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Tennessee basketball: Did Vols fans just witness peak Rick Barnes?

By Billy Williford

DALLAS, TX - MARCH 15: Head coach Rick Barnes of the Tennessee Volunteers looks on in the first half while taking on the Wright State Raiders in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at American Airlines Center on March 15, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
DALLAS, TX - MARCH 15: Head coach Rick Barnes of the Tennessee Volunteers looks on in the first half while taking on the Wright State Raiders in the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at American Airlines Center on March 15, 2018 in Dallas, Texas. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee basketball lost in the NCAA Tournament Saturday to a No. 11 seed in Loyola-Chicago. Did Volunteers fans just see the peak for a Rick Barnes team?

Winning is never easy, and Tennessee basketball did a lot of winning this year on the basketball court. There is no denying that this was a magical season of sorts for the Vols.

Projected to finish 13th in the preseason was never an option after the Vols started 9-2 overall with a huge win against Purdue in the Battle 4 Atlantis. There is also no denying that each player on the team except for John Fulkerson – which may not be fair to say due to his nagging injury – got better not only in the offseason but throughout the regular season.

The Vols were a three seed in the NCAA Tournament. While nothing is ever a sure thing in March, Tennessee basketball had a great opportunity to make the Sweet Sixteen.

Yes, I know, Virginia got beat by a 16th seed for the first time in the history of the Tournament. So things could be worse. However, the loss was stingy and probably still hurts Vol fans today.

As I sat there and watched Tennessee lose dramatically, which of course was in the closing seconds of the game, my buddy – who is a Texas fan – simply said, “I told you so.” When the Vols hired Barnes, he said, “Tennessee will have a solid team, but will fail in March.”

I’m not a “Barnes Basher.” In fact, I’ve been saying all year long that he should have won Coach of The Year. But, the loss made me dig deep into Barnes’s postseason success, or well, lack thereof.

This season was Barnes’s 31st season coaching college basketball and the 4th different program he has taken to the NCAA Tournament. That’s quite an impressive feat, and not many coaches can say they’ve accomplished such a thing.

It’s also worth noting that in his 31 seasons of coaching, his has coached in the NCAA Tournament 23 times. So, why are we even asking the question?

Obviously, that record should make any fan base happy, but when you’re at Tennessee or even in the SEC, sometimes appearances aren’t enough. Here is how Barnes has fared in the NCAA Tournament.

Final Four – 1
Elite Eight -2
Sweet Sixteen – 3
Second Round – 6
First Round – 11

I’m not suggesting winning in the big dance is easy. But his teams have lost in the First Round almost 50% of the time. Moreover, he has gone home 17 times before the Sweet Sixteen.

That’s 74% of the time!

I’m not starting the fire Barnes movement, I like Rick Barnes and think he is a good coach. But, if next year includes another postseason collapse in the first weekend, maybe Barnes doesn’t have what it takes to win the big game.

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