Tennessee Vols morning report: Basketball AP rank, Pruitt previews S.C.
The Tennessee Vols men’s basketball AP Poll Top 10 preseason ranking and Jeremy Pruitt’s media presser lead our Volunteers news for Tuesday, Oct. 23, 2018.
We’re really starting to hit full swing with Tennessee Vols sports now, as football isn’t even the lead topic for today’s morning news. Don’t worry. It’s still in the mix, as the stretch run of the season is set to begin.
However, our news on Rocky Top today starts off with a bit of men’s basketball coverage. Preseason expectations for this team lead the day. Football has just the standard coverage of a recap, lookahead and press conference involving all of it.
There are also stories about recognition of Lady Vols in two separate sports to get to. So we have plenty of news to discuss for this second to last Tuesday in the month of October. Let’s start with the basketball news.
Tennessee basketball No. 6 in preseason basketball AP Poll – UTSports
The men’s Tennessee Vols basketball team achieved its highest preseason ranking ever by making it to No. 6 in the preseason AP Poll. At No. 1 were the Kansas Jayhawks, and the only SEC team ahead of UT was the Kentucky Wildcats, ranked No. 2. The Gonzaga Bulldogs, Duke Blue Devils and Virginia Cavaliers rounded out the top 5 ahead of Rick Barnes’s team.
"The last time Tennessee began the year in the top 10 was prior to the 2009-10 season, when the Big Orange started out ranked 10th. The Volunteers would go on to make their deepest postseason run in school history that season, advancing to the Elite Eight."
Jeremy Pruitt addresses media Monday – Patrick Brown, GoVols247
Tennessee Vols football head coach Jeremy Pruitt recapped his team’s loss to the Alabama Crimson Tide and previewed the South Carolina Gamecocks in his weekly Monday press conference. Points of emphasis were Pruitt noting that Jarrett Guarantano should be fine after the shots he took Saturday and that he needs more guys to consistently “play the right way.” Here’s a bit of what else he said.
"“We have a lot of guys that try to compete and play to the standard and the expectations, but unfortunately, you got 11 guys out there and it takes all 11. Even the guys that are trying to do it the right way, they’re not going to win every battle, that’s part of it, but you’ve got to give yourself a chance.”"
Evina Westbrook on Nancy Lieberman watch list – Hoophall Awards
Tennessee Lady Vols guard Evina Westbrook is on the 2019 preseason watch list for the Nancy Lieberman award. This award goes to the to the nation’s top women’s basketball point guard, where Westbrook figures to make a huge leap this year as a sophomore. The award is named after Old Dominion legend Nancy Lieberman.
"Lieberman led Old Dominion University to back-to-back AIAW national championships in 1979 and 1980. She was twice named as the Wade Trophy winner – a basketball first."
Bunny Shaw named SEC Player of the Week – SECSports
Tennessee Lady Vols soccer star Bunny Shaw was named SEC offensive player of the week after leading her team to a win over the LSU Tigers and then a huge win over the No. 5 ranked over the Texas A&M Aggies. Shaw did all of this in impressive fashion, as it was on the heels of her leading the Jamaica Women’s Team to a berth in the World Cup during the same week.
"Shaw assisted Tennessee’s first two goals of the match in a 4-0 win at No. 5 Texas A&M. She scored her team-leading ninth goal of the season to put Tennessee ahead 3-0 in College Station."