Tennessee basketball: 4 keys for Vols in SEC Tournament
3. Lamonte Turner shooting less
I’ve been really tough on Lamonte Turner this season. But, I’m not saying anything that stats don’t back up. He isn’t shooting the basketball anywhere near to the level he was last season, and it’s really impacting the flow of Tennessee’s offense.
Turner is shooting 30.4 percent from the three-point line in conference play. And, as bad as that percentage is, it’s the shot selection and how many attempts that is worrisome. Since the loss to Kentucky in Rupp Arena, Turner has attempted 42 three-point attempts and only made six. That’s 14.3 percent.
Furthermore, Turner has taken a total of 31 three-point shots in the Vols’ four losses. Not 31 shots, 31 three-point attempts. He’s shooting just 9.6 percent from deep in those games. In that same span, Grant Williams has only attempted 43 shots total and made 51.2 percent.
Tennessee is 53-13 past two seasons. In eight of the thirteen losses, Turner took six or more three-point shots (14-59, 23.7%). However, the Vols have only lost one game the past two seasons (Georgia 18′) when Lamonte makes at least three three-point jumpers in a game.
Simply put, Turner is at his best when he isn’t shooting the Vols’ out of wins. He needs to settle down and let the game come to him if Tennessee wants to make a deep run in the tournaments.