Keys To Success: Tennessee @ North Carolina

The Tennessee Volunteers are gearing up for an uber-important matchup against the North Carolina Tarheels.

Tennessee has a tough game tonight as the Volunteers will take on the North Carolina Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. There are many keys to success for the Volunteers in this matchup, and I’m here to break that down.

Get off to a fast start: Tennessee must jump on North Carolina early. This is because it will likely silence the crowd, at least momentarily. It will also be key for the Volunteers to get off to a fast start; that way, they will not have to play from behind like they have had to do in both of the games they lost.

Get Zakai Zeigler Going 

Zakai is electric with the ball in his hands. He is likely the most unselfish player on the team, as he is usually a pass-first guard, which results in him getting open shots in off-ball situations. Zeigler has a great shot from behind the line, and I expect to see him drain some shots from defense. Regarding the defensive side, there was a reason he was at the top of the list for DPOY before he got hurt last season. The defense is simply better when he is on the court. The more minutes the Vols can give Zakai, the better!

Limit RJ Davis

The Vols have to be able to limit RJ Davis, as he is an elite guard and a huge game-changer for the Tar Heels. The North Carolina guard has put up an average of 18.2 points, which the Vols have to limit as he will try to gash the Volunteers throughout the game.

Rebound Well

Tennessee will have to rebound well tonight so they don’t give up second-chance points. Armando Bacot is a force down low, as he averages 11.7 rebounds. Tennessee will need some big moments down low from Jonas Aidoo. Aidoo is currently averaging 7.5 rebounds for the Vols, and Tennessee is hopeful that he gets that and more in tonight’s matchup.

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