Tennessee basketball received some miserable news last week when it was announced that junior forward Cade Phillips will miss the rest of the year with a left shoulder injury. Not exactly the news Vols fans wanted to hear in the midst of a three-game losing streak.
The Vols have a mega top-25 showdown at the Food City Center Tuesday night versus a tough Louisville team. Head Coach Pat Kelsey has done a tremendous job turning around the once-proud basketball program with a 9-1 start this year, including resume wins over Kentucky, Indiana, and Arkansas.
Tennessee will have its hands full trying to break out of this slump. Rick Barnes has had over a week of practice time to try to fix the mental lapses the Vols seem to have. With Phillips out and the Vols needing a shakeup, it was announced that Rick Barnes has a lineup change ahead of the big game on Tuesday.
Freshman forward DeWayne Brown II will crack the staring lineup according to Barnes in his Monday media session. Barnes said, "He earned it. Just that's it. He simply with his conssistency he earned it. And we're going to base everything we do based on everyday practice habits and consistency because that's what we haven't had."
Freshman DeWayne Brown II will start for Tennessee
This is a significant lineup move, as Tennessee now has two freshmen in its starting five. DeWayne Brown II is an old-school power forward. At 6-foot-8, 250 pounds, he plays a physical game that isn't afraid to do the little things to help the team win, like defend, rebound, run, etc., so it's not much of a surprise Rick Barnes is rewarding him with an opportunity to start.
In 2025, Brown has played in eight games averaging 5.5 points, and 3.1 rebounds in 13.3 minutes of action. Brown has been extremely efficient scoiring the ball with his 66.7% field goal percentage.
Tennessee fans should be pumped up at this development. Brown will make the most of this opportunity with his high energy play. The other big development from this is for the people who have thought Barfnes has gotten 'lazy.' Rick Barnes is tired of the same old same old. He wants to win badly, just like the big orange nation.
Tuesday night will be far from easy, but Vols fans will be glued to the TV watching Tennessee atemptt to break the losing streak.