Tennessee Starts Tough January Off Right

At the start of the month Tennessee had to be looking at the schedule and wondering where the wins would come from. With five games scheduled against top fifteen opponents plus road games to Memphis and Vanderbilt, there seemed to be very few opportunities to win for a team that went just 7-7 in out of conference play (the time of year most teams try to bolster their records).  After a lackluster performance at Memphis where Tennessee was never in the game the prospects for the month seemed even dimmer.

Then Saturday rolled around and Tennessee took the 13th ranked Gators to the woodshed.  The Volunteers gave the Gators a lesson on now to play defense, and even held the Gators under 30% from the field during the second half of the 67-56 win.   Suddenly, Cuonzo Martin got his first signature win at Tennessee, and the Volunteers were off to a surprising 1-0 start in the SEC.  Tennessee finally put everything together for a complete game.  Several times the Vols played very competitive games against highly ranked teams (Duke, Pitt, Memphis the first time), but could just not do enough to get over the hump and get the win.    Finally, Tennessee played the style of basketball that Coach Martin wants them to play: tough defense and smart offensive basketball.

So what does this mean for the rest of the season?  It would be a little presumptuous to assume Tennessee will be a contender to win the SEC, or even come all that close to winning it.  However, it also does not seem likely that Tennessee will finish in the barrel of the SEC like most prognosticators predicted at the start of the season.  Let’s be honest, the schedule is still brutal the rest of the way.  It is also unlikely that Tennessee will be as efficient on offense as they were today or as stingy on defense for the rest of the season.  Kenny Hall deserves major props for his performance today with 13 points and some big rebounds, but he is not yet the consistent post player he needs to be (I really hope that I am proven wrong on this point; Kenny, go score 15 a game and pull down 8 rebounds a game for the rest of the year so I will be wrong here).

BUT! The pieces are in place and appear to be coming together.  Trae Golden has become a legitimate SEC point guard and leads the conference in assists.  Maymon has been solid and some of the other role players are fitting in nicely.  Plus do not forgot that Jarnell Stokes will likely be cleared to practice on Monday and may play for the Vols by the end of the week.

Things are brightening on Rocky Top for the BasketVols for the first time in awhile.  No one would have predicted at the start of the month that Tennessee would pull an upset against any team they were not supposed to beat.  It’s funny how one signature win can change the perception of a team and a coach (time to win the big one Derek). Suddenly 8-8 in the SEC seems possible and maybe an NIT bid.  If Cuonzo Martin can accomplish that in his first season on Rocky Top with a team that was said to “have the worst talent of any major conference basketball team” then I think we have one heck of a coach and a lot to look forward to in the next couple of years.