KNOXVILLE – The Tennessee basketball Volunteers stumble into Southeastern Conference play Saturday, losers of three of their past four games, when they host LSU at noon at Thompson-Boling Arena.
The matchup of 8-4 teams will be televised by ESPNU, with the Vols’ radio broadcast on 102.3 FM in the Chattanooga area.
It’s been an interesting season so far for the Vols. They started off hot, winners of seven of eight games. Then their offense cooled off and they took a major hit when senior guard Lamonte Turner announced he would have season-ending surgery on his left shoulder in an attempt to repair thoracic outlet syndrome. That left the Vols with just eight scholarship players.
They earned a bit of a reprieve with the midseason signing of point guard Santiago Vescovi, who received official word Friday from the NCAA Clearinghouse that he is eligible to play this semester.
But what now? The Times Free Press looks at five intriguing storylines heading into SEC play: