LEXINGTON, Ky. — Tennessee is playing at Rupp Arena before a national television audience on CBS (WVLT) with first-place in the SEC Eastern Division on the line.
UT coach Bruce Pearl said Friday he has the Vols (16-9, 7-4 SEC) right where he wants them to be entering today’s 1 p.m. tip against Kentucky (18-8, 7-4).
But Pearl will be the first to tell you the team isn’t playing like he wants.
“Our fans are knowledgeable enough to recognize the challenges with our basketball team,” Pearl said. “It boils down to guard play.
“Can you win a championships with the guard play we’re getting? The answer is ‘no.’ ”
The Vols learned on Jan. 13 in Thompson-Boling Arena that their guards couldn’t stop Jodie Meeks when the Wildcats’ sharpshooter set a school and arena record with 54 points in Kentucky’s 90-72 win.
UT point guard Bobby Maze, one of the Vols who tried to stop Meeks and will play a role again today, said he looks forward to the challenge.
“First off, you go in wanting to contain him; you know he’s gonna get some baskets,’’ Maze said. “You want to contest every shot and attack him on the offensive end to get him into foul trouble.
“The biggest thing, don’t give him any easy baskets. And don’t foul him, because he makes the foul shots.’’
Meeks was 14 for 14 from the free throw line against the Vols in addition to hitting 15 of 22 from the floor — 10 of 15 beyond the 3-point arc.
Maze, who was on the verge of signing with Kentucky last spring before choosing Tennessee, said Meeks’ numbers will likely decide the outcome again.
“When he scores 30 or more, they win,’’ Maze said. “We’re competing for a championship, and we have to beat Kentucky.’’
Pearl has had his struggles against the Wildcats, going 3-4 against Kentucky while he’s 27-5 against the rest of the SEC East.
“Kentucky has been hot and cold, and they are very hot against us,’’ Pearl said. “Some of the games they have lost, they’ve had their struggles. But I see the potential there and two of the top five players in the league.’’
Indeed, and one of those two, Wildcats center Patrick Patterson, is expected to play today after missing the past two games after spraining his ankle in a Feb. 10 win over Florida.
“I would expect so,’’ Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie told the Lexington Herald-Leader on Friday, asked if the 6-foot-9 All-SEC center was going to play.
Patterson practiced Friday.
While Tennessee is stressing guard play, Gillispie is putting a priority on his front line.
“ We gave up seven offensive rebounds to (Wayne) Chism, who’s a hard guy to block out, and five to (Brian) Williams, who is a hard guy to block out,’’ Gillispie said, referring to the teams’ first meeting. “We can’t do that. We got lucky Jodie had such a great night to bail us out. You can’t give up 19 offensive rebounds and expect to win.’’
Pearl said it’s no secret that beating Kentucky starts with having a plan for Meeks and Patterson.
“We’re gonna see if we can do some things where they have to put other guys in position to beat us,’’ Pearl said. “For us to win, our big three — Tyler (Smith), Wayne, J.P. (Prince) — need to play well, and we need to have better guard play.’’
Road Trip: The Vols practiced at NAIA Berea College, just south of Lexington, Friday night.
Rupp Arena has an ice skating show booked next month, and ice was put down on Friday. UT was informed the arena would not be available for a shootaround until 9 p.m. Friday.
Pearl took the inconvenience in stride.
“It’s like welcome back to Division II for me, when we’d have a long bus trip and stop in some gym in the middle of nowhere to practice,’’ Pearl said. “But the people here have been great to us, and the whole town turned out to watch us practice.’’
The Vols had a more physical than normal practice on account of their activity being limited Thursday.
“We didn’t get back until 3:30 in the morning after Wednesday’s game,’’ Pearl said, “so we couldn’t do a lot.’’
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Comments » 181
tnmantravel#531151 writes:
vols stunk it up at ole miss.... imagine the odor coming out of Rupp after this game
bluetick writes:
That game was tough to watch. Without Meeks we took that game, no question. Just had no answer for him. Still gonna watch it, but I'll have some Xanax near by this time. :)
volbald writes:
The amasing thing is that B. Pearl recruited all these players from the get-go. He won convincingly with B.P.'s "mediocre" recruits. What's the deal? At times they look as unfocused as the LadyVols.
SmokyMTNVol writes:
The only way this team will improve is if Bruce Pearl ask Pat Summitt to take over as coach.
yabadabadoo1026 writes:
stupid comment as if shes not having enough similar problems of her own with low effort and bad shooters and bad defense
floridavolsfan writes:
Don't melt down.................RISE UP!! GO ROCKY TOP!!!
peerlessvolfan writes:
I don't get what you're saying either.
bobbarbilly writes:
Witch_doctor cast monkey skull spell on wildcats. No wake up until game over.
floridavolsfan writes:
All interlopers please pick up that glass of ORANGE kool-aid and drink it (chug-a-lug it).....Now sing Rocky Top and you will no longer be an interloper anymore!!
CoverOrange writes:
Gotta decide, switch or fight through screens. Meeks got space mostly off screens in the first game, gotta stay close to him. Don't let BW get switched on to him. None lever byes.
mike_d writes:
At Ky, Miss St, at Fla, at SC, Ala, SEC tourny game.....they better win 4 of them or could be "NIT time in Tennessee"
bmaples writes:
This game is a complete enigma to me. Both Kentucky and Tennessee have dual-personality teams. This could be a great game (evenly matched great teams), a greatly ugly game (evenly matched lousy teams), or a runaway either way (the good team shows up on one side and the bad on the other).
If Meeks starts bombing 3s, Rupp will be worse than Cameron Indoor. If Tennessee gets up on them, especially in double digits, it will be quieter than study hall.
I follow both teams, and I have no sense of what should happen. None. Here's hoping no one gets hurt, and it's a good game.
Bruce in Louisville
brucemaples.com
Jediphysics writes:
How awesome that the Vols practiced at Berea Beloved (Berea College)! After seeing Chris Lakes' photos on facebook, I'm guessing that the Vol alumnus had something to do with it.
sayhitomaggie writes:
Let's just hope they can at least keep the game close and shut down Meeks. It's possible...it's happened. But Kentucky always seems more focused against UT because they KNOW it's a rivalry game so they step it up a notch. It's time for the Vols to do the same and hopefully win big this time.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
we are toast. I'm sorry to say it, but we are. Just like the LV's, we don't have any rhythm, shotting, or consistant team play.
I've not seen a damned thing I like out of these guys since way early. Early, they passed and dunked. Now?? They just pass around the perimeter and junk up bad 3's.
eduardo writes:
Scratch you guys will throw it down on us. I think this team is done. Look forward to Oct. 15th, it aint gonna happen this year too many holes and not enough answers!
Volumnus writes:
You are correct! The parity across the league is unprecedented. On any given day the favorites fall, so much that you can't use the term upset. Ole Miss and Miss state and Auburn all have quality wins. Either the SEC is much better across the board than the pundits think, or it stinks universally. I don't think anyone can predict what will happen tomorrow, guess maybe, predict no.
Volumnus writes:
CSF, it is about as baffling a season in the SEC as you can get. Not just tomorrow's match up but every game. Who is this group of teams and what have you done with the real SEC???
Where has all of the predictablity gone?
utucla writes:
are you taking bets on that score?.....couldn't guard Meeks last time....he shoots better at Rupp....plus I doubt that he has two poor shooting games in a row....
utucla writes:
or any other player for that matter....plus they are dumb to boot...too many stupid mistakes
trl_x writes:
Sadly, I believe UK wins this game even though Patterson probably won’t be effective. But Patterson’s presence alone will make Meeks that much harder to guard.
Probably a 10 point loss. Down goes the Orange Blazer.
And speaking of guard(s), Pearl hit the nail on the head. We all (myself included) try to come up with all these reasons why the Vols are down. And there ARE other reasons. But the main reason is obvious. This team has poor guard play. Would Tabb, Maze, Hopson or Tatum start for Memphis? How about getting meaningful playing time? I don’t see it.
Now imagine this team with Devon Downey or Chris Warren. Quick, break-down point guards who can shoot.
IMO we would have passed 20 wins long ago.
usnavyvolfaninva_still_getting_paid writes:
I was disappointed in the result of the Ole' Miss game, but who know. I can always dream of a win at Rupp...
Goin on deployment, so this will be my last post for quite a while. Prayers/support appreciated. God bless you all.
FeelVol writes:
To me JP seems most adequate at the point driving and dishing why not throw in Negedu with Chism at the post and Tyler and Hopson on the wings to me this lineup has been the most explosive of any I've seen this year.Maybe Negedu's atitude and energy would rub off on the rest of the team.
tan007 writes:
Of course the heads at Ky. knew what they were doing when they made the arena "unavailable" for our guys to practice. Wonder where we could send them for their shoot-around next time they come up to K-Town?
MBEACHVOL writes:
The fact that JP Prince is one of "our big 3" is one of our biggest problems. I just don't get it that Pearl seems to think Prince is Larry Bird or something.
UKblue02 writes:
I agree G.W. usually you have a least two sometimes as many as five good teams in the SEC, ths year we have maybe one LSU and not real sure about them.
silvertr6 writes:
Pearl needs to find some players who want to win. This bunch not even on the same page. Another very embarassing loss at Kentucky.
UKblue02 writes:
God bless you and all your buddies, I for one appreciate what you are doing for our country, stand tall for us and come back home safely. Go Navy Vol!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ironcity writes:
The book is out on how to guard Meeks but you can be sure UT's guards didn't read it. UT lacks the mental fortitude to come back from adversity and lacks the toughness that it will take to fight on the boards and to defend Meeks. I expect Meeks to go for something in the 30's and UK to win by a dozen.
Down_The_Field writes:
as much as i hate to say it....the closest this game will be for my VOLs will be one second before tip off. i think paterson will play better than last time and it doesn't matter who we put on meeks. his shots will be falling list a french prize fighter.
tennessee 63
kentucky 85
volnknox writes:
Guys lets take the headbands off and play ball.
licknpromise777#651578 writes:
I agree. One minute Prince will make a great play and then the next play he'll bring the ball up side court and step out of bounds with no one guarding him!!! I will say this...He's often an intangible. Out of the blue he'll put together 6 points in a row and get a steal in a crucial part of the game and save the teams a##. good example was memphis last year
Down_The_Field writes:
i'm making a simple pick on the game, stupid. i picked us to win against ole miss.
i was the guy who stayed to the end when flar-duh pounded us in the swamp 59-20. where were you, stupid.
are you gonna trash a vol fan cause you don't like honest opinion, stupid.
if you want to trash a fellow vol fan, why dont you visit the lopers in their tailer park and have at it.
i'll promise you this, stupid, i'll be there today and i wont leave until the final tick is over......stupid.
volnknox writes:
Tenn. 69
kentucky 66
Ironcity writes:
How many points a game would Chris Lofton average if he was guarded by UT's present guards?
licknpromise777#651578 writes:
Ive watched a lot of games this year and one thing stands out in all of them..Teams almost always win when the guards are shooting 45% or better from the floor no matter how bad their defense is..The key to UT winning is for 2 of our 3 guards to have the hot hand..When Hopson scores anywhere near 20 points we win. Unfortunately Tatum and Hopson rarely play well in the same game.. Just like everybody else we play Kentucky will push the game out to the perimeter knowing our guards will continue to shoot bricks.
Stokes44yrs writes:
...or the worst team.
Stokes44yrs writes:
You mean like at Forida?
UKblue02 writes:
Uh no, negative, nyet, no way Jose, nay, negatory, LOL
johnlg00#206211 writes:
You have it, buddy! Thanks for your service. Stay safe and hurry home. We'll keep the orange light on for you.
Slystone writes:
This game is so crucial for the Vols I can't tell you the NCAA ramifications involved. Why? Because a win in Rupp would count as a quality win for the Vols. The early win on Georgetown was nice then, but the Hoyas are not so good right now. This win would say a lot for getting into the NCAA and solidifing 1st place or staying in the race. As Outkast said, "Greyhound don't float on Water" whatever that really meant. Anyway they need this win bottom line(really all of them from this point) Can the win streak begin today? With that being said Kentucky wins by 10+.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Pretty much says it all. I just hope the relatively decent Vol team from earlier in the season, or the one that played Florida, happens to show up today. Not sure WHO these guys are most of the time.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Heck, it's worth a try, I guess. Defensively, I would even try Negedu on Meeks some of the time. Otherwise, I would play zone with a lineup like that. Own the inside, smothering Patterson in the process, and contest Meeks as much as possible. Pound it inside on offense to take advantage of UK's rather thin front line. However, I'm afraid we're just dreaming here. I don't think CBP would have enough faith to try such a lineup for more than a minute or two at a time.
thevoice writes:
Sad, but probably true. I do believe Hopson will break out for 9 pts and Maze for 3 assists though. The Vols will also relinquish the horrible free throw shooting and shoot 58%. Prove me wrong Vols!!!
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Not TOTALLY convinced it is some nefarious UK plot. I'm somewhat less disturbed by not getting in a full workout at Rupp on Friday as I am with the possible floor conditions for the game. Ice under the playing floor can make for some slippery spots if the humidity in the building is high, which is no advantage for either team. In fact, it is potentially dangerous for both.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Some games he plays like Larry Bird--without the outside shot, of course--but others he plays like Big Bird.
huntined#565710 writes:
Too late to think where we would be with this player or that player.. We have to go with what we have.. Meeks is AA this year but I think his avg. is higher on the road than it is at home. so it looks like at home other players on the team score more. Tenn. will have to drive to the basket and HIT the layups.. Meeks had 26 against Vandy and they said it was A OFF NIGHT !! We have some tough games left and most on the road so either they step up or give the sec east to another team..
MBEACHVOL writes:
Funny. You are right he does have stretches where he looks all world, but just like the rest of this team most of the time looks like he would rather be somewhere else. Seems like they are more interested in making highlight reel than making plays that would WIN the game. Still pulling for them.
invisiblekid writes:
Sometimes the truth hurts.
douglasawilliams#582863 writes:
Find you mojo today. We need this one to get a bid to the tournament.
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