutes. The price value per minute is going up. As far as guards are concerned, there is more value in the minutes of ZZ and Santi right now. They can impact the game much more than Gainey right now. His shooting has been not-so-good for a while now, he’s not particularly strong with the ball in traffic, and his defense is not as good as the other two.

I agree with this, but we shouldn’t be pushing him to the end of the bench. He has shown the ability to get some buckets when he’s on. Will probably have several games where we get in an offensive drought and will want him to confidently take and make some shots for us. Right now Mashack is bringing so much overall value to court that he’s earning 25 minutes a night. IMO

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I thought he played decent with those minutes. Had a nice move and a three. Only missed a few shots- one he had to take and one was an ackward layup attempt after a rebound.

I was dog cussing’ him at some point. I think it was after missing a not so great 3-point attempt really early in a possession. Glad he didn’t miss as many as it seemed. I’d like to see him getting more assists though - or get more minutes for Dilione soon.

 

[TechnoVol]

Go to utsports.com and click on the game headline. Scroll down about 1/3 of the way and click on boxscore PDF. You will see it there.

Awaka led the Vols with +12. Nice!

 

[MinisterofDef#92]

To be fair, there's not a lot of 350 pound centers out there. Aidoo has a high center of gravity, so a guy like that is always going to be a hard matchup. That's why I was very happy that we put Awaka on him late in the 2nd half. Awaka is physically stronger and has a low center of gravity, so it just makes sense for him to guard him. Estrella would've also been a better option against Burns.

I wish Aidoo would've been able to expose him more on the offense end. He should've done a lot of face ups, and pick and pops. He could've rolled harder to the rim as well and had more lob opportunities. Our guards outside of Zeigler were having a hard time getting around the burns in the pick and roll.

Aidoo gives up a lot of ground against physical centers...it is what it is. It was nice to have the physicality of Uros as an option for games like this.

 

[GUNTERSVOL]

Anyone know if winning by 9 counts the same as by 20? Asking for a friend because he was confused after reading this thread.

Must have been awarding BAD ZEBRA points to UT. It is amazing how different incidental contact can be viewed and allowed.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

A charter jet just arrived from San Antonio. I wonder if it’s the UT BB team on board or a travel package put together for fans.