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Tennessee Basketball: Young Vols Need to Prove they Can Handle Success Against Kansas State

By Caleb Calhoun

Jan 24, 2017; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers forward Grant Williams (2) and guard Jordan Bone (0) celebrate after defeating the Kentucky Wildcats 82-80 at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 24, 2017; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee Volunteers forward Grant Williams (2) and guard Jordan Bone (0) celebrate after defeating the Kentucky Wildcats 82-80 at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bryan Lynn-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tennessee basketball is coming off a huge win over the Kentucky Wildcats. But the Volunteers need to show they can handle success against Kansas State.

This story has been prevalent among Tennessee basketball all year. It’s one you see with lots of young teams, and Rick Barnes’s squad is no different.

The minute the Vols get a decent win against anybody, they immediately think higher of themselves than they should. And they get hit with reality the next game.

After beating Texas A&M, they lost to Arkansas. After an impressive road win at Vanderbilt, they blew a game at Ole Miss.

Heck, the minute they even look good against somebody, they’ll struggle the next game.

After only losing by two to North Carolina, they barely beat Appalachian State.

Well, this week, their ability to handle success faces its toughest test yet. Tennessee basketball got its biggest win in the Rick Barnes era by beating Kentucky on Tuesday.

The Vols got to rest for four days after that, and now they host a Kansas State Wildcats team in the SEC/Big 12 challenge. Kansas State is coming off a bad loss to the Iowa State Cyclones.

How will Tennessee respond?

They are coming off a huge win, Kansas State is coming off a huge loss, and the Vols are now entering NCAA Tournament talks for the first time in the Barnes era. After all, they are No. 47 in the RPI now due to strength of schedule. That’s a lot for a young team to deal with.

Meanwhile, Kansas State is not the type of team you want to take likely. They are ranked two spots ahead of the Vols in the RPI at No. 45 with a 15-5 record.

The Wildcats have also demonstrated an ability to win on the road, where they are 3-3 on the season, and one of those wins came against the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

So if the Vols take Kansas State lightly, they will lose.

But can they get their mentality right for this game? You know they’re feeling themselves after beating Kentucky.

And so far this season, they have choked away opportunities to build off of a big win. This is their chance to prove that they can handle success, and it’ll be another huge step for this young team to take.

In fact, beating a team like Kansas State after such a big win would actually be a bigger step taken than beating Kentucky.

It’s a mental hurdle that will bode well for the rest of the season if the Vols can keep it up.

So the Vols have no excuses. They are at home and coming off lots of rest. Lack of confidence should not be an issue.

Overconfidence could be a killer in this one, though.

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