The Bruce Pearl that's taking to the practice court this season is different from the coach who oversaw Tennessee's men's basketball team last season.
Around the court he runs, sprinting up to veteran players who miss assignments, snarling, voice filled with emotion, at times, seemingly enraged, throwing down challenges with every whistle and play stoppage.
"You guys noticed a difference, huh?'' Pearl said, asked about the change in his disposition. "Well, I only have two freshmen out there on the court this year, so I have less patience with all of them.
"I'm trying to pick up the tempo of our practice so we can play the way we play.''
The 2008-09 season was not the way Tennessee plays, which is to say, pressing and uptempo.
The Vols led the SEC in scoring and won at least 20 games for a fourth consecutive year and captured the SEC East Division.
But a loss in the SEC tournament title game and a first-round exit after a late basket by Oklahoma State in the NCAA tournament branded the season a failure as far as the UT players were concerned.
"With the new standards we have for Tennessee basketball, and for ourselves, it wasn't a good season,'' UT senior Tyler Smith said. "We want to compete for national championships now.''
That's why Smith, along with his teammates, loves the intensity Pearl has brought back to the practice court.
Two seasons ago, when a more experienced UT team arose to No. 1 in the national polls and captured the SEC regular-season championship, Pearl's intensity peaked.
"There's more fire in Coach this year, like it was when I first came, and that's something we need,'' Smith said. "He held back last year because we had so many new guys.''
Pearl confirmed that was the case.
"I had five freshmen last year, and I don't know if I could have got after them like this, it wouldn't have been fair because there was so much for them to learn,'' Pearl said. "But the guys we have, where they are now, they can handle this, and they want this.
"The great news is I see guys stepping up and responding; we're having some great practices.''
Smith said it's not just a matter of the Vols being snubbed on preseason SEC all-star teams, or the elite top-five national status John Calipari has brought to Kentucky.
"It's not like we just have Kentucky circled on the calendar,'' Smith said. "We have all the teams in the (SEC) East circled. You never know what's going to happen in the league.''
Perhaps not, but the Vols' know what to expect on the court during practice.
"These guys are going to honor the game when they take to the Summit Court,'' Pearl said. "We're going to play Tennessee basketball again.''
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Comments » 16
tnmantravel#531151 writes:
OMG ..... i cannot wait.....watching our football vols playing so hard on the grid iron.....and now 40 minutes of hell is coming to every opponent on the basketball court......... i said "it's great to be a tennessee vol"
UTByrd writes:
Positive begets positive, negative begets negative. It seems we have a wonderfully positive atmostphere in UT sports...all around the board.
Go VOLS!!!!!
knoxtenor writes:
I wonder how many other coaches in the NCAA would be smart enough to modify their style and expectations to match the glut of freshmen that Pearl had last year, especially under the withering eye of a fan base--indeed, a nation--that expected a repeat of 2007's accomplishments? Even though last season wasn't exactly a repeat of '07, Pearl's ability to take the raw materials given to him and spin them into gold is a mark of his true genius not only as a coach but as a master teacher.
Lovin' the start of the Kiffin era, lookin' forward to some fine roundball with Pearl and Summit. With so many great coaches (teachers), we should be beating off potential recruits (and students) with a stick!
rockytopman writes:
Go Vols...big expectations from this fan...can't wait for season to start...CBP, thanks for being All Vol!!
GerryOP writes:
Sounds like The Kiffin and The Pearl are challenging each other to see who goes to the top 1st! Love it..
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Love the fact that everybody sounds hungry this year. Hope they keep up the intensity all year, and that it translates from the practice floor to the games. If it does, this could be a great year for Tennessee basketball.
Chris4Vols22 writes:
SHUT UP!!! If Pearl were rubbing off on Kiffin, the football team wouldn't be 3-4!!! MORON!!! GO CHEER FOR KENTUCKY OR MEMPHIS SINCE YOU HATE UT SO MUCH!!!
jhayes0926#638474 writes:
For this year, this sounds very good. For next year, it doesn't sound so good. We are losing just about everybody. Does that mean we go into a 4 corner offense next yr?
VOLKING writes:
Morristown, how does it feel to have everyone hate you on this site? As you say...LOL! Now go play with your toys, kid, and stay off of your parents' computer. Memphis interloper club meetings are every Thursday, BTW. In hell.
Fulton_Vol writes:
Griff, even after I emailed you privately you still didn't correctly fix the article. Pat Summitt has coached the Lady Vols how many years? Yet a KNS writer nor the editors can make sure her name is spelled correctly in quote by Coach Pearl.
The basketball court at the University of Tennessee is named "The Summitt", perhaps you need a picture of her name? Then refer to back to the recent KNS picture of Pat and Tyler that appeared with the story about him wanting to become a coach. They are standing above the court's "The Summitt" logo, which is based on her signature.
Fulton_Vol writes:
The last line of the story should be:
"These guys are going to honor the game when they take to The Summitt court," Pearl said. "We're going to play Tennessee basketball again."
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Let's just worry about this year for now. If they do well, they will likely recruit well and next year's drop-off may not be as steep as it may seem right now.
Stokes44yrs writes:
Well John I hope next year will be good too. Every year is an adjustment. I belive last year we had too many "personalities" to meld into a team. We seem to be headed in the right direction now.
VOLKING writes:
Good comeback sweetheart.
VOLKING writes:
This is on ESPN's website today along with their SEC hoops preview. I know slugs like -loper Morristown will love it.
ESPN HOOPS PREVIEW-TENNESSEE
One day, the coaching job Bruce Pearl turned in last season might come to be regarded as one of his best.
After losing Chris Lofton, JaJuan Smith, Jordan Howell and Ramar Smith, Pearl found himself with a guard-poor group that had only two players shorter than 6-6. He had no pure point guard, and no speedy lockdown type to create havoc in his trademark press, which he ultimately had to shelve. Worse, three-point shooting, a deadly weapon in Pearl's first three seasons, became a liability; the Vols ended up shooting .315 in the Southeastern Conference, last in the league.
Throw in the usual array of injuries, egos, personal problems, etc., and it was a miracle the Vols managed to win 21 times, impressive that they tied for first in the SEC's Eastern Division and groundbreaking that they advanced to the finals of the league tournament. They hadn't played in the league title game since 1991 and hadn't won the tournament since 1979.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
I don't know who wrote this piece for ESPN, but it must be gratifying to CBP to have an outsider confirm what he said about the team throughout the preseason last year. Since he was ultimately right about the nature of last year's team, maybe we can trust him when he says that this year's team will be able to play the style he prefers. I certainly hope so!
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