Tennessee basketball hitting its stride at the right time after beating South Carolina
Things seemed to bottom out when Tennessee basketball lost to the Kentucky Wildcats by 28 points on the road. Once again, the Vols were going to be a mediocre NCAA Tournament team while Rick Barnes wasted a second straight top five recruiting class.
At the time, the Vols were 2-3 in SEC play and 0-3 on the road. They were just barely clinging to a top 25 ranking the following Monday. One day later, they scored an ugly 68-60 victory at the Vanderbilt Commodores. That raised more questions. However, this site wrote at the time that the Vols owed no apologies for a road win against Vandy.
That was clearly the right take. Since that Vanderbilt win, Tennessee basketball hasn’t lost in the SEC. Beating the South Carolina Gamecocks marked a five-game winning streak in league play, and it was their second straight road win in league play. It’s also their second straight game scoring over 80 points.
Simply put, Rick Barnes’ team is hitting its stride. They have won five of six when you factor in last week’s loss at the Texas Longhorns. However, that was on the road against a top 25 team, and they only lost 52-51. That loss was also due to a bogus foul call at the end of the game, so there’s no shame in that one.
Looking at things in totality, the Vols are 16-6, they are 7-3 in the SEC, and they are undefeated at home. Ranked No. 22 in the AP Poll and No. 20 in the Coaches Poll, all signs suggest they should make a significant jump in both polls when they come out Monday afternoon.
Detractors will point to the quality of opponents, noting that the LSU Tigers are their only top 25 win during this streak. However, beating Vandy on the road, beating Florida, scoring 90 points on the Texas A&M Aggies and completing a season sweep of South Carolina are all impressive.
Also, we should note that the Vols had a top 10 win earlier in the year against the Arizona Wildcats, and they actually have three road wins on the season when you factor in the Colorado Buffaloes. Also, the North Carolina Tar Heels are a decent win, even if it’s not the same UNC program we’re used to seeing.
None of this is to say there aren’t concerns. Tennessee basketball still goes on far too many dry spells offensively, as it showed last week at Texas, and they have some big questions to ask about their post game. That’s even a bigger concern with Olivier Nkamhoua now banged up.
However, they are peaking just as February ball gets into full swing, and that’s a good position to be in. Josiah-Jordan James has finally hit his stride offensively, both point guards are playing with control, Barnes has found the rotations he likes, and Santiago Vescovi is still an elite shooter.
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A trip to the Mississippi State Bulldogs this Wednesday will be a tough test, but if Tennessee basketball wins that, they should handle Vandy at home Saturday. Then comes a true test, as UT will host Kentucky and visit the Arkansas Razorbacks the next week. The Auburn Tigers are still on the slate too, so that’s why it’s a big deal for the Vols to hit their stride now.