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The Mocs finally faced a color other than blue or gold.

The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men's basketball team faced Belmont during a three-hour closed scrimmage Saturday in McKenzie Arena, leaving coach John Shulman optimistic for the season.

"The things that we did struggle with today are very fixable," said Shulman, who is limited by NCAA rules in his comments on the scrimmage. "Some freshmen did better; some did worse. It worked out exactly how we wanted it to work out."

In previous years Shulman chose to play in one scrimmage and one exhibition game. With such a young roster he chose two scrimmages, including this one and next Saturday at Tennessee Tech.

"That film is going to be valuable," Shulman said. "We did not struggle with the talent level. We struggled with communication, picking up in transition defense -- stuff you normally struggle with early."

UTC will return to practice today in the Chattem Practice Facility after an extended review of the scrimmage.

"The nice thing about playing Belmont is you know exactly where you stand," Shulman said. "Tomorrow is going to be a big day for us. It's going to be a great learning day."