UKan't - Vols Avenge Loss to Wildcats

The wildest week in Tennessee basketball history ended with a thrilling 63-60 victory over the resilient Kentucky Wildcats.

Here is the current state of Tennessee basketball: In the last week, Tennessee won at Memphis and against Kentucky while losing by one basket at Vanderbilt and the Vols Nation is panicking.

This afternoon's game looked to be a rout in the opening minutes as the Vols coasted to an early 20-5 advantage. Just when it looked like Kentucky was on the ropes, Chris Lofton picked up a second foul and the Tennessee bench let the Kats get back into the game. The Wildcats came out of the half on fire, turning the last 10 minutes of the game into a typical Tennessee/Kentucky slugfest.

To the bullets:

* Thank goodness we have Bruce Pearl and not Billy Gillispie. How boring are the Kats? The A&M Aggies were the same way. Kentucky avoided doing anything offensively for 30 seconds before running one of two plays to get a look. It might be smart basketball to play your horses the entire game (three players logged 40 minutes), but if it means slowing the game down to a crawl to do it, count me out. We'll see how long the Kentucky faithful can live with Billy the Kid's boring style if the wins don't come. Not exactly Rick Pitino, is it?

* The panic - Kentucky was down its best player (Patrick Patterson), in Knoxville and the Vols should have been looking for revenge after the first meeting AND the Vols only won by a basket.

Here is why you should not be panicking: 1) Revenge? The Vols seem much more concerned with a Final Four appearance than beating a bubble team, even if it is Kentucky. I did not see revenge in anyone's eyes. 2) Kentucky is a bad match-up for the Vols, even without Patterson. They have senior guards to handle the ball against the Big Orange pressure, they play a physical brand of defense that, if not called tightly, will make it hard for anyone to get decent looks and they are one of the few teams in the country that plays as hard as Tennessee. 3) They made some ridiculous shots to stay in the game.

* Lots to discuss in terms of personnel. Either Ryan Childress has the worst case of the flu ever or he is in Pearl's doghouse. He has been in my doghouse for a while, so I'm guessing the latter. No PT today.

* Jordan Howell played 5 minutes. He has been lousy for a while now and finally saw a big dip in his playing time. The Vols even used J.P. Prince at the point for a few minutes instead of Howell. His three-pointer today was awful looking. He did, however, secure a big defensive rebound late in the game.

* Before I return to personnel stuff, that reminds me of something that has made a huge difference for the Vols this year - rebounding from the guards. Everyone keeps writing that Duke Crews has solved the Tennessee rebounding issues, but I think it has more to do with Tennessee's guards getting involved inside. The Vols are not big, but 5 guys hitting the boards will make up for the lack of size. There is no way Tennessee competes with Memphis, Vanderbilt and Kentucky on the glass if the guards are not chipping in.

* Ramar Smith logged 32 minutes today. At this point, I think Coach Pearl is telling Ramar that the Vols will go as far as he takes them. Smith has been a disappointment this year, especially in terms of his consistency. Today was better as he had just one turnover (a silly one, but still just one).

* Josh Tabb got more minutes today because of Chris Lofton's foul trouble, but showed why he has played so sparingly all year. The guy is an offensive liability. Not only can he not shoot or finish inside, but he also has no basketball IQ on the offensive end. There is a reason you are open, Josh - you can't make it. Stop shooting it! Ramar and J.P. have figured out it is best to pass up those open J's instead of bricking them. Josh has not figured that out yet.

* Wayne Chism is the most improved Vol from the start of the season. He has been a beast for the last week. The biggest difference to me is his brain. He is no longer looking for the 3 as much as the inside position. He is avoiding the stupid fouls inside. His over-the-screen show in the last possession that forced Bradley to give up the ball was beautiful. Chism does not make that play two months ago.

* Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith are both struggling to get open looks these days. It is not hard to guess why - we are in the second half of the conference schedule - but it would be nice to see a little more effort placed into freeing them up.

* Ken Harlin - "What a comeback!" as the teams go into the half? Kentucky was down by seven points. They were down 20-5 in the first few minutes of the game, then the teams traded baskets for a while before Kentucky whittled it down. "What a comeback!"? Really?

* Reason #145 Why I Love Bill Rafferty: he caught the running-the-baseline violation after the timeout immediately, then followed it up with a credible explanation for how the officials could have blown such a simple call (the timeout was granted before the in-bounds). Rafferty is so smooth and good that he gets lost in the color man shuffle. I'll take him over Vitale, Packer, Bilas...pretty much every other college guy. I still like Van Gundy and Hubie Brown better when it comes to all basketball, but Rafferty is the cream when it comes to college ball.

* Two examples this weekend of why I still don't like the foul-to-prevent-the-three play at the end of the game. First, Marquette accidentally fouled the shooter on the final possession against Georgetown who calmly made all three free throws. I would rather one three than three freebies. Second, the end of the game scramble against Kentucky could have been bad. Foul? When? I thought there was a great chance the Vols would try to foul a Wildcat in those final seconds and catch somebody throwing up a shot. Luckily, defending it worked just fine.

* Last one - Tyler Smith is so good that we just take him for granted. There is nothing spectacular about his game like Lofton's shooting or Duke's energy. He is pretty unorthodox with his inside finishes too. None of that matters. He does everything for the Vols these days. When the game is on the line, he gets the ball. I love the set they keep running for him where he catches it near the wing and fakes the hand-off to Lofton. As the entire defense shifts because of the respect Lofton gets, Tyler drives the opposite, cleared-out direction for something easy. No power forward can guard him on the perimeter.

Seriously - he deserves to be the SEC Player of the Year. Who more? Lofton is great, but has been inconsistent this year. Shan Foster is great, but only in Memorial Coliseum. The PotY is not coming from an NIT team, so why not Tyler?

The schedule gets easier now, right?

Nope - at Florida on Wednesday night. The Vols then host the '86 Celtics on Saturday before finishing the year against Teen Wolf's Beacon Town Beavers next week.