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

[kckempf]

When Ole Miss (who we play soon) played NCST, Burns had 27 minutes with 5 points... Last night he had 33 minutes with 15 points... big difference... was it the refs or Ole Miss ability to shut him down I wonder? They beat NCST by 20... would be a good game to break down to see ... Ole Miss undefeated but not ranked, haven't played too many descent teams... this game will be interesting for us, thank goodness it's at home!

Ole Miss has a 7'5" center who got 3 blocks in that game in 20 minutes. Burns played hard in that game but he really couldn't get started.

 

[livefaith]

Probably just comparing scores. Ole Miss beat NC State by 20 at home .... Tennessee only beat them by 9 on a neutral court. In the minds of some casual observers of basketball, that must mean that Ole Miss is better. Our schedules are not comparable, however. Ole Miss has a large number of close wins over some small schools.

We'll find out soon what undefeated really means.

 

[ColinS]

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

Not that they were an inferior opponent but we had chances to separate and get a good lead and then they got hot at the end and clipped us.

 

[Volfan1000]

TIES BETWEEN TEAMS

• Tennessee associate head coach Justin Gainey played at NC State from 1996-2000 under former Herb Sendek—a Rick Barnes assistant at Providence in 1988- 89—and averaged 6.9 ppg, 2.7 apg and 1.5 spg over 128 outings.
• NC State graduate student forward DJ Burns Jr., began his career at Tennessee, redshirting in 2018-19 during his lone year with the Volunteers before transferring to Winthrop, where he spent three seasons, and then NC State.
• Craig Hammel, NC State's director of communications, is a graduate of Tennessee, where he worked as a sports information assistant.
• Rick Barnes hails from Hickory, N.C., approximately 170 miles west of NC State, and was inducted into the North Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in April 2023.
• Two Volunteer players—Jonas Aidoo (Durham) and Freddie Dilione V (Fayetteville)—are Tar Heel State natives, as are both associate head coach Justin Gainey (High Point) and class of 2024 high school signee Bishop Boswell (Charlotte).

Always good to beat the ACC in basketball.

 

[YankeeVol]

Always good to beat the ACC in basketball.

You want my nudes?

 

[Col_Cathcart]

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

I think they’ll probably give him more minutes in the first half to find out if he’s on that night but fewer in the second half if he’s not producing. He’s got the upside but he needs the shots to fall.

 

[Thunder Good-Oil]

I think they’ll probably give him more minutes in the first half to find out if he’s on that night but fewer in the second half if he’s not producing. He’s got the upside but he needs the shots to fall.

Pro tip: use the player’s name instead of “him” when replying to a post also referring to “him”. You all are talking about Gainey. It looks like you are talking about Mashack.

 

[chuckiepoo]

Pro tip: use the players name instead of “him” when replying to a post also referring to “him”. You all are talking about Gainey. It looks like you are talking about Mashack.

Thank you!

 

[LibertyVol]

The “gauntlet” schedule that 10-0 Ole Miss has had to face.

View attachment 602817

They have played an easy schedule. No doubt. New coach, new players and they are getting better. They are already preparing for this game. I watched them play Memphis. Tennessee needs to be ready. This game could turn into a dog fight real easy.