The Vols return to the Sweet Sixteen with an impressive, thrilling overtime 76-71victory over the Butler Bulldogs on Easter afternoon.
Are the Vols back? Not only did they control much of the game against an excellent Butler squad, but they created turnovers with their pressure and finished the overtime period with a series of terrific plays to seal the victory. It was the best the Vols have looked since Memphis and a promising sign going into the Sweet Sixteen game against Louisville.
The pre-game and post-game topic of conversation is the point guard rotation. Bruce Pearl looked like a fool at the end of regulation when J.P. Prince made a silly turnover with a pass from the baseline, then traveled with the basketball on the Vols' last possession. It was clear that Prince was over his head as the floor general in that situation, which is not his fault. He has now been playing point guard for a grand total of three games.
Pearl looked like a genius again in the overtime period. Ramar Smith returned to right the ship and made a huge play with Tennessee up two when he finished a lay-up inside while being fouled by Butler. All three Smiths were huge in overtime - Tyler's block, JuJuan's free throws and rebounds, and Ramar's conversion inside.
From the opening tip, this was a different Volunteer squad than the one that slept-walked through the American win. The Vols hit Butler early and looked to be on the verge of pulling away from the Bulldogs who came out cold and confused by the Vols' switching defense.
Butler, however, was too good and too experienced to go away. You knew Graves and Green would get going and they did. The Vols had answers, however, and put away the best #7 seed of the tournament (any doubt Butler deserved a better seed than Oklahoma, Clemson or Drake?).
An unsung hero yesterday was Brian Williams. He is a rebounding machine inside. There is a reason Ryan Childress has become a spectator for the Vols (besides failing to cover the best shooter on the floor when he finally got into the game); Williams is an immovable force in the paint when he wants to be. He played exceptionally well yesterday against the Butler bigs.
Louisville awaits. The Vols must get through Louisville and UNC/Washington State - three teams that all won by at least 20 points over the weekend. After yesterday, I'm more confident they have a chance to do it.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
2 comments:
I think we are ready for Pitino's bunch. The vols really had a chance to put this one out of reach early, and were just a few plays away in the second half as well. But we pulled it out as we have shown a knack for doing. I am sure everyone is going to be picking L'ville, but that is fine with me. And yeah, I was cussing Childress as much as Pearl was after his one defensive brainfart. Can't wait to read a detailed breakdown of the matchup *cough, cough*
Louisville preview is forth-coming, though I feel a little like your monkey right now. Louisville is a good match-up for the Vols because they are more likely to run with us and don't have great guards. Did you guys realize that we played the #64 and #63 slowest teams in the tournament in American and Butler? The only team that plays a slow style of ball is Washington State, the team we will play if we beat Louisville and they upset Carolina.
Post a Comment