Struggling Vols feel sense of urgency as UK set to visit
KNOXVILLE — The University of Tennessee’s spring semester does not begin until January 10, but there will be a heavy student presence at Thompson-Boling Arena on Saturday night.
Tennessee’s athletic department announced Wednesday that Saturday night’s men’s basketball game between the No. 23 Volunteers and No. 17 Kentucky is a sell-out.
Included in the total are tickets for 3,400 students that have been requested. Dorms on campus are opening early, specifically so students can return to Knoxville and attend the game.
The arena’s capacity is 21,678, and this will be the second time this year’s it’s been sold-out. A packed house saw North Carolina come from behind to beat the Vols 78-73 on Dec. 17.
There may be a sense of urgency in the arena on Saturday, as Tennessee is at risk of starting Southeastern Conference play 0-3 after blowing double-digit leads against Arkansas and Auburn to begin league play.
“We have to get back to playing hard and getting after our opponents on the defensive end,” sophomore guard Lamonte Turner said Tuesday night after the loss to Auburn. “We have to go back and look at ourselves in the mirror through film and coaching. We have to be honest with ourselves, and if we learn from it, I think we will bounce back.”
Turner led the Vols with 25 points in the loss. He said that junior wing Admiral Schofield, sophomore forward Grant Williams and himself spoke in the locker room after the loss.
“The team you saw out there today was not us,” Turner said. “We weren’t the same team we were a couple of weeks ago. We pointed out some things and tried to hold each other accountable before the coaches came in.”
Tennessee coach Rick Barnes cited immaturity when discussing his team’s struggles with putting games away.
“It goes back to guys understanding that we have to play
together and play with a purpose,” Barnes said after the Auburn game. “Again, it’s disappointing because I don’t think we listen. I know we don’t listen coming out of timeouts, and we’ve talked about that over and over. We’re too casual and tonight we played as a very casual, immature basketball team.”
Tennessee has won three of its last four games against Kentucky at Thompson-Boling Arena, including an 82-80 victory over the fourth-ranked Wildcats last year.
Contact David Cobb at dcobb@timesfreepress.com.