For the second year in a row, Tennessee enjoyed an impressive hardware reap in the Southeastern Conference men’s basketball postseason awards distribution, winning Player of the Year and having a trio of players earn All-SEC recognition.
After an All-America season, junior forward Grant Williams repeated as SEC Player of the Year, becoming just the 10th player in conference history to win the award in back-to-back years and the first since Arkansas’ Corliss Williamson did so in 1994 and 1995.
Others to have accomplished the feat include VFLs Bernard King and Dale Ellis and other all-time greats such as Williamson, Pete Maravich and Shaquille O’Neal. Williams was also tabbed first-team All-SEC after finishing the regular season as the top scorer in the SEC with 19.3 points per game. He has been one of the nation’s most versatile and reliable players this season, averaging 7.7 rebounds, 3.3 assists, 1.5 blocks and 1.2 steals per game, while shooting 57 percent from the field and 83 percent from the free-throw line.
Along with scoring, Williams ranked inside the league’s top 10 in field-goal percentage (2nd), free-throw percentage (3rd), rebounding (5th) and assist/turnover ratio (9th). The Charlotte, North Carolina, native posted seven double-doubles this season and eclipsed the 20-point margin on 14 occasions, including his career-high 43-point effort at Vanderbilt (Jan. 23). He led the Vols in scoring 15 times this season, 20 times in rebounding and 13 times in blocks.
Williams also was named SEC Player of the Year by the Associated Press Tuesday. He is the first Vol since Chris Lofton in 2007 to earn that distinction from league media. The AP also tabbed him first-team All-SEC, and he was the only player to earn unanimous selection.
Senior wing Admiral Schofield earned first-team All-SEC recognition from the coaches after averaging 16.3 points per game, which ranked second on the team and fifth in the SEC, to go along with 6.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists. Schofield ranked fifth in the conference in field-goal percentage, shooting .476 while leading the Vols in field-goal attempts.
The Zion, Illinois, native also led the team in shooting from beyond the arc with 59 3-pointers on the year. Schofield, a second team All-SEC selection by the AP, dropped a career-high six threes and 30 points to lift Tennessee to a win over No. 1 Gonzaga in December. The Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year finalist was named the 2018 Jerry Colangelo Classic Most Valuable Player and the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week for his efforts against the Zags.
Jordan Bone rounded out the Vols’ All-SEC performers, earning a nod on the second team by both the coaches and the AP. The junior point guard led the SEC in assists per game (6.1), ranked second in assist/turnover ratio (3.0) and seventh in field-goal percentage (.475). On the year, he has dished out 189 assists, which stands as the fourth-most by a Vol in a single season. He ranks third on the team in scoring with a career-best 13.4 points per game.
The Nashville, Tennessee, native joined Tyrone Beaman (1982-83) and Rodney Woods (1974-75) this year as only the third Vol ever to record three points/assists double-doubles in a season, highlighted by a 24-point, 11-assist performance against Samford. In Tennessee’s victory over No. 4 Kentucky at home, Bone carried the Vols to a 19-point victory with a career-high 27 points on 11-of-15 shooting and five 3-pointers.
The trio has Tennessee bound for the NCAA Tournament later this month for the second straight year with a chance to earn the program’s first ever No. 1 seed. The Vols have been ranked in the AP poll’s top 10 for the entire season (first time in program history) and spent four weeks ranked No. 1 in the country. UT finished with one of its best regular-season records of all time, going 27-4 and 15-3 in the SEC.
The Academy of Country Music announced the first round of performers for the 54th ACM Awards on April 7: Brothers Osborne, Kane Brown, Miranda Lambert, Little Big Town, Reba McEntire, Maren Morris, Thomas Rhett, Chris Stapleton and George Strait.
As previously announced, ACM Artist of the Decade Award winner Jason Aldean will also perform. Additional acts and presenters will be announced in the coming weeks.
The ACM Awards, which will be hosted by Reba McEntire, will air live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Sunday, April 7 at 8 p.m. ET. on CBS.
photos: George Strait by Curtis Hilbun, jpegFoto.com; Reba McEntire by Tammie Arroyo, AFF-USA.com
CMT will be the home of a new game show, Nashville Squares (working title), according to TheWrap.
NCD has independently confirmed the report via the CMT communications department.
The tic-tac-toe series will be a reboot of VH1’s Hip Hop Squares, which is a reboot of the iconic game show, Hollywood Squares.
The paradigm of the trivia show consist of two contestants who utilizes advice from a panelist of celebrities—in this case, country stars—to win a game of tic-tac-toe.
The series is slated to air this summer. NCD will keep you posted on further announcements.
If history is any indication, Brett Eldredge will be releasing a new album later this year.
Brett’s debut album, Bring You Back, was released in August 2013, while his sophomore set, Illinois, dropped in September 2015. Brett’s most recent offering—his self-titled album—was released in August 2017.
Each project has been released roughly two years apart, which suggests Brett is due to release a new album this fall. While we can’t “guarantee” it, we like the odds.
Brett’s current single, “Love Someone”—the third from his self-titled album—is No. 21 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart after 36 weeks, so it wouldn’t surprise us if his next single was the lead from his upcoming album. As Brett told Kix Brooks of American Country Countdown, you can expect something “special” from the next album.
“I’m not one of those guys that can write 13 songs and cut 12,” says Brett. “You know, I gotta go and I’ve gotta write through things, and find that certain thing to build a record around, and then you kind of find the thing and then you go after it, so that’s what I’m going for. I’m deep in the studio, you know, writing, and I’m going to make something special.”
Below are my observations from the University of Tennessee’s 3rd spring practice of 2019 at Haslam Field in Knoxville on Monday.
Vince’s View – Practice 3
*It was the first full day in pads
*Jr OL Trey Smith was in uniform with his helmet but was not participating in the drills we saw. He’s engaged in every single practice rep of his teammates trying to help them out
*WR coach/Pass Game Coordinator Tee Martin is a different personality than some of the other Vols coaches. He has a direct and very positive demeanor while still teaching and correcting technique. I’m not saying its better or worse, just different than the styles of some of the others, in my opinion.
*R-Jr Jarrett Guarantano has a bulky left knee brace which I’m sure he would say doesn’t affect him. It may just be a precaution, like OLs take, but it’s something to monitor after the punishment he took a year ago. He may still take similar punishment this season.
*The QBs again today threw a lot of high and errant passes while I watched them. Of course, it’s just a small sample of their two-hour practice.
*The WRs continued to do a nice job, making tough catches and looking determined to get better
*I think Sr LB Daniel Bituli looks explosive. Jeremy Pruitt is looking for more communication and consistency this season,which he has already shown.
*So DL John Mincey has shown violent hands and has been complimented numerous times on the execution and physicality of his drills. UT needs development on the defensive front in a massive way. It’s still too early to declare anything with Mincey, but he’s off to a nice start.
*Several players that were said to be banged-up or held back did practice while we were there…Sr. DL Emmit Gooden, RS-Fr. LB JJ Peterson and R-Sr OL Brandon Kennedy
*R-Sr. LB Darrin Kirkland Jr. is out for the spring
*Fr. RB Eric Gray seems unlikely to return as Jeremy Pruitt did not mention him among those that could start practicing at some point. Although, Gray is doing cardio work on the side with Fields and trainers.
*Others that may return include Fr OL Chris Akporoghene, R-Fr DL Kurott Garland, Fr DB Tyus Fields
*Here are the guards/interior linemen in the offensive line drills we’ve seen: Brandon Kennedy, R-Jr Ryan Johnson, So Jerome Carvin, R-Jr Nathan Niehaus, Jr Riley Locklear, R-So Eric Crosby, R-Fr Ollie Lane (Chris Akporoghene is expected to join this group at some point this spring)
*Here are the tackles in the offensive line drills we’ve seen: Fr Wanya Morris, Sr Marcus Tatum, R-Jr Jahmir Johnson, R-So K’Rojhn Calbert
*Jahmir Johnson looks like he’s returned to his original tackle position after being moved to guard and starting there for UT last season
*Nathan Niehaus was the first OT off the bench numerous times last year when Trey Smith came out of the game and he did fine at LT. With the two stud 5-star tackles coming in this year, he may slide back inside, where he’s played before. He also could be just cross-training, so we’ll keep an eye on it.
*Another loud voice you hear on the field is TEs coach Brian Niedermeyer. His energy level is insane. He has a real talent in Sr TE Dominick Wood-Anderson at the top of his group. The rest really will rely on his development and more strength and conditioning because it is a raw, inexperienced bunch. His coaching will be tested, if they have the right guys.
Below are my observations from the University of Tennessee’s 2nd spring practice of 2019 at Haslam Field in Knoxville on Saturday.
Vince’s View – Practice 2
*This was the last day of practice before the pads come on in practice 3
*QBs were high a lot in the throws that I saw
*R-Sr WR Jauan Jennings had a sweet grab on a high throw (see above) in the middle of the field where the ball may have been past his shoulders behind him but he reeled it in and cut up field
*I like what I’m seeing from the wide receivers overall. They look stronger, more physical and focused.
*Fr LB Quavaris Crouch isn’t as tall as I pictured him to be, but he is stout, appears to be doing the drills like an older player and is working with the inside LBs right now
*I think, overall, the players are better at their drills, they know where to be, what’s expected of them and it shows in the tempo and the way they practice compared to a year ago
*I don’t see or hear the loud correcting and frustration by coaches as frequently so far this year that was obvious last season
*One of the loudest voices you hear on the practice field is OC Jim Chaney, which surprising for those of us that have experienced him coaching at UT before. His volume isn’t necessarily because he’s always mad but because he’s constantly roaming, watching and coaching every single position of offense. The personality, style and coaching execution of moving to all positions is a much different dynamic from Tyson Helton last season to Jim Chaney now.
*We did get to see some one-on-one drills between the DBs and the WRs with Jeremy Pruitt standing over each of them coaching and motivating
*So CB Alontae Taylor looks stronger and is practicing with an edge
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Tennessee football team resumed practice on Monday afternoon at Haslam Field for the Vols’ third practice of the spring session, and the first in full pads.
UT head coach Jeremy Pruitt made it clear that the offense took charge in practice yet again.
“For the first day of pads, offensively, I thought our guys executed fairly well,” Pruitt said. “We had couple situations in practice as far as third-down and I thought the guys did a really good job. We seemed to finish plays a lot better as far as holding onto the ball with quarterback and center exchanges.”
Pruitt also emphasized the improvements the offense made on day three. Specifically, he stressed how the team has cut down on mental errors while playing with more of an edge.
“We seemed to play to the whistle with more of an attitude,” Pruitt said. “So that was a positive there. It felt like we cut down some on our offensive penalties today, which I’m sure helps.”
Guarantano’s Experience Aiding Younger Players
Rising redshirt junior quarterback Jarrett Guarantano, who started all 12 games for Tennessee in 2018, enters his first spring season in offensive coordinator Jim Chaney’s offense.
The Lodi, N.J., native passed for 1,902 yards and 12 touchdowns a season ago en route to a Maxwell Award National Player of the Week honor and SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week after an upset of No. 21 Auburn. Pruitt says his quarterback is helping guide the younger players in learning Chaney’s playbook.
“(Jarrett) has much more experience than the other guys,” Pruitt said. “I think the game has really slowed down for Jarrett. He’s played a lot of ball. He’s taken a lot of hits. We all understand that that really doesn’t bother him. He knows how to prepare and it’s been really positive. That’s how the quarterback position should be.”
Offense Taking Care of the Ball
Pruitt is impressed at the level the offense has been playing at this spring. Tennessee returns 12 players who made at least five starts last fall on offense, and with the help of returning veteran leadership, he believes it has helped make the adjustment smoother for everybody and limited turnovers on that side of the ball.
“It starts with attitude,” Pruitt said. “They practice with the right attitude. When they made a mistake, they didn’t let it bother them, they played the next play. They played harder, played more physical. Executed at a higher level. When you do those things, you tend to have success.”
Bituli Leading the Charge on Defense
In his second spring in coach Pruitt’s system, rising senior linebacker Daniel Bituli is leading the defense at inside linebacker.
“He’s doing a much better job being a communicator,” Pruitt said. “Which is important because you have to be the quarterback of the defense. The longer you do something that you’re familiar with, obviously you should improve. And I think he will.”
Bituli recorded 79 tackles in 2018, including 6.5 tackles for loss, a sack and a deflected pass. He was also named to the PFF College SEC Defensive Team of the Week three times in 2018.
Flowers Focusing on Football
Rising sophomore Trevon Flowers, who appeared in seven games last season before suffering a collarbone injury, will be focused solely on football this spring. Flowers was a standout baseball player in high school and worked out on the diamond with the Vols this winter, but he will focus solely on football this spring.
“He’s doing football right now,” Pruitt said. “He did baseball early on. He’s going to redshirt in baseball and concentrate on football, but he has a future doing both.”
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Tennessee Head Coach Jeremy Pruitt Transcript-
2019 Spring Practice No. 3 – March 11, 2019
Opening statement:
“For the first day of pads, offensively, I thought our guys executed fairly well. We had couple situations in practice as far as third-down and I thought the guys did a really good job. We seemed to finish plays a lot better as far as holding onto the ball with quarterback and center exchanges. We seemed to play to the whistle with more of an attitude, so that was a positive there. It felt like we cut down some on our offensive penalties today, which I’m sure helps. Defensively, I didn’t feel like I saw enough guys straining out there. To me, we need to get more people to the ball and have to control the line of scrimmage. We have to finds a way to create some turnovers. In three practices, I think our offense has done a really good job of not turning the football over, so our defense needs to find a way to get turnovers. I wasn’t really satisfied with our kickers today during our punting period. They didn’t kick the ball the way that we’d like to kick it and we really have to improve there. We have some good competition there, so hopefully we’ll see some improvement there over the next few weeks.”
On the defense not straining enough:
“I would just say that our offense kicked the defense’s tail today about as bad as I’ve seen a full-padded practice.”
On Trevon Flowers’ spring schedule between baseball and football:
“He’s doing football right now. He did baseball early on. He’s going to redshirt in baseball and concentrate on football, but he has a future doing both.”
On players that are sitting out spring practice having their fall playing time affected:
“There were very few players that looked like defensive players out there to me today, so I would say that they would have a tremendous opportunity to contribute.”
On Trey Smith, who is out indefinitely, dressing out in full uniform:
“He’s part of the team. When it comes to being injured, he’s not injured. Trey plans on playing football one day again. That’s his hope and that’s what he’s working hard to do, so he wants to make sure that he gets an opportunity to watch from behind so he has a good idea for the calls and techniques.”
On what the offense did today to outplay the defense:
“It starts with attitude. They practiced with the right attitude. When they made a mistake, they didn’t let it bother them, and they played the next play. They played harder and more physical, and they executed at a higher level. When you do those things, you tend to have success.”
On if there is any timetable for Trey Smith’s return:
“We’re under the same protocol. He’s doing everything but contact right now. So, when we go out there and do offseason conditioning, he’s running probably faster than everybody else at his position. So, he does everything but contact.”
On what led to using protective helmet covers in spring practice:
“It was a discussion that we had at the SEC meetings amongst the coaches. We’re all always trying to figure out a way to keep out game safer. So, there’s a few teams in the league that have used them. So, we decided to do that with guys at certain positions. offensive line, defensive line, running backs and linebackers.”
Onwhat has led to the offense coming out hot in spring practice:
“There’s a lot of factors there. Our offensive guys have a lot of experience. The guys are hungry to have success. There’s good leadership on that side of the ball. Jim (Chaney) has done a nice job with the rest of the coaches on the staff to teach the guys and demand that they do it the right way, and it’s showed up at each practice. So, we’ve got a long way to go on that side of the ball, but there’s been lots of positives to me.”
On Daniel Bituli’s room for growth and his play this spring:
“I think Daniel’s very bright. He’s a tough guy. He’s a physical football player. I think, being the second year, he’s looking to be more consistent and I would say that’s probably the big thing. He has the skillset to do everything. He just needs to be more consistent. I think with a year of experience under his belt, having a better idea of what each call is and the techniques within the call. He’s doing a much better job being a communicator, which is important because you have to be the quarterback of the defense. The longer you do something that you’re familiar with, obviously you should improve and I think he will.”
Ondeveloping the defense:
“I think it starts in recruiting. Guys that create turnovers on Fridays create them on Saturday. Then, you have to train them a certain way. You have to have awareness, as a player, when to take a shot on the ball and when to tackle the guy when you have a guy stood up. Are you going to pepper the guy or are you going to rip at the ball? There’s lots of judgment in that. If you have great pass rushers, guys that can win one-on-one, obviously putting pressure on the quarterback does that. You have got to be able to put pressure on the offense, whether it’s by rushing four, rushing six or rushing five. You have got to be able to hide the stress, put pressure on them when the ball’s in the air. You have got to have ballhawks.”
On what he’s seen from Jarrett Guarantano:
“(Jarrett) has more experience than the other guys. I think with every young football player there’s a lot of unknowns. I think some of these younger guys — they possibly get a little uptight. They’re all talented guys, but until you get out there and you’ve done it a little bit it takes a while until the game slows down. I think the game has really slowed down for Jarrett. He’s played a lot of ball. He’s taken a lot of hits. I think we all understand that really doesn’t bother him. I think he’s got a pretty good understanding for what we’re trying to do. He knows how to prepare. I think it’s been really positive. That’s how the quarterback position should be.”
On the loss to Auburn costing Tennessee a chance to clinch the title:
“I think you have to learn it as a learning lesson in terms of the game of basketball itself. There is no question about that. Then you do have to put it behind you to get ready for conference tournament play. The fact is we didn’t do the things we needed to do to win at the end. Not to take anything away from Auburn because they did a good job doing what they do. We just – too many turnovers, shot-clock violations, you name it, that led to easy baskets. That is the learning situation. You would like to think where we are and what we have been through, we wouldn’t make those type of mistakes this time of year. But we did. Shot selection. I think we missed the front end of two one-and-ones. All those are big plays. You don’t ever stop trying to learn from your last game, but you do have to put it behind you and move forward.”
Credit: UT Athletics
On the goaltending controversy:
“I do think – I have talked about goaltending and basket interference. I think anytime points are rewarded, they have to be earned. That is something I have talked about. I don’t think you can just give points or take points away unless you know exactly what it is. Me, personally, I would like to see that.”
On why Tennessee shot so many threes:
“I don’t know. I can’t answer that because that wasn’t our game plan at all. We talked about it. You go back and look at the losses we’ve had, we’ve done that. I can’ tell you why because we keep talking about we should know who we are and what we are doing. I can’t explain that. I really can’t. We talked about what we needed to and we just settled. We shouldn’t do that.”
On if the team has moved on:
“Today will be our first day back together. They were obviously disappointed after the game, which you would expect them to be. We will come in today like we do and we will take a really good hard look at this game and the things – it really goes back to the other three losses we had this year, they pretty much played out the same way, with too many threes and not getting to the foul line enough. There’s a big discrepancy if you look at our four losses in terms of how little we got to three free-throw line and how many threes we took that were shots we shouldn’t be taking without at least probing and trying to get fouled. You look at the discrepancy at what our opponents shot at the free-throw line in the losses and what we did, it’s a big discrepancy. That’s from settling for threes when you shouldn’t.”
On how to have success in the SEC Tournament:
“I think it’s eagerness to play. You have to want to play, embrace. Know that you work hard all year. I don’t even know who we’ll end up playing obviously. Whether it’s someone you’ve already played twice or getting ready to play for a second time, the familiarity is so much, you know each other so well. It’s hard. You just hope your guys, again, like any other game, are locked in knowing that it is a tournament. If you want to continue to play in the tournament, you have to win. But it will always get back to doing what you’ve done when you’re playing your best basketball. Plain and simple. You have to stay together, stay focused on the game plan, not letting the emotion of the game overwhelm you. You just have to stay locked in to playing good basketball.”
On if conference tournaments need to exist:
“I do (think so). Because I think it’s good, I do. There’s obviously a lot of fan interest generated by it. I get it, I do. I also think it makes March what it is. Teams that maybe didn’t have the year they thought they would have. Conference tournaments are the beginning of NCAA (Tournament) play. Because there is a bid at stake in all these conferences. I think even now the Ivy League, who obviously hadn’t done it for the longest, now they have a four-team tournament to determine that. You can really look at the conference tournaments really being the first rounds to get you part of it. I get it. I think it’s good because I think the players enjoy it, for the most part. I’ve been around it long enough to know there are some teams that after the regular season, they’re done, they want to be done with it. We all see the things that can happen, the upsets that can happen here or there. Like I said, I do think conference tournaments are the start of the NCAA Tournament, because those bids are there to be had.”
On the LSU situation:
“I don’t know enough about it. But I would like to think that whatever is going to happen, the right thing will be done. What I mean by that, the No. 1 thing in the spirit of competition is everybody plays on a level field. We know this isn’t the first situation that has come up in college basketball that’s gone on. If you’ve been in this business as long as I have, you’re not naive about any of it. You’re not. You like to think for the best. You’re always thinking about the student-athlete. One thing I will tell you, not everybody does the things that are out there sometimes, that are being said. There are a lot of guys in this business that have done things the right way for a long time. I’m not saying they’re perfect by any stretch of the imagination. I hate it for our game, I really do. I think this game has been great to so many people and what it does for so many. I just hate to see a cloud over college basketball. Hopefully going forward, and the only way it’s going to get solved, if someone is found guilty they have to pay the price, plain and simple. I believe you’re innocent until proven guilty, but if you’re proven guilty there is a price to pay and you have to pay it.”
On Lamonté’s struggles:
“I think he’s pressing too hard to make a three. Again, you go back to his games, we wouldn’t have won the Ole Miss game without him and all his mid-range action. I think it’s simple. I think he’s taken tough shots, and when you take tough shots, it puts more pressure on you to make a shot and in your mind you’re thinking, ‘I need to make a shot,’ which is not the way you think to begin with. You just want to play good basketball. I’ve said before, players can shoot their way into slumps and put pressure on themselves by taking shots they shouldn’t take. He’s done that, there’s no doubt he’s done that, but he has to recognize that he’s such a better basketball player than thinking he has to make a three. Lamonte Turner can affect the game in so many ways if he never made a shot. He’s become one of the best defensive guards in the country the way he can disrupt a game. The way he’s making plays for his teammates, it just gets (hardest) for him when he starts trying to make shots from behind the arc. That’s when he doesn’t play as well.”
On being prepared for tournament play after the final stretch of the week:
“I do, and we knew coming down the stretch that we were in that gauntlet kind of schedule. I think I go back to the beginning of the year, I mean, I don’t if you had asked me at the beginning of the year to put a number of wins on our team what I would say. When you look back at where we are today, these guys have a lot to be proud of, and the fact that we’re disappointed is a good thing for our program. We had a chance to be a part of back-to-back championship regular seasons, but it’s hard to do that. The fact that we were in it, I’m proud of our guys for putting themselves in that position. You’d like to be the kind of program that’s there, knowing that every year it’s hard to get it done. They put themselves in position, which is a great thing to do, and we came up short. Not to take anything away from our opponents, but we had to fight. They fought hard this year and now we just have to get ready for the tournaments and see how we can do.”
On scouting for the SEC Tournament:
“Again, our coaching staff is as good as anybody in the country at preparing for our opponents. We’ll have them scouted. They’ll watch all the games, they’ll go back and they’ll have all that done before Friday because we’ll start talking about — regardless, this time of year, you pretty much have seen it all. It’s a matter of executing what you need to do in your defense and your offense. That’s what it’ll get down to.”
On interior depth:
“No, I’m not (concerned) because Fulky and Derrick are playing. What hurt us Saturday more than anything was Admiral getting in foul trouble, and we didn’t get to play the small lineup any in the first half. That hurt us on the front line.”
On Yves Pons not playing at Auburn:
“It’s just a matter of where we are at this point in time. This time of year, you’re trying to do everything you can. We have confidence in him, we do, but we just felt like what the situation was Saturday, and Bowden got it going pretty good, but he’s helped us and he’ll continue to help us. Same as Jalen. He didn’t play for a while, but he came back. We’re going to need all these guys, we know that from a year ago when we lost Kyle Alexander in the tournament. We’re in a better position than we were a year ago if something does happen that can we handle it better.”
On balancing the double bye:
“The fact is you do have to balance it, but you have to try and keep an edge there. You want them enthusiastic more than anything. The fact that we travel over there helps a little bit with it because it will be a different venue we’ll practice in. What we know with our team is we’re not as sharp when we take a long time off in terms of not practicing. We’ll come back in today, we’ll scrub out that last game and do what we always do the day after a game — go on the court a little bit. Tomorrow we won’t do anything and then we’ll start preparing on Wednesday the way we would two days out with our schedule, so we’ll try and keep it as close as we can knowing that we’re going to have a chance to play three games. It is a time here that is a balance. You have to try and keep everybody sharp, but I think mentally more than physically. I don’t think our team is going to get in any better shape, we just can’t lose our conditioning, which we won’t. We can keep that by what we normally do, but the mental side is what you’re more focused on right now, that guys will stay locked in mentally. There’s a lot going on this of year with a lot of outside chatter and noise and you just hope that they can eliminate all that and stay focused on the task at hand.”
On the team needing to get back in the right offensive flow:
“I think our guys, if you ask them how we need to play, I think our guys understand what we need to do. Defensively, we weren’t as good Saturday as we’d been the previous 3-4 games. We gave up some baskets that you can’t give up, transition there was some switching going on and we let a guy get behind us for an easy layup. You can’t let somebody run behind you when you know there’s not anybody back there to guard the basket, I don’t care who you are. We had those kind of plays, which we hadn’t given up. We gave up some plays Saturday, we had a guy at the end of the half run right through two guys that were just standing there letting him dribble right by, those kind of plays. We could go back and we could put together a great highlight reel of when we’re playing great basketball. We could put together a great highlight reel, whether it’s playing against a zone or man, doing this defensively. But the fact of the matter is it’s got to be a habit of understanding that it goes back to, I can’t explain those plays we made Saturday. I really can’t, because you’d like to think that we wouldn’t make those plays, but they need to see them so they can understand because you never stop teaching, you’re never going to let these guys think that any of that’s acceptable in terms of trying to win a basketball game, but it’s just this time of year everybody looks at college basketball and I don’t think there’s any drastic changes you make. It’s a matter of just continuing to try to get better at what you’re trying to do. I think they do understand as a team when we’re playing our best how we play. It’s just a matter of going out and doing it when it counts.”
On if there is an advantage playing in Nashville and the expected fan turnout:
“I was really impressed with our fans a year ago in St. Louis, and I love the fact that Nashville’s where we have our tournament. It’s obviously easier for most teams, most every team to get there as opposed, last year St. Louis did a phenomenal job with that tournament. I like and hope that we do get a great fan support. Talk about our fans, I love our fans, I don’t think there’s anywhere, any better. The fact is, it’s close enough that we should expect and hope to get a great crowd.”
On the importance of the SEC having a team in conversation for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament:
“I think you could talk with both of us [Tennessee and Kentucky] about it. I mean, why not? I mean, I’m hearing them tell me that there’s talk that other (leagues) might get three. I mean, this league has been unbelievable. I’m not sure Kentucky’s gotten the respect they’ve deserved all year. After they had that one tough loss against Duke. But you think about it, they’ve been terrific all year. I just, again, for our league, I want to see our league do well. I still don’t think our league gets the respect that it deserves. I mean, you look down this league, with the coaching in this league. I mean, the job that Frank Martin did this year, the fact that Kermit, the job he did. Mike White, too. I mean, those guys have had to deal with a lot of different things to deal with, and I could keep going with guys. I just think this league, again, I can’t, … it’s hard for me to imagine there’s one better, to be quite honest with you. I’d be disappointed if somebody in our league didn’t come out with a No. 1 seed.”
On preparing for postseason play:
“I think it’s all of it. I mean, obviously we know in sports that sometimes you matchup with teams better than others, but the fact of the matter is it doesn’t really matter. It’s been proven now. A year ago, a 16 beat a 1. A 15 can beat a 2. You know, a 14 can beat a 3. All that’s been proven, so the fact of the matter is it’s about going into the tournament having great respect for any team in the tournament, because if they’re there, they’ve had a great year. And if they’re there, they’re playing well this time of year. And you’ve got teams in there, maybe like a South Carolina team that has 14 or however many — I don’t know how many — losses they have, but when you finish fourth in this league, that speaks volumes. There’s nobody that wants to play South Carolina. I can promise you that. So the fact is it’s about playing basketball. If the matchups are good or bad or whatever, you’ve just got to hope that your team has been through enough this year that regardless of who you’re playing, whether you end up playing against a team that plays a matchup zone or a team that plays a zone like Syracuse plays, that you’ve seen enough and you’ve worked hard enough that you can handle whatever situation is thrown at you. That’s what you hope your regular season has done for you.”
