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Tennessee coaches don't always agree with what the News Sentinel runs as commentary. See John Adams.

John Pennington, who has written commentary for the News Sentinel and govolsxtra.com the past three years, has a critique that men's basketball coach Bruce Pearl even approves.

Here's the transcript from Tuesday's "SportsTalk" on The Sports Animal with host Jimmy Hyams.

Jimmy Hyams: “There was an article that John Pennington wrote in The News Sentinel about the turnover ratio in the first (27) games – it was plus six-point-four. The last nine games it was about one. Do you think that was a difference in the way you played – in the turnover margin?”

Bruce Pearl: “Yeah, I do. I thought that was an excellent article. And I thought it made a lot of sense. We weren’t creating as much offense with our defense and that was a big part of what we do. But, you know what, more than anything, our turning the ball over was a factor.

"And sometimes less is more. And in the case of Jordan Howell there were times he did not turn the ball over, he did not make a lot of mistakes. And I think hindsight, in this sense, if I could have gotten JP to do the things that he did without turning it over, then you’re going to get more and give up less. And without a doubt, I think it was turnovers.”

Pennington's column that appeared in Sunday's News Sentinel and gvx can be read by following this link.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.