Ample opportunity is ahead for the Vols in this final month of 2019. Following a 7-1 start, #19 ranked Tennessee Basketball is now approaching a mid-December stretch that doesn’t look nearly as daunting as it did in the preseason—laying out a path to be riding high as they enter the new year.
The marquee match-up that everybody has had circled on their calendars is upon us. Saturday at 3:00PM, the Vols will be well-rested and well-prepared for their showdown with #13 Memphis in Knoxville.
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It is well-known that the 13th-ranked Tigers will not be at full strength on Saturday, but it would be unwise to remiss the significance of a potential win for Tennessee. Nonetheless, the absences of Lester Quinones and James Wiseman will prove impactful for Memphis as they combine for nearly 30 points per game and 13 rebounds per game. Undoubtedly, that is a huge hurdle for the Tigers to overcome as they come into Knoxville. That being said, Tennessee will need to reap the benefits of their unfortunate circumstance to ultimately add another ‘W’ in the win column.
Going a little further—the Vols will also have had more than three extra days of rest compared to the Tigers, with a total of ten days off to Memphis’ seven days off. That extra rest only adds to the advantages that the Vols will hold over Memphis come game-time. While a full strength Tigers squad may have been favored by a minimal margin in Saturday’s contest, the unfolding of the aforementioned turn-of-events for Memphis have made it more clear that Tennessee will have the upper-hand. Moreover, the fact that the contest is being played within the confines of what will be a rabid and downright deafening Thompson-Boling Arena, the Vols coming out triumphant seems even more likely.
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Although the Vols will face a truly tough road game versus Cincinnati at the Bearcats’ Fifth Third Arena four days following Memphis, if they can admirably manage those two significant contests and escape each with a win—the Vols will likely start 2020 with an 11-1 overall record, considering their two final games closing December come at home against Jacksonville State and Wisconsin team that already has four losses to date.
Without a doubt a 11-1 record to closeout 2019 would be an impressive feat for a Vols squad that was, more often than not, counted-out in the preseason. The opportunity is there for the taking and Tennessee has all the abilities to seize it. Doubting a Vols squad has proved to be a fool’s errand in many instances throughout the last three years, therefor, it might be time to replace that doubt with confidence as the Vols head into SEC play in January.
That may prove to be good advice, because despite the multitudes of obstacles that Tennessee Basketball has faced transitioning from 2018-19 to this season—the Vols genuinely haven’t missed a beat. That fact is pretty refreshing and requires a tip of the cap to Rick Barnes and the entire Tennessee staff.
#OFWAF
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