Tennessee basketball: Vols 3 Keys to SEC Tournament victory over Mississippi State

Tennessee basketball faces the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the SEC Tournament. Here are the UT Volunteers’ three keys to victory over MSU.

This will be Tennessee basketball’s first game of the SEC tournament.  The Bulldogs are coming off of an 80-77 thriller against LAU.  State was in complete control most of the game, leading by as much as 19.  They had to fight hard against a late charge from the Tigers.

All conference foes are familiar when we get to March. The Vols throttled the Bulldogs 76-54 in their last meeting in Starkville. Admiral Schofield led all scorers in that matchup with 24 points and added 7 rebounds. The Vols put Mississippi State down with stout second half defense, allowing only 20 points.

The Tennessee basketball team will be looking for a similar result to kick off their first game in SEC tourney play.  Let’s take a look and see how they can get it done.

1. DEFENSE; shut down the Weatherspoons

The Volunteers showed last time that they are more than capable of shutting this team down. They held the Bulldogs to under 40% shooting and 4-20 from beyond the arc. MSU’s Weatherspoon brothers did their share of damage, mostly in the first half. But the Vols D rendered the MSU reserves useless. Mississippi State only produced 6 bench points from the 6 players they pulled from it.

If Rick Barnes can have his Volunteers executing a game plan this flawlessly again, the Bulldogs shouldn’t really have a chance. Limiting the Weatherspoon brothers is key because the rest of that team can’t hang with the talented teamwork and physical play of the Vols.

2. Use what the Bulldogs give; guards will likely be called on

Mississippi State was able to do a pretty good job on Grant Williams. Williams finished with 8 points and only got off three shots. With all the focus on Williams, Schofield took advantage and lit the Bulldogs up.

However, I’m sure State remembers that very well and recent film of the Volunteers will show anyone what Admiral Schofield can do. MSU will make more than a concerted effort and add a lot of focus and attention to the Admiral. The guards need to be ready to make a big impact on the offensive side of the ball.

The most encouraging thing for the Vols is that they far from being a one trick pony in the last game. Admiral led the way, but Turner added 12 points while 4 other Volunteers kicked in at least 7. Every Vol that checked in scored at least three. Tennessee basketball’s core production no secret at this point in the season. They will need to utilize all their weapons against the Bulldogs and all opponents going forward.

3. Don’t fall asleep on the lead

It’s not necessarily their reputation anymore, but the Vols did have one for blowing big leads. There is certainly a history there. This team is playing to win a championship-that is clear. The Volunteers need to be very wary of lulling themselves to sleep if they find themselves up big.

One of the keys to winning a tournament is staying fresh, getting it done and sitting down. If Tennessee is in that situation, they will run the risk of slipping into old habits. Some teams havea tough time re engaging into 5th gear, once they’ve down shifted. Tennessee has shown they can be one of those teams.

The margins of victory in yesterday’s games were 1, 2, 3, 5.  The winning team and each of those games had double digit leads in the second half.  Two of the winners had such a lead late.  The Vols must tread very carefully in this tournament.

Prediction

I believe Tennessee can accomplish all three of these keys. My biggest question surrounds number 3. What will they look like and how will they respond when they begin to slow it down, use some clock, or make substitutions to keep the higher minute players fresher for subsequent games?

The Tennessee basketball team should be able to avoid creating themselves problems. In doing so, I see them winning comfortably. Not a blowout, but comfortably. Vols will win 73-64.