We Choke Away Another NCAA Gift!

[livefaith]

Well folks, we had another Elite 8 laid in our lap again. We blew it. Our offense went to Plan B as it has about 10 games this year.
We should never say another word about seeding or bad luck in the NCAAT. We have been given divine providence as far as opportunity goes.
A few years ago we had the Loyala Chicago gift and greased skids right to the Final Four with a great team. We blew it. Last year we got smoked by a weaker UM team. We blew another golden opportunity today and gift laid right in our lap for the E8. We should have been up 15 in 1st half with at least 6-7 misses right at the rack. Wide open 3s choked. ON taking 12-15' fall always vs 6-4 185# defender in the paint and clanging them.

This is absolutely depressing. The broken record continues even after the stars aligned for a easy E8 run. 27pts first ½, 25 in the 2nd! Wow.

Welp, it was another good year. Just tired of throwing away these opportunities.

 

[EaglesVols91]

We have been placed in very good positions over the years in the tournament only to piss it all away

 

[Eastknox865]

When you shoot 33% from the field, 26% from 3 and 58% from the free-throw line you're asking to go home. I understand some may not like Barnes but at what point do the players take the blame for missing shots.

 

[njvols]

On one hand all of this is correct, but ZZ loss really hurt us so they kinda over achieved some expectations. Not sure it would have made a difference last night....bad scoring games like last night has been our pattern all year, so, at some point I think we all knew this would be the way we exit. Can't "no show" on offense and expect to advance in the tourney. Probably fortunate to have won the first two, and I didn't expect that we could carry the Duke game over...just didn't think we'd fall off that bad.

 

[VolJarhead]

Sweet 16 is a good year. If we made it to the finals, someone would still talk about blowing opportunities. There are only about 15 other teams that wouldn't be satisfied with it right now. Sometimes teams just have a bad game. Sometimes other teams force you to have a bad game. They made it farther than I expected after the end of the regular season. I choose to enjoy the fact that UT Basketball actually matters. I remember when it seemed few cared.

 

[CAVPUT]

When you shoot 33% from the field, 26% from 3 and 58% from the free-throw line you're asking to go home. I understand some may not like Barnes but at what point do the players take the blame for missing shots.

The flip side of that position is that Barnes recruited these guys. One could question the profile Barnes uses in recruiting. Does he look for defense first, last, always? Does the level at which we defend take a toll on us offensively? Is it the system we run? We've got guys who just disappear at the absolute worst times. Why is that? Is it their personality? Or is it, once again, the level of defense we play that fatigues them to the point of having it take their shots from them? Are these guys just worn down mentally and physically and does that explain our strong starts and late season fades? Could it be all of these things and can it be changed with recruiting? I don't have the answers, but it's why I'm anxious for new blood on this roster. They might go down the same path, but at least there's change. That means there's a chance...small though it may be...that things might be different. One thing about this current roster....you know exactly what you're going to get....maddeningly consistent inconsistency.

 

[TNVOLFN]

When you shoot 33% from the field, 26% from 3 and 58% from the free-throw line you're asking to go home. I understand some may not like Barnes but at what point do the players take the blame for missing shots.

I 100% agree with you that players have to make plays and, personally, I hope Coach Barnes coaches the Vols as long as his heart desires, but I think our shot selection is piss poor and inefficient. Mid-range jumpers are terrible in the long run, we're much better off taking 3's or point blank shots - that's what all NBA teams do, as well as teams like Bama.

 

[Voldawg1970]

ZZ played so sporadic this year. Tough injury but he did not and would not have carried this team. If you can make baskets you cannot win. Its simple stats. yeah, if ZZ would have been on the floor he would have helped move the ball around but for the games he played really well there were many that he didn't. I agree with the fact that one team cannot carry a team. How about this offseason we find or develop multiple players that can take on the role and maybe we can have more than one person on the floor at a time that is capable of running the team. IMO Vesocvi isn't that person but once he is off the floor there is no confidence for anyone to step up with consistency and take on that role. We went farther than I projected and for them I am proud but I was never comfortable with this game tonight as TN always plays up against strong competition and lets less competition just hang around only to either win by a slim margin or lose like last night. I am not convinced its a RB issue but its definitely something and I feel like its mainly the lack of true leaders on the team. One last thing.... Shouldn't Plav start prepping for MMA? I like the aggression but the stupidity is absolutely ridiculous...

 

[overseasorange2]

FAU's second-half run sends Tennessee packing in Sweet 16, stuns media


AS a UT fan, I can honestly say I was not stunned. Pretty much what I expected!

 

[Kosmalski]

Didnt have the Horses to pull the wagon

 

[Gandalf]

I 100% agree with you that players have to make plays and, personally, I hope Coach Barnes coaches the Vols as long as his heart desires, but I think our shot selection is piss poor and inefficient. Mid-range jumpers are terrible in the long run, we're much better off taking 3's or point blank shots - that's what all NBA teams do, as well as teams like Bama.

Exactly - you either drive forward and get under the basket to take the shot or a foul or you post it from the 3 point line. Never from the middle.

And as much as I might grumble about Barns - He wasnt standing there under the basket with his thumb up his butt every time a shot was missed. Bottom line no rebounds and no drives cost us the game.

And Key, don't get me started about Key.

But that last 10 mins we were just snakebit. FAU hit everything and we were hitting nothing.

 

[livefaith]

When you shoot 33% from the field, 26% from 3 and 58% from the free-throw line you're asking to go home. I understand some may not like Barnes but at what point do the players take the blame for missing shots.

This is it. When your players clank 10 point blank shots off the rim in the 1st ½ you're in trouble. We should have been up 15 at the break, and we would have absorbed the run we KNEW they had, and went on to win.
We all hoped it wouldn't rear it's ugly head. ON played EXACTLY like his pattern. JJJ passed up an open 3 in in the 4th Q ... I knew it was over right there.
We had 2 mentalities on this team. The Duke play to win one and the FAU play not to lose one.

 

[TNVOLFN]

Exactly - you either drive forward and get under the basket to take the shot or a foul or you post it from the 3 point line. Never from the middle.

And as much as I might grumble about Barns - He wasnt standing there under the basket with his thumb up his butt every time a shot was missed. Bottom line no rebounds and no drives cost us the game.

And Key, don't get me started about Key.

But that last 10 mins we were just snakebit. FAU hit everything and we were hitting nothing.

Look at our made shots last night versus Bama's made shots in 1st round, you can select any random Bama game this season and it's a carbon copy:

Vols vs FAU


Bama 1st rd:

 

[1200DPI]

"The flip side of that position is that Barnes recruited these guys. One could question the profile Barnes uses in recruiting. Does he look for defense first, last, always? Does the level at which we defend take a toll on us offensively? Is it the system we run? We've got guys who just disappear at the absolute worst times. Why is that? Is it their personality? Or is it, once again, the level of defense we play that fatigues them to the point of having it take their shots from them? Are these guys just worn down mentally and physically and does that explain our strong starts and late season fades? Could it be all of these things and can it be changed with recruiting? ......"

I wish someone in the media would ask Barnes these questions. I'd love to hear his response.

How has he changed and adapted to improve his coaching?

Does he reject a good offensive player if they don't defend as well as he wants?

 

[Johnnyreb#VFL]

At least MTSU beat them this year

 

[BondJamesBond]

Well folks, we had another Elite 8 laid in our lap again. We blew it. Our offense went to Plan B as it has about 10 games this year.
We should never say another word about seeding or bad luck in the NCAAT. We have been given divine providence as far as opportunity goes.
A few years ago we had the Loyala Chicago gift and greased skids right to the Final Four with a great team. We blew it. Last year we got smoked by a weaker UM team. We blew another golden opportunity today and gift laid right in our lap for the E8. We should have been up 15 in 1st half with at least 6-7 misses right at the rack. Wide open 3s choked. ON taking 12-15' fall always vs 6-4 185# defender in the paint and clanging them.

This is absolutely depressing. The broken record continues even after the stars aligned for a easy E8 run. 27pts first ½, 25 in the 2nd! Wow.

Welp, it was another good year. Just tired of throwing away these opportunities.

It looked like a gift because the "lesser team" had already beaten teams that others thought were better. FAU is 3-0 in the tournament and 34-3 on the season. Maybe you should take something from that.

 

[volfeeva]

So here we are back to the comments we made when the regular season ended going 5-7 or whatever it was . One game they look like they could beat anyone, next game they flop. You never knew which team would show up. Many predicted a 1st or 2nd round loss. The real surprise is how far they got in the tourney based on how the played at the end of the season. Time to go get some shooters.

 

[Gandalf]

Look at our made shots last night versus Bama's made shots in 1st round, you can select any random Bama game this season and it's a carbon copy:

Vols vs FAU
View attachment 542760

Bama 1st rd:
View attachment 542761

This right here tells the story better than any words could express.

 

[djohnnyg]

At least media will focus on sat and Sunday games next week. This loss will be forgotten for most part. So many other bigger upsets than last night.

 

[Other_Guy]

When you shoot 33% from the field, 26% from 3 and 58% from the free-throw line you're asking to go home. I understand some may not like Barnes but at what point do the players take the blame for missing shots.

That only works for awhile. At what point do you blame the coach for having inconsistent offenses with veteran players?

 

[PACKERVOL]

I 100% agree with you that players have to make plays and, personally, I hope Coach Barnes coaches the Vols as long as his heart desires, but I think our shot selection is piss poor and inefficient. Mid-range jumpers are terrible in the long run, we're much better off taking 3's or point blank shots - that's what all NBA teams do, as well as teams like Bama.

And who is ultimately in charge of 'shot selection' by our team? Coach Barnes.

 

[How to Dooley]

The most frustrating of all:

Failed adjustments/preparation — you could see you’re being out rebounded and not hustling to the ball. So Barnes decides to keep Awaka on the bench, in NY, where he’s from? It was evident early we needed him in there to rebound, clearly ON wasn’t aggressive until the last 3 minutes.

Why take 3 timeouts to the locker room in the first half. There were numerous critical positions in the first half where we needed a bucket to really begin to separate and he failed to call a timeout and setup a play?

How do you not have one else ready to play PG, BJ Edwards should have been playing? He’s physically gifted and could have really had a huge roll with ZZ going out. Barnes baffles me.

 

[Vol737]

Sweet 16 is the ceiling for this program. And that’s always a nice accomplishment, but we had the best path to the FF we’ve seen in a long time and couldn’t close the deal….again, against a team we should beat just about every time we step on the court with them. That’s why DW should slow roll any contract extensions or additional raises. Need to take our time to think this thing through during the remainder of Barnes’ contract.

 

[brockytop]

Well folks, we had another Elite 8 laid in our lap again. We blew it. Our offense went to Plan B as it has about 10 games this year.
We should never say another word about seeding or bad luck in the NCAAT. We have been given divine providence as far as opportunity goes.
A few years ago we had the Loyala Chicago gift and greased skids right to the Final Four with a great team. We blew it. Last year we got smoked by a weaker UM team. We blew another golden opportunity today and gift laid right in our lap for the E8. We should have been up 15 in 1st half with at least 6-7 misses right at the rack. Wide open 3s choked. ON taking 12-15' fall always vs 6-4 185# defender in the paint and clanging them.

This is absolutely depressing. The broken record continues even after the stars aligned for a easy E8 run. 27pts first ½, 25 in the 2nd! Wow.

Welp, it was another good year. Just tired of throwing away these opportunities.

Just another rung in the ladder indicating TN won’t advance past the Sweet Sixteen with Barnes as coach. That’s been my belief since the guys walked off the court after the Loyola Chicago loss. You can’t ask for a better shot to advance deep in the tournament than that.

 

[brockytop]

The most frustrating of all:

Failed adjustments/preparation — you could see you’re being out rebounded and not hustling to the ball. So Barnes decides to keep Awaka on the bench, in NY, where he’s from? It was evident early we needed him in there to rebound, clearly ON wasn’t aggressive until the last 3 minutes.

Why take 3 timeouts to the locker room in the first half. There were numerous critical positions in the first half where we needed a bucket to really begin to separate and he failed to call a timeout and setup a play?

How do you not have one else ready to play PG, BJ Edwards should have been playing? He’s physically gifted and could have really had a huge roll with ZZ going out. Barnes baffles me.

Awaka getting only a minute of play? Unbelievable that the guy that provides great production in a limited role didn’t get enough PT to start a sweat.