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Tennessee basketball: Three takeaways from Vols 68-48 loss to Wisconsin

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - DECEMBER 2: Dunk from Yves Pons #35 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the first half of their game against the Texas A&M-CC Islanders at Thompson-Boling Arena on December 2, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - DECEMBER 2: Dunk from Yves Pons #35 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the first half of their game against the Texas A&M-CC Islanders at Thompson-Boling Arena on December 2, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /
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In their first game without Lamonte Turner, the Volunteers fell to the Wisconsin Badgers. Here are three things we learned from Tennessee basketball’s loss.

Well that was ugly. In the last game of the decade for Tennessee basketball, the Vols suffered a brutal loss at home to the Wisconsin Badgers. It was the third loss in four games for UT, with their only win coming against the Jacksonville State Gamecocks.

Greg Gard’s team jumped out to a 7-0 lead and never trailed, going up 38-24 at halftime and extending it to 47-24 in the second half. With the win, Wisconsin improves to 7-5 on the year. Meanwhile, the Vols fell to 8-4 on the year.

Up next for Rocky Top is the beginning of SEC play, which takes place in a week on the road against the LSU Tigers. Before that game takes place, here is a look back on this one. These are our three takeaways from Tennessee basketball’s blowout loss at home.

1. Lamonte Turner’s absence was obvious.

Josiah-Jordan James did have five assists. But he had three turnovers, and with him and Davonte Gaines starting together, the team had 17 turnovers overall. Also, the lack of ability to distribute the ball resulted in nobody being able to score in double-figures on the day. What’s clear is that even without Turner’s shooting this year, his ability to distribute was a big deal, and it was missed.

2. There was no answer for Wisconsin’s three-point shooting.

The Badgers shot seven-of-13 from the three-point line in just the first half. That’s how they built such a huge lead. Tennessee basketball wasn’t horrible, going six-of-18, but when there is no solid ball distribution on the other end of the floor, they aren’t built to be able to withstand what Wisconsin did. That’s a big reason they lost.

3. Free throw shooting disappeared.

If UT is not going to distribute the ball well and the opponent is going to shoot red-hot from three, they are already going to lose. But what keeps them in games is usually free throw shooting. That was the opposite in this game. While Wisconsin went seven-of-nine, the Vols went 10-of-19. That disparity, missing nine free throws, made a huge difference.

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