Why Tennessee scares me

This Buckeye season has been fun to watch.  In some ways it might be my favorite considering some questioned in January whether this team could win half their conference games.  This season really ranks up there with my favorite Buckeye teams (80, 91,  92, 99, 00, 06, 07) and it has been really enjoyable to see this team come together.  I think the most amazing thing is they've been able to succeed while basically playing only 6 players.  Most teams go at least 8 deep.  Last Sunday, Georgia Tech went about 9 deep and started the game with a full court press.  After the first 8 minutes of the game the score was 10-3 in favor of the Yellow Jackets.  The Buckeyes shots weren't falling and they were noticeably breathing hard bringing the ball up the court.  The Buckeyes beat the press a few times for a couple easy baskets and Georgia Tech changed their defensive strategy.  The problem was that they even though they were substituting players they had picked up a few fouls and were also noticeably breathing hard.  The Yellow Jackets went back to their base defense and didn't press the rest of the game.  In fact, in the second half the Buckeyes looked fresh while Georgian Tech looked tired as the Buckeyes coasted to an easy victory.

Having said that, Tennessee scares me in our next game.





The amazing part of the Buckeye's success is that they are able to play with so few players and still look fresher than the other team at the end of games.  They have to be careful as foul trouble would kill them and they certainly can't afford any injuries.  This is where Tennessee scares me as I'm sure Coach Pearl has watched the Georgia Tech game and is salivating.  Georgia Tech's strength was their inside game while Tennessee always presses and has 6 guards they can throw against the Buckeyes.  Evan Turner's ball control ability has been getting worse the last few games and has shown a bit of immaturity when he gets pressured and bumped.  If I were in Coach Pearl's shoes I'd continue to press but make sure to focus on Turner and play physical with him when he has the ball.  Make sure to rotate as many players as possible to keep the team fresh and don't put anyone in jeopardy of getting in foul trouble.  Also, I'd do everything in my power to drive the lane and get Lighty and Lauderdale in foul trouble.  If Tennessee can get 1-2 Buckeyes in foul trouble with Turner not on his game then the game will come down to whether can Diebler or Buford can  make up the difference.

I'm sure Coach Matta knows all this.  I'd be surprised if he hasn't already had a talk with Evan about the pressure and come up with a strategy to lessen the load on Evan's shoulders.  I saw someone suggest this morning that due to the trapping that the strategy should be for Turner not to get the inbounds pass but to be the 2nd player to get the ball coming up the court.  I like this strategy a lot as it keeps him in control on the floor but should lessen the .  One good thing about the Buckeye starters is they are all taller than 6'5" so they should be able to throw the ball over most guards which could set up some fast break opportunities.  The Buckeyes have to avoid playing too fast as although they've shown amazing endurance all season they haven't played a team that presses like Tennessee.  This will wear them down over the course of the game and make it more difficult down the stretch.  My hope is Matta substitutes a bit more than normal and gets 2 guards in the game to keep the starters fresh (and out of foul trouble).

Ultimately, I think the Buckeyes will win the game and I'm predicting a 72-67 victory.  It wouldn't surprise me though if the Volunteers won this game in a convincing manner if the Buckeyes can't handle the press.