“You either gotta step in the ring or not, because they’re gonna drag you in there," said Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans when talking about Tennessee, and he's exactly right. When you play Tenenssee it is like stepping into the ring. It's not your new school high-tempo outside shooting high-paced team. Tennessee likes to drag its opponents to the right and have a heavyweight bout.
Jans also said, "You've gotta decide if you're gonna fight or flee. I thought it got better for us as the game unfolded, I thought guys got more confidence individually and certainly as a group of what it was gonna take to compete with that team and how they go about doing it."
Tennessee puts its opponents through a rough 40 minutes, setting hard screens and playing with a not-so-modern style.
"They set as physical screens as you're gonna see, not just in our league, but anywhere. They have an old-school approach. They're different that way, where they do a lot of off-ball screening and pin downs and fades and staggers, the way my generation grew up playing and coaching," said Jans.
Jans made a football reference when talking about Tennessee, similar to Auburn's head coach, Steven Pearl.
"But when you play Coach (Rick) Barnes and Tennessee, certainly our team was well aware of that and educated about it. You better put your helmet on and you better be willing to do what it takes. 'Cause if you don't, you know, and we had stretches where we didn't, and they punished us."
Tennesseee is the most phyicical team in the nation
Rick Barnes has built an identity for Tennessee basketball, making them the most physical team in the nation. The game has evolved, especially in the SEC, with teams like Alabama and Georgia just running up court as fast as possible to shoot a three. The Vols still play with an old-school style with emphasis on great defense, rebounding, and getting the ball inside.
This style of play has given the Vols an edge in plenty of games. They rarely get outrebounded, and when they can handle that level of physicality, every matchup feels within reach.