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Tennessee basketball: 5 things we learned about Vols from SEC Tournament

By Caleb Calhoun

NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - MARCH 16: Rick Barnes the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers gives instructions to his team during the 82-78 win over the Kentucky Wildcats during the semifinals of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 16, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
NASHVILLE, TENNESSEE - MARCH 16: Rick Barnes the head coach of the Tennessee Volunteers gives instructions to his team during the 82-78 win over the Kentucky Wildcats during the semifinals of the SEC Basketball Tournament at Bridgestone Arena on March 16, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images
Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images /

2. Responding well to big wins is a major question.

Tennessee basketball’s last win as emotional as the one they got on Saturday over the Kentucky Wildcats was back in December when they beat the No. 1 ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs. After that one, though, they didn’t play a ranked team for nearly two months.

This time, the Vols had to play a ranked team the next day. And it was a team under Bruce Pearl who likes to turn up the tempo and make everything hectic. Rick Barnes’s kids paid for it dearly with their 20-point loss.

Everybody who watched that game felt the team had celebrated all night in Nashville and forgot about its 1 p.m. start. The first-half hangover was beyond obvious, and it cost the Vols an opportunity to take control of the game when Auburn wasn’t hitting in the first half. While the Tigers were missing, they were forcing turnovers and getting offensive rebounds.

Related Story. A look at Vols road to the Final Four. light

Of course, this is no excuse. The Duke Blue Devils didn’t have any trouble beating the Florida State Seminoles for the ACC Tournament championship a day after a huge win over the North Carolina Tar Heels. Great teams find ways to keep winning.

What it shows is that the Vols may not be great with quick turnarounds against great teams. How are they going to make a run in the NCAA Tournament with that issue, especially in the second weekend when they may have to play two elite teams in three nights? Maybe it explains why Barnes hasn’t made a Final Four in 16 years.

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