Tennessee basketball: 3 takeaways from Vols loss at Missouri
Tennessee basketball lost a tough game to the Missouri Tigers 59-55. Here are 3 takeaways from the Volunteers’ loss to former coach Cuonzo Martin.
Tennessee basketball lost its third game in SEC play Wednesday. They couldn’t quite close the deal against the Missouri Tigers. The Tigers held the Vols to a season-low 55 points and 38.9% shooting. This would have been an enormous win to help the Vols make a statement in SEC play after starting 0-2 in the conference.
With the loss, Tennessee basketball falls to 3-3 in SEC play and 12-5 overall. On the other hand, Missouri gets a solid win for their NCAA Tournament resume. With the win, the Tigers move to 3-2 in the conference, only 1.5 games behind the 1st place Gators, and 13-5 overall.
Tennessee was picked preseason to finish 13th in SEC standings, and the Vols are still okay. They have more chances upcoming to prove that they belong in the NCAA Tournament and remain a real contender for an SEC Title.
The schedule does favor the Vols after they travel to South Carolina on Saturday, to face a team that is red hot coming off wins against Georgia and Kentucky.
Tennessee basketball has played well after losses before and need to use Saturday to get back on track. Here are three takeaways from their loss to the Missouri Tigers.
1. Jordan Bowden needs to get going.
The sophomore slump is real. Jordan Bowden shot 0-5 from the three-point line and looked out of rhythm all night, shooting 1-for-7 from the field. He even shot 0-1 from the free throw line, which is uncharacteristic for Bowden shooting 83% on the year.
Bowden had a span earlier in this season where he scored in double digits 6 out of 7 games. The Vols were 6-1 during that seven-game span. We have seen flashes where Bowden went 5-5 against Wake Forest and 4-5 against Mercer.
In all five losses this year, Bowden has been held to single-digit scoring and only 31% from the 3-point line.
Bowden is clearly an essential part of Tennessee’s’ success, and so is Kyle Alexander which leads us to our next point.
2. Time for more Kyle Alexander and James Daniel III
It’s clear Kyle Alexander isn’t Tennessee basketball’s go-to guy, but he has a strong presence in the paint. It appears that the junior forward is ready for more of a role on this team.
Alexander had a significant impact in a losing effort. He had 12 points, three blocks, and four rebounds and shot 6-6 from the field. That stat line may not jump off the page, but he had a huge impact. Missouri’s offense was stagnant for most of the first half until Alexander left the game due to foul trouble. Missouri took advantage by attacking the rim, which opened up the floor for their shooters.
James Daniel runs the offense better than any other guard on the team, and it isn’t close. The fifth-year senior shows poise and the ability to run the offense in critical situations. He leads the team in assist per game and knows how to handle the pressure, something that Tennessee as a whole lacked in the second half.
- Tennessee was simply outplayed.
Outplayed is hardly ever an adjective that is used to describe a Rick Barnes-coached Tennessee team, but tonight the Vols were outplayed, especially in the second half.
Missouri outrebounded Tennessee 33-29 and grabbed crucial offensive rebounds in the second half.
There is a correlation with this year’s basketball team. When the shots aren’t falling, the defensive pressure and hustle isn’t there. Vols fans know first-hand how tough Cuonzo Martin’s defenses are, seeing it themselves for three years. If you don’t hustle, his teams will cost you with their defensive intensity.
Tennessee basketball fights hard, but this is still a young team that is learning how to win together. They have to be able to keep the effort up when things get rough in the future.