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Tennessee basketball: 5 keys for Vols in NCAA Tournament

By Caleb Calhoun

ST LOUIS, MO - MARCH 10: Rick Barnes the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers gives instructions to his team against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the semifinals of the 2018 SEC Basketball Tournament at Scottrade Center on March 10, 2018 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
ST LOUIS, MO - MARCH 10: Rick Barnes the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers gives instructions to his team against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the semifinals of the 2018 SEC Basketball Tournament at Scottrade Center on March 10, 2018 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images
Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images /

3. Dominate in the paint

We already mentioned Admiral Schofield on the last slide. He leads to our next point too because of his size and usefulness as a stretch-four or a three. The Tennessee Vols will just have to hope they have two players on shooting outside.

When it comes to the inside game, however, they have complete control over that. Schofield has stepped his game up recently to be able to stretch the floor, and while he shoots well outside, he needs to dominate under the basket.

Kyle Alexander is a solid scrapper down low who wins 50-50 balls and blocks shots. That has to continue as well.

And then there’s Grant Williams. He’s the Vols’ ace under the basket. For the most part, he has been aggressive and a great scorer all year. However, Rick Barnes has had to call him out at times to get his game back on track.

That can’t happen in the NCAA Tournament. If Williams isn’t doing his job down low, the Vols are going to be in trouble. They already struggle a bit on the rebounding front, but if Williams is not focused, they’ll get torched down low.

Tennessee will swing the ball well, as they are better than almost anybody at racking up assists. But the forwards need to be able to score in the paint while outside shooting needs to complement it if that is to continue.

Meanwhile, Williams, Alexander and Schofield together will have to be more consistent on the boards during the tournament. Otherwise, they could make a quick exit.

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