Tenn-Miami -- great start!

[Coler]

I tivoed it but haven't watched it yet. Where was the D on Spani?

Across town.

They pretty much left her wide open on some of her shots.

 

[tnvolfan65]

http://www.youtube.com/user/utsportstv?feature=mhee#p/c/13/cwFTSSjyhas

there is a hand in her face in all of these shots. two or three were off the dribble, and these highlights don't even show her layup where she took her defender all the way to the bucket, banked the shot and went to the line. if she can continue to develop that part of her game, watch out. this is the first off-season she's been healthy. solid defense and passing to boot.

 

[cardfan]

UT is good, but flawed. We have more athleticism and better defense. Tenn has better outside shooting. Coming from someone who was down on them all year, they are very good right now.

TN returns everyone and added Ariel. They SHOULD be good, finally. It shouldn't take 3 yrs for their level of talent to gel. Interested to see what happens vs. BU and Stanford.

 

[tnvolfan65]

They HAVE been good. This team came together after their freshmen year and put back 2 seasons with a 66-6 record. Britney Griner sent us packing in the Sweet 16 2 years ago. Notre Dame took us and UConn out last year with superior guard play. We just happened to be a round earlier. With that said, this senior class has way underachieved in March and that will always be the ultimate measuring stick, but to say they haven't been good the past two seasons is nonsense.

 

[cardfan]

They HAVE been good. This team came together after their freshmen year and put back 2 seasons with a 66-6 record. Britney Griner sent us packing in the Sweet 16 2 years ago. Notre Dame took us and UConn out last year with superior guard play. We just happened to be a round earlier. With that said, this senior class has way underachieved in March and that will always be the ultimate measuring stick, but to say they haven't been good the past two seasons is nonsense.

I didn't say that, unless your measuring stick of "good", is falling short of F4 and NC. My pt was THIS Sr. laden TN team 'should' be good given all the talent.

 

[Icebear]

Mostly her ability to run the break and make the right pass. I think her shooting will be inconsistent but she knows who needs to get the ball a lot better than Simmons (I know, not saying much). I really didn't see much of Tenn in the half court in the 2nd half so I'll be interested to see how she does.

The most important thing ones does against TN is force them into the half court offense.

 

[Phil]

Simmons played 36 minutes. I wonder what the record is for minutes by a non-starter (excluding injury and discipline situations)? It can't be much more.

 

[Phil]

... but to say they haven't been good the past two seasons is nonsense.

Sorry I missed that. Who said they weren't good?

 

[Wbbfan1]

As long as Spani shoots like she did last night and when she's not Simmons is, Tenn is a threat to get to the Final Four and win it all. This years Tenn team will be different then most, they'll rely on their shooting more then rebounding and put backs. This is probably the weakest rebounding team Tenn will have in a long time. They also appear to have more weapons and Ariel will be a more then adequate point guard to lead the team.

 

[DaddyChoc]

I saw the 1st half last night, Tenn was clicking on all cylinders... against a quality opponent.

the fullcourt press was solid against Miami and they arent going to play against teams like the 'canes.

should be a interesting season.

 

[Phil]

I saw the 1st half last night, Tenn was clicking on all cylinders... against a quality opponent.

the fullcourt press was solid against Miami and they arent going to play against teams like the 'canes.

should be a interesting season.

I saw much of the Tennessee Pepperdine game. There were times when Pepperdine could just about play with them, but there were times when Tennessee took it up a notch, and like you say, they were clicking on all cylinders.

 

[Justavisitor]

TN returns everyone and added Ariel. They SHOULD be good, finally. It shouldn't take 3 yrs for their level of talent to gel. Interested to see what happens vs. BU and Stanford.

It didn't take 3 years to gel. They haven't had a true point guard and a mobile center the past 2 years. Players can not succeed out of position when they hit quality opponents. Good teams will expose those holes. ND exposed both TN and UConn. The previous year, they were only sophomores and Baylor dropped to a 4 seed after the BG incident. I imagine you could look at the Stanford success in the same light. They've been a senior led team the past 2 years (Golden and Appel - 2010; Pohlen and Pedersen - 2011). Even with that, they didn't win it all.

This year, not only are those TN players seniors, but they are NOT out of position. Last year, if Stanford has a true point guard, instead of Pohlen, they win it all. Pohlen was a great player, but was out of position. aTm exploited that weakness, because the reality was that across the board, Stanford was the more talented team. Stanford was also the more talented team the year Xavier choked and missed 2 wide open lay ups that would have sealed the deal.

 

[Justavisitor]

I saw much of the Tennessee Pepperdine game. There were times when Pepperdine could just about play with them, but there were times when Tennessee took it up a notch, and like you say, they were clicking on all cylinders.

During those stretches, Ariel was on the bench in foul trouble. First half, she only played 6 minutes. She will need to be available for big minutes. Last night, she hit the wall and Meighan was able to close out the game, but the reality is that the team just runs better when Ariel is on the court.

 

[AboutWeston]

well said... I totally agree

totally incredible... 9 frickin assist

I didn't see the game, but if DC says it, it is most likely correct!

 

[DaddyChoc]

I didn't see the game, but if DC says it, it is most likely correct!

smart man...

 

[UConnCat]

the fullcourt press was solid against Miami and they arent going to play against teams like the 'canes.

Disagree somewhat. I didn't think Tenn's fullcourt press was all that effective against Miami. As Kara Lawson said, most of Miami's TOs were unforced. I thought Miami got lots of open shots against the full court press. Tenn's most effective defense against Miami was its zone in the half court which forced Miami to play other than how it wants to play.

I'll watch the entire game at some point and make sure what I'm saying is accurate. I didn't think Tenn could stop Miami off the dribble but I thought zone would be effective, particularly with Tenn's size and ability to trap.

 

[cardfan]

It didn't take 3 years to gel. They haven't had a true point guard and a mobile center the past 2 years. Players can not succeed out of position when they hit quality opponents. Good teams will expose those holes. ND exposed both TN and UConn. The previous year, they were only sophomores and Baylor dropped to a 4 seed after the BG incident. I imagine you could look at the Stanford success in the same light. They've been a senior led team the past 2 years (Golden and Appel - 2010; Pohlen and Pedersen - 2011). Even with that, they didn't win it all.

This year, not only are those TN players seniors, but they are NOT out of position. Last year, if Stanford has a true point guard, instead of Pohlen, they win it all. Pohlen was a great player, but was out of position. aTm exploited that weakness, because the reality was that across the board, Stanford was the more talented team. Stanford was also the more talented team the year Xavier choked and missed 2 wide open lay ups that would have sealed the deal.

Stanford hasn't had a true point guard in years and Appel was hurt her Sr yr, but we still managed to make it to the four straight F4s while TN was home 3 of them.

 

[Ruffian75]

I am a UConn fan and don't wear tinted glasses. Tennessee looked better last night than they have since 2008. Criticism of Massengale is baffling. That kid is their first true point since Bobbitt and will end up being better once she has a few more games under her belt. . Spani was dynamite. Simmons is playing her corrtect position. This is a very good team that might actually run a structured offense by mid-season for the first time in years. They can beat anyone in the country with the possible exception of Baylor.

 

[DaddyChoc]

Disagree somewhat. I didn't think Tenn's fullcourt press was all that effective against Miami. As Kara Lawson said, most of Miami's TOs were unforced. I thought Miami got lots of open shots against the full court press. Tenn's most effective defense against Miami was its zone in the half court which forced Miami to play other than how it wants to play.

I'll watch the entire game at some point and make sure what I'm saying is accurate. I didn't think Tenn could stop Miami off the dribble but I thought zone would be effective, particularly with Tenn's size and ability to trap.

good points...

I just think that the press rattled them a lil to make it a more frantic game... but as you said a half court zone may have been more effective due to their size.

its still nice that they were able to "try it" against a quality team.

 

[DaddyChoc]

Stanford hasn't had a true point guard in years and Appel was hurt her Sr yr, but we still managed to make it to the four straight F4s while TN was home 3 of them.

and didnt win jack'

 

[UConnCat]

I just think that the press rattled them a lil to make it a more frantic game... but as you said a half court zone may have been more effective due to their size.

its still nice that they were able to "try it" against a quality team.

I think Miami prefers the more frantic game despite the fact that it sprayed the ball all over the court (at least the parts I watched). But perhaps the press wore the Miami guards down a bit which is also a possibility. Like I said, I want to sit down and watch the entire game.

 

[tnvolfan65]

Stanford hasn't had a true point guard in years and Appel was hurt her Sr yr, but we still managed to make it to the four straight F4s while TN was home 3 of them.

We still won more titles during that span than Stanford, and while yes making the final four is great, and Tennessee's lack of presence in them recently is something defining this senior class, I don't think it means one team is better than the other. We beat y'all 2 of those 3 years we were home.

 

[stwainfan]

This was type game I expected. I think Miami is good. Tennessee has more speed and athletic ability. Now a true pg to run the show. Spani has looked real good.

 

[CamrnCrz1974]

I am a UConn fan and don't wear tinted glasses. Tennessee looked better last night than they have since 2008. Criticism of Massengale is baffling. That kid is their first true point since Bobbitt and will end up being better once she has a few more games under her belt. . Spani was dynamite. Simmons is playing her corrtect position. This is a very good team that might actually run a structured offense by mid-season for the first time in years. They can beat anyone in the country with the possible exception of Baylor.

To be honest, I never thought of Bobbitt as a true point guard. She was short, could pass, and could shoot when open (especially the corner three), but she was not a true playmaker from the position. She couldn't run an effective pick and roll (in part because of her size). And she struggled with bigger, quicker guards. When Duke went to Knoxville in 2007, Harding ate Bobbitt alive, so they switched her to Abby Waner, who also scored at will over and around her. TN ended up using a lineup of Hornbuckle and Spencer as the default backcourt to combat Duke's guard strength. Bobbitt had the luxury of playing with Parker, who could create for herself but also could create for others because of the amount of attention she demanded. Bobbitt also had the benefit of playing with Anosike who, in college, was a very good passer for a post player.

Massengale is a true playmaker, something Tennessee has not had for a very long time.

 

[Alydar]

Tenn certainly looked real good last night. The only thing they need to do now is beat a top team on the road. Last year they played some great games at TBA but they were a different sort on the road. They play at Stanford this year. ND would also be a good test if ND had their team healthy by then but that is unlikely.

And before we annoint the Husky freshmen we need to see how they respond at Baylor and at ND.