Rucker: Tennessee Must Acknowledge Its Flaws and Own the Struggle
When the Tennessee Volunteers woke up in Auburn on Saturday morning, they were a strong basketball team. By Wednesday morning in Knoxville, they remained a strong basketball team.
However, they aren’t as dominant as they believed, as this writer believed, or as most fans likely believed. They can’t defeat strong opponents without executing their game plan effectively. If their 53-51 loss to top-ranked Auburn on Saturday didn’t drive this point home, their 78-73 upset loss to 12th-ranked Kentucky at Food City Center on Tuesday certainly did.
That said, let’s not overreact.
The past four days have been tough for Rick Barnes, his once-top-ranked Volunteers, and their fans. However, there’s value in this period of struggle. The sooner a team understands its strengths and weaknesses, the better. This clarity allows them to focus on what they need to do to become the best version of themselves.
Barnes deserves credit for consistently scheduling a challenging non-conference slate every season. He started this practice as soon as he arrived in Knoxville, even though the roster he inherited wasn’t equipped to win many of those games. His goal was to prepare his players for conference play and the postseason by exposing them to the nation’s best teams. He wanted them to learn what it takes to compete at the highest level.
Unfortunately, the high-profile teams Barnes scheduled this season underperformed compared to recent years. Louisville, Virginia, Baylor, Syracuse, Miami, and Illinois—programs with a combined 28 Final Four appearances—were far from their usual standards.
Only Illinois (No. 10) and Louisville (No. 25) cracked the top 25 in Ken Pomeroy’s rankings, while Syracuse (No. 117), Virginia (No. 140), and Miami (No. 198) fell into triple-digit rankings. Despite facing these teams and several mid-major programs with strong NCAA Tournament histories, the Vols cruised through their non-conference schedule largely unchallenged.
This relatively easy path may have created a false sense of security for the players, fans, and even reporters covering the team. While Barnes aimed to toughen his squad for a highly competitive SEC season, the lack of resistance in non-conference play likely misled everyone about the team’s true capabilities.
The lesson is clear: Tennessee’s offense isn’t elite. While it appeared strong during non-conference play, recent games have exposed its limitations. The offense, once ranked in the top 10 for efficiency, has dropped to No. 36. Opponents have figured out how to counter senior point guard Zakai Zeigler’s lobs to his big men, and they’re daring everyone except star senior guard Chaz Lanier to shoot from beyond the arc.
Kentucky’s strategy of forcing the Vols to rely on three-pointers worked perfectly, as Tennessee made just 11 of 45 attempts, while Kentucky hit 12 of 24.
Tennessee’s offensive struggles at Auburn were expected, as the game was always going to be a defensive battle. However, Tuesday’s loss to Kentucky was different. Despite Kentucky’s defensive shortcomings and missing key players, they outsmarted and outworked the Vols in a typically hostile environment for visiting teams.
The reality is that Tennessee isn’t in the same class as teams like Auburn, Duke, and Houston, which rank in the top 10 for both offensive and defensive efficiency. The Vols belong to the next tier—teams that excel on one end of the floor but have significant flaws on the other. Florida is the closest to being dominant on both ends but still falls short of the top tier. Tennessee, with the nation’s No. 1 defense but a declining offense, remains firmly in that second tier.
The Vols must now embrace their identity. They are a team that can be great at times, average often, and occasionally poor on offense. While they don’t have to accept this as their permanent identity, they must acknowledge it and adjust accordingly. If poor shooting is a possibility, everything else—defensive intensity, rebounding, and execution—must be non-negotiable.
The transfer portal and unlimited player movement have made it increasingly difficult to build a complete, elite team. Tennessee’s roster is very good but not flawless. One glaring weakness is their inconsistent scoring. To win, they must maximize their strengths and minimize their weaknesses.
If Tennessee executes its game plan at a high level, it can beat any team in any arena. Whether they can sustain this level for four games in two weeks and reach the Final Four is a valid question, but that’s a concern for March. For now, the focus should be on February and the lessons learned from recent losses.
With nine scholarship players healthy enough to play and an eight-man rotation, Tennessee has enough talent to win any game.
However, they can’t afford to lose control of the controllable aspects of the game. Despite their poor shooting against Kentucky, they could have won if they had executed in other areas. Instead, they allowed second-chance points, wasted offensive possessions, and fell into Kentucky’s trap.
Humbling experiences, while painful, are valuable. As long as they don’t end the season, they provide opportunities for growth. Tennessee doesn’t need to accept mediocrity on offense, but they must double down on their strengths. Their defense often fuels their offense, so neglecting the “dirty work” would be catastrophic.
While elite offensive teams are exciting, these Vols aren’t built for that. Their path to success lies in grinding down opponents and making them uncomfortable.
Tennessee must embrace its identity. Denying reality will lead to disappointment, but accepting it can bring joy to the team and its fans.
