Tennessee vs. Arkansas: Preview and Prediction
The Tennessee Volunteers were thoroughly outplayed on Saturday night against Texas A&M. Vol fans came out of the game rightfully upset at the team’s lack of rebounding and poor on-ball defense. Still, the fraction of the fanbase that melts down over every basketball loss needs to get a grip. College basketball is always a hellscape for ranked teams on the road, and if you don’t believe me check the stats. Saturday saw 4 top-12 teams lose on the road (Auburn, Wisconsin, Illinois, and Tennessee). Then in the early part of this week, 6th-ranked Kansas lost by 29 to Texas Tech on the road while 7th-ranked North Carolina lost at Syracuse. The teams looking to bolster their resume for the tournament always play well against top-ranked teams, especially at home.
For the legions of the miserable in Big Orange Country, my plea is just to pump the damn brakes for a second and try to remember that this is not football where losses are more detrimental. Furthermore, what is the point of being pessimistic? It seems like people who think the team will disappoint in March almost root for the Vols to lose just so they can get out a few “I told ya so’s” in the various VFL Facebook groups. Now with all that being said, a loss tomorrow night at Arkansas would have me listening to “The Sound of Silence” in a dark closet.
Arkansas is horrendous and dealing with tons of off-the-court rumors surrounding the team. Furthermore, the Razorback’s head coach Eric Musselman looks to have one foot out the door. The Razorbacks rank outside of the top 100 in both offensive and defensive efficiency according to KenPom, and have a 3-7 record in conference play. The Vols should dominate the Razorbacks on Wednesday night, but every opponent must be respected when you are playing in their building as we’ve already talked about. The Vols score more, defend better, and are the better team by a wide margin. All the Vols have to do is not freak out if Arkansas starts the game on fire shooting the ball. The Vols looked panicked when Texas A&M couldn’t miss early in the game on Saturday, and it seemed like they tried to get it all back at once which led to the game being put out of reach. If the Vols can power through the inevitable Arkansas runs this game should be a cakewalk, and I am fully expecting the Vols to do just that tomorrow night in Bud Walton Arena.