In Tennessee’s two most recent Saturday night games, the Volunteers have scored 80 and 82 points during double-digit victories against the college basketball blue-blood tandem of Kansas and Kentucky.
The past two midweek games have been drastically different, as the Vols have split games against Mississippi State and Ole Miss by scores of 56-53 and 52-50.
Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said Monday that the transition game that erupted in Rupp Arena is something he and his staff have been working on for weeks. Freshman guards Keon Johnson and Jaden Springer combined for 50 points against the Wildcats, and Barnes is hopeful that a faster offense will not take anything from a defense that has been mostly stout all season.
“I know that it can, but I thought we were getting through screens really well the other night,” Barnes said. “We came up with some of those scores when we got deflections and could get out and run. I don’t think there has to be a big drop off. I really don’t. We’ve got some guys who aren’t playing that could help us offensively, but to your point, they would probably give up more points on the defensive end, and we’re not going to do that.
“We’re not going to have a guy who can make a positive effect on one end but is a detriment on the other end. The nights that we’ve struggled defensively, we’ve probably struggled even more offensively.”