AUBURN, Ala. - Auburn basketball has moved, literally, across the street, and, figuratively, into a new era.
Tennessee is good with both.
The Tigers have a new coach and a new arena. Both are promising for the future.
The present, however, played out on the scoreboard Thursday night:
Tennessee established a double-digit superiority in the first half, padded the lead to 22 points then coasted home to a 69-56 victory.
As was the case at Ole Miss on Saturday, the Vols steamrolled an SEC West opponent on the road, a welcome development for associate head coach Tony Jones.
Jones, filling in for suspended head coach Bruce Pearl, has seen his role become progressively less ulcer-inducing.
His first four games in charge were last-possession affairs. The past three have been wins by an average margin of 17.3 points.
“Tennessee,’’ said Auburn freshman Allen Payne, “is a good team.
“They’re big, fast and they didn’t even have their best player tonight in Scotty Hopson.’’
Indeed, despite Hopson being left back in Knoxville to nurse a sprained ankle, the Vols never allowed the SEC’s 12th-best team to find any encouragement.
“That’s got to be your mindset in the SEC, period,’’ said junior Cam Tatum.
“No team in the SEC is going to just let you come in and win. Everything is going to be a battle.
“Especially playing us. Tennessee is gonna have a target on our backs.’’
The Tigers have a question mark on their backs.
The new boss is Tony Barbee, a former Memphis aide under John Calipari, who won an impressive 49 games the past two years at UTEP, his first head-coaching gig.
Barbee comes highly recommended as a recruiter, a good thing since the Tigers don’t have a senior on the roster.
Auburn Arena, an intimate 9,121-seat edifice, replaces Eaves-Beard-Memorial Coliseum. The Tigers christened their new home in November by losing to UNC-Asheville, Samford and Campbell before they notched their first win.
Tennessee, by the way, has no lingering nostalgia for Eaves-Beard. The Vols lost their final three visits there by a combined seven points.
But make no mistake, losing to Tennessee in basketball is an afterthought on this campus. The big story is football.
In fact, I couldn’t find an Alabama media outlet Thursday that had bothered to note that Hopson, UT’s leading scorer, would not play.
In Hopson’s absence, Josh Bone got the starting assignment. Bone had started 19 games previously — but all at Southern Illinois before he transferred to UT a little more than two years ago.
His biggest contribution in the first half was making Tennessee’s only 3-point basket (out of seven attempts).
Auburn also was down a starter. Center Rob Chubb, fresh off an 18-point outburst at South Carolina, was suspended for a violation of team rules.
UT’s Brian Williams made hay in Chubb’s absence, dominating the paint in the first half. He made five of seven shots and was the half’s leading scorer with 12 points.
Williams, for whatever reason, didn’t follow up with a big second half and finished with 15.
Tatum stepped into Hopson’s void with 15 points. Tobias Harris chipped in 14 on a sore ankle.
“Everybody had their job at their position,’’ noted Tatum.
Skylar McBee’s usual job is to make shots. He missed all four tries Thursday, but produced a highlight nonetheless.
McBee hustled up a steal, after which he hockey-checked Auburn’s 6-6, 205-pound Payne into the scorer’s table, igniting a run-out basket by Tatum.
The play was a fitting metaphor for the state of the two programs. There was a time when the Vols got pushed around, especially on the road, but not these days.
“Road wins are sweet,’’ Tatum said. “Road wins are separators as well.’’
There is considerable separation between the Vols and Tigers.
Mike Strange may be reached at strangem@knoxnews.com or 865-342-6276. Follow him at http://twitter.com/strangemike44 and http://blogs.knoxnews.com/strange.
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Comments » 31
BigVolFaninSC writes:
Good team win! Let's continue Saturday against the elephants! Hope Hopson can get a good tape job!
easleychuck writes:
There is nothing (short of a championship) better than being a young person and going on the road and winning at another school's gym/field.
The jokes in the locker room are funnier. The food after the game tastes so much better. The trip home is a blast. Even the next day in class is not so bad.
Good job, Vols.
Razor784 writes:
Any road win in the SEC is sweet. It's gonna be a tough one Saturday against Bama.
ktownvol writes:
Maybe Dooley should take a look at Skylar, that was awesome!!
callforlogic2 writes:
Last night seemed to show proof that everyone else on this team is better when Hopson is not on the court. Consequently, this is a better team without Hopson.
joeaubie writes:
You think that one up yourself, or did mama help you out?
dead_vol_foul (Inactive) writes:
Skyler: cut the hair, and learn a 'runner'.
Hall, Maymon....where are they??
Fields: c'mon, man, you have GOT to
-board
-push
-finish
-shoot FT's.
We have a lot of pieces, for sure. I just worry we will get bitten (again) by a waakness. Last year, it was FT shooting and crunch time play. This year, it's too much reliance on Brian and Tobias (neither of whom are consistent enough).
Great wins to get, though.
BigVolFaninSC writes:
You're dreaming! Auburn is just a bad team this year! We need Hopson (and need him to play WELL) if we are going to do anything in the tourney this year!
bspurlingcac#225603 writes:
I agree with you we need him. I am still not sure he is our best player. He can score at times but his biggest challenge is to play hard on both ends of the court and to focus. Then he just may start to lead this team to the next level. GBO!!!
halloffamebowler writes:
Thank you. You just confirmed what I posted yesterday.I posted that if Tennessee won someone would say it was because Hopson didn't play.If we lost it would be because he did play.
Truth is,Auburn is the worst team in the SEC and would have lost any team that showed up.
murrayvol writes:
Who would fill it?
Roundball hasn't been a priority for Auburn (administration or fans) in awhile.
easleychuck writes:
A troll trolling on the site of a school that actually fields a basketball team.
Very sad, but very troll-like.
PeeEllthree writes:
Skylar, ask one of the coaches to help you with jumping straight up or with a side lean on your J (ala loften with a little side/fade). You can't be consistent when jumping towards the goal. Streaky, yes. Consistent, no.
The_Real_Orange writes:
I don't know anything about the basketball history at Auburn, but I do know they can't have any less trips to the Final Four than the Vols do :)
CoverOrange writes:
You do have to wonder how a school that produced legends Charles Barkley and Chuck Person would build a brand new but smaller than small stadium. And why do they have the benches with their backs to the cameras? Almost as strange as the Vanderbilt end court arrangement.
esarmstrong#231516 writes:
The best they ever did was elite 8, I think twice, in their history. Once with Sonny Smith and once with Cliff Ellis at the helm.
If final fours and elite 8's are your sole criteria then you will get a very jaded and unrealistic view of a school's tradition in hoops.
I would put Tennessee's all time hoops tradition up against anyone else's in the league, except for Kentucky, arguably the winningest program in history. UT has a winning record against everyone in the SEC all time, except for Kentucky and Alabama (they trail Alabama by about 4 games, I believe, so you could say that series is practically even). Tennessee has lost alot of games against Kentucky (as has everyone else in the league, except Johnny-come-latelys South Carolina and Arkansas)because they have played Kentucky alot (more than anyone else, in fact). But they have also won alot against Kentucky. Tennessee has more wins against Kentucky than any other team in history.
Tennessee is third all time in conference regular season titles (Kentucky is first with someting like 40, LSU is second with 11, I believe and UT is third with 10) and UT is third all time with SEC tournament titles (5, I believe).
Georgia and Mississippi have a final four, Florida has two national titles and two other trips to the final four in recent years, Arkansas has a national title, and Kentucky has 7 NCAA titles (I think). All of these schools deserve credit for these accomplishments.
But UT's tradition in hoops is a proud one too and it stands the test of time. Some people think that UT was nothing in hoops before Bruce Pearl and choose to ignore the Ray Mears and Don DeVoe years during the 1960's to 1989.
sol_way writes:
i totally disagree with you, this team does have a lot of weapons though. When they play physical like they did last night by the end of the game the other team looks tired and wore out even getting frustrated like Auburn did last night. Hopson is merely another weapon when he is available.
usnavyvolfaninva_still_getting_paid writes:
Isn't the Bama game at TBA?
usnavyvolfaninva_still_getting_paid writes:
I disagree wholeheartedly. While Hopson has definitely played well beneath his potential at times, he is still a vital part of this team. I've taken Rich_Rollin to task for slamming Steven Pearl, but on the flip side, I believe this team is still better with Hopson. It's best when Hopson's at his best, obviously, but even if he's not, he's still a huge part of this team.
lomas98 writes:
Agreed. The same people saying we don't need Hopson are the same that will say we don't need Bruce Pearl when he returns if they start losing. We need Bruce Pearl and Hopson for the brutal 8 game stretch we have coming up. They could have not played a couple of other players last night and still won, Auburn is that bad.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Your first tip was the best one; he seems to be jumping toward the basket instead of going straight up, as you said. IMHO, Lofton was a great shooter DESPITE his tendency to fade to the side on some of his shots. No one should be taught to shoot that way.
The thing that stands out to me as a flaw Skylar could correct is the wide arc the ball takes from his preparatory position to his release position. He crouches down, brings the ball down almost to his knees, then brings it way up high almost behind his head over his right shoulder before he starts forward with it. In his uncoiling motion, he is simultaneously straightening up, jumping toward the basket, and bringing the ball forward. Too many moving parts in different directions and too much motion started one way to be reversed smoothly. I would just have him start at chest level and take it straight up to just over his right eye before releasing it. He doesn't need all that winding up to get it there and in any case it takes him too long to tee it up the way he's doing it now. IMHO. Sorry for the technical rant.
CoverOrange writes:
Wow, can you correct my golf swing too? jk
johnlg00#206211 writes:
As you implied, if they start losing after CBP returns, it will be because they have two games with UK, two with SC, Vandy in Nashville, UF in G'ville, and UGA in TBA! Any team in the country would be HAPPY to get through that schedule on the winning side. That is why these games against these weaker West Division teams were so important. And though it may have escaped some people's attention, Bama is 6-1 in the conference with their only loss being a close one at UK. We need EVERYBODY playing well and CBP coaching well to finish strong, make no mistake!
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Maybe! (;-P)
richvol writes:
Great analysis...someone needs to work with McBee on his shot because for a guy that has a rep as a great shooter he can't hit squat in our games. And yes,I know about the Kansas shot but he has been really poor this year. He does work hard so he should be able to fix this problem with good coaching and practice.
rockytopatl writes:
Great post! Regards!
rockytopatl writes:
Don't apologize; good stuff, John. One of my few problems with the Pearl/Jones regime is that there does not seem to be much coaching on the technique of shooting. Everyone is allowed to shoot in the same fashion they were shooting when they got to UT instead of having someone truly good improve their technique. I think that is why Pearl's teams tend to be lousy at free throw shooting, three balls, mid-range jumpers, and even crips. They miss way to many give-me's in the paint.
My other problem is with the lack of creativity in the half-court offense, but we will save that lecture for another day.
Sonny writes:
What makes you think Skylar needs fixing? He played 24 minutes against Auburn so apparently someone thinks he's good enough.
Chris4Vols22 writes:
"The SEC's 12th-best team"
...
Really?
johnlg00#206211 writes:
I don't know if Skylar has always shot that way or not. If so, it would take a LOT of concentrated work to change it. I just don't see how he could have BECOME a great shooter, shooting it that way. I'm sure everybody who played against him in HS pressured him all they could. If so, I don't see how he could have gotten all those shots off, since his current technique seems to take so long to put it up.
I have also been puzzled, just like you, as to why the Vols have apparently never hired a shooting coach/consultant. There are such people out there--I'm available(;-P)!--and as long as they are hired for a limited period of time and with specifically limited responsibilities, i.e., specifically NOT regular coaches, I don't know why more programs don't do it. Goodness knows, the Vols ought to have the money.
I agree that we can and have expended a lot of pixels on the half-court offense, but it HAS looked a good deal more active and fluid to me lately. I have seen more guys moving without the ball in the last three or four games than I had almost all season previously.
johnlg00#206211 writes:
Well, yeah, but he missed four wide-open three-pointers. He is shooting way under 30% for the season. The good thing is that he may continue to be wide-open if he doesn't hit more of them. The bad thing is that there will then be a REASON why he is wide-open. I think he has made two in only one game this season. I value Skylar's overall game more than many on here, but he is supposed to be MAINLY a zone-busting outside shooter and he just hasn't done that much lately.
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