UT looking for some exposure in exhibition game

There's plenty of work to be done on the Tennessee men's basketball team, and coach Bruce Pearl figures that will show Friday night.

"We want to be exposed, and I expect North Alabama is capable of doing just that,'' said Pearl, whose Vols tip off their season with a 7:30 p.m. exhibition game at Thompson-Boling Arena. "Having been in Division II nine years, I'd rate its teams better than low major Division I teams.''

The Vols begin this season ranked No. 10 in The Associated Press poll and No. 11 in the USA Today/Coaches' poll. It's the fifth time in school history UT has started a season ranked No. 10 in the preseason. The 2007-08 team, which later rose to No. 1, started that year ranked No. 7.

"Obviously it's just the preseason, but this is exactly the position we'd like our program to be in,'' said Pearl, whose team brought a No. 14 ranking into last season. "We've considered ourselves a top 20 program, and now we're trying to move into consistently being ranked in the top 10.

"We recognize we have a lot of work to do, but at the same time, this team has been together for a while and is in position to have a really strong year.''

The Vols showed signs of needing to gel offensively and defensively in their Wednesday scrimmage.

Pearl has yet to settle on a starting five, and said he would start two different lineups in the exhibitions. The Vols play Lincoln Memorial Univeristy in an exhibition at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at Thompson-Boling Arena.

"I'll probably start Scotty (Hopson), J.P. (Prince) and Cameron (Tatum) at least once between the two (shooting guard) and the three (wing),'' Pearl said. "That's how close it is, and right now Skylar (McBee) is in the regular rotation.''

Pearl said McBee, a freshman walk-on from Grainger High School, has outworked the Vols' scholarship athletes.

"Skylar has been our hardest worker, he's gotten more shots than anyone on the team, and he has rated out highest with our strength coach and the assistants who oversaw the individual workouts,'' Pearl said. "He's been everything he's expected to be and shown a lot of hunger and improvement.''

McBee, expected to be a reserve shooting guard this season, was 4 of 4 beyond the 3-point arc and led the Vols with four steals in Wednesday's scrimmage.

Pearl said it's too early to evaluate the battle at point guard, where incumbent Bobby Maze is trying to hold off incoming junior college transfer Melvin Goins.

Maze was more impressive in Wednesday's scrimmage, but Goins is still recovering from the arthroscopic knee surgery he underwent earlier this month.

"It's definitely too early there,'' Pearl said. "Melvin is still getting his feet wet. Most guys are just now coming back from that surgery, but he came back a week early.''

Pearl hopes the UT fans in town for Saturday's football game with South Carolina will show up at Thompson-Boling Arena tonight.

"This is the first night we're allowed to have an exhibition, and we chose to do it because so many people are in town for the football game,'' Pearl said. "With $5 tickets, and several of our other home games already sold out, it's a good opportunity to see us.

"I hope the place is packed.''

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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