Tennessee Basketball: Two takeaways from Vols’ 79-70 loss at Auburn

In their regular-season finale, Tennessee basketball came up short against the Auburn Tigers.

The Vols finished up the regular season with a loss against the Tigers. Auburn was a short 2.5-point favorite heading into the matchup with the Volunteers and defended their home court on Senior Night with a final score of 79-70.

Inconsistency could be a problem in the Tournament.

Tennessee basketball heads to Nashville for the SEC tournament on Thursday this week. They will take on the winner of either Ole Miss or South Carolina and should be able to take care of business against either of them.

The Volunteers have shown flashes of greatness throughout this wild season, and it’s hard to know which Vols team will show up in both the SEC and NCAA tournaments. Tennessee basketball is a five-seed heading into the SEC tournament. They will have to beat both Missouri and Alabama for a chance to even get to the SEC championship.

Tennessee basketball has beaten some outstanding teams, but they have also lost to some horrible teams this year. They are 3-1 against top 10 teams this year, beating Alabama (1), Kansas (3), and Texas (10). However, seven out of their nine losses have been to unranked teams. Predicting how the Vols will do in the SEC and NCAA tournaments is hard. Still, one thing is for sure, they showed they have the talent to go on a run but also have the inconsistency that may lead to a first-round exit.

Tennessee basketball’s defense needs to step up.

The Volunteers have been suffering from injuries all year, and it feels like they haven’t played a game at 100% all season. Their shooting has been inconsistent all year; in some games, they shoot 50% from behind the arc, and in other games, they hit 7%. The only thing consistent with this Volunteers team is their lockdown defense.

If the Vols go on a run in both the SEC and NCAA Tournament, they will be riding on the backs of their defense. If the defense steps up, no opponent in the country can take the Vols. Even if Tennessee isn’t shooting well, they can stay close to anybody when the defense is locked in.