LSU @ Tennessee Preview

Tennessee is set to take on LSU for the first and only time this year on Tuesday night. The Vols are coming off a huge 88-58 win over the Kentucky Wildcats this past Saturday, a win that likely kept Tennessee’s tournament hopes alive.

LSU is coming off a win against Mississippi State on Saturday.  The Tigers are 95th in the NCAA in scoring, compared to the Volunteer’s 246th ranked scoring offense.

Tennessee played a complete game for one of the first times this season, in their win over Kentucky. Trae Golden has been playing at an extremely high level since coming back from a hamstring strain. Against Kentucky he scored 24 points and had 8 assists, without turning the ball over.

The Vols will have to play at the same pace against and LSU team that can get up and down the court quickly. The Tigers move the ball around efficiently and are 65th in the nation in assists per game (compared to Tennessee’s ranking of 314th).  LSU is also one of the top rebounding teams in the SEC.  Tennessee won the rebound margin against Kentucky, but it’s important to remember the Wildcats were missing their top rebounder, injured freshmen Nerlens Noel.

Tennessee showed against Kentucky that they can play up tempo basketball and put points on the board. If the Vols continue to attack, and go after rebounds with the tenacity they showed against Kentucky, then they should be fine against LSU.

With six games left in the season, each game becomes a must win for the Volunteers, to keep their tournament hopes alive.  It will be a daunting task, especially with a game at home against the seventh ranked Florida Gators looming, but the Vols showed what kind of basketball they’re capable of playing in their win against Kentucky.

Tennessee and LSU will tip off at 7:00 PM EST on Tuesday night from Thompson Boling arena in Knoxville.