NCAA Basketball: 10 teams primed to lose early in 2023 NCAA Tournament
By Joey Loose
Tennessee
There have been some great players suiting up for the Volunteers since Rick Barnes came to Tennessee eight seasons ago. The quality of these Tennessee teams has certainly been approved, though they’ve yet to have that postseason breakthrough. This year’s team boasts wins over Kansas, Texas, Maryland, and Alabama and has shown that they can win the important games with their defense.
The Volunteers play team basketball, with a slew of players contributing on both sides of the ball. The leading scorer is currently Santiago Vescovi, who’s already been on a few wild rides with these Volunteers. Zakai Zeigler and Olivier Nkamhoua are also averaging at least 10 points a game while freshman Julian Phillips has been a welcomed addition to the starting lineup when he’s been healthy. They’ll also be getting Josiah-Jordan James back from injury soon.
The problem is that while their defense is undoubtedly elite, their offense runs them into serious problems. This defense limited Alabama to just 59 points in a recent win, but that’s also their only victory in the last three weeks. Tennessee’s offense tends to go ice cold, and it’s led to tough performances in recent losses, including buzzer-beater defeats against Vanderbilt and Missouri. It’s not a wild leap to think that the same could happen in the NCAA Tournament, especially if their defense isn’t having an A+ performance.