Vols Fueled by Unified Movement and ‘Desperate’ Approach Heading into Michigan Matchup

INDIANAPOLIS — To watch Tennessee’s offense at its finest is to watch the basketball version of Swan Lake.

A cut here. A pick there. A curl off toward the end. Finally, a wide-open shot — probably swished — that was crafted from all those direction changes, with the ball gliding smoothly between every step.

“They just move so well without the ball,” summarized Longwood guard DeShaun Wade, his team fresh off an 88-56 pummeling that was sparked by such lethal movement in Thursday’s first round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament. “For a defense like us, we try to switch everything, and sometimes we get so caught up on our man, it leaves driving gaps for guys like Chandler and Zeigler. That was very difficult for us.”

The same can be said for stopping the Vols’ defense, which gauged the Lancers for 16 turnovers and 22 points off those turnovers inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse.

“You might think that you've got a nice little passing lane and somebody just jumps in front of it,” offered Wade with a shrug. “That happened a lot tonight.”

Just as it’s happened against a lot of teams the Vols have faced this season.

Granted, the Lancers should be commended for their efforts. After all, a program’s very first trip to the NCAA Tournament is no small feat, especially considering the winding path of head coach Griff Aldrich.

And it isn’t like Tennessee just suddenly started moving this way, either.

The Vols started Thursday like they ended in last Sunday’s SEC Tournament title game: by playing unified and together on both ends of the floor.

Five players in double figures. Season-high field-goal percentage (60%). Second-most threes in an NCAA Tournament game (14). Program record for three-point percentage in a game (58.3%). Tied season-high with 29 assists. NCAA Tournament program record 13 steals. Most points in a first half this season (54).

A lot to digest? Yep. So is this team, with all its ways of scoring and slashing and stealing that, at some point, all one can do is offer the same explanation as Wade’s teammate, Justin Hill.

“Like everybody's talented, so you can't focus on one person,” Hill said. “You take away one thing, they are going to hit you with another thing. It's just things like that. Like sometimes you can't control, it's out of your control. We just try to play to our best ability. Then it's hitting shots on top of that.”

There’s a method to the magic there for Tennessee, too. Great play designing is one. A defensive stronghold (which Tennessee will miss when Mike Schwartz leaves for ECU) is another.

But the secret sizzle? The one that keeps these Vols on the move, so that you only see whizzes of orange and hear the squeaking of sneakers each time Rick Barnes’s team takes the floor?

Desperation.

“I feel like learning from what happened last year,” said Josiah-Jordan James of the way the Vols snapped into form on Thursday, a far cry from the way Tennessee got bounced by Oregon State in the same building and same round last March. “We were one of those teams who just thought things were going to happen. We weren't really playing desperate.

“We just talked this week leading up to this game, being the more desperate team and knowing that every team in this tournament is a championship team, and so you can't take anything for granted. I felt like we did a good job in preparing for that.”

Now, to advance to its ninth Sweet 16 in program history, Tennessee will need to channel that desperation once more against Michigan — albeit with a far more physical approach than what was required against the Lancers.

Down low the Wolverines boast Hunter Dickinson and Moussa Diabate, who come in at 7-foot-1 and 6-foot-11, respectively.

On Thursday afternoon, the 260-pound Dickinson gave the Vols a nice taste of what they can expect Saturday — 21 points and six boards to lead 11-seed UM in a 15-point comeback win over 6-seed Colorado State.

 “It’s going to take a great team effort,” said Barnes. “Not only from our post players doing their work early and doing their job, but the guards helping, because we have always believed that post defense starts on the perimeter.”

Schwartz was scouting the Rams-Wolverines game before his own defense took the floor, and what he saw was a conglomeration of threats not unlike what Tennessee has to offer.

But one can also rest knowing these Vols are well aware of their skills, and how beautifully lethal they are when working in soulful harmony.

“I think it's really fun to play this way where you know everybody on the team is just focused in on winning,” summarized Santiago Vescovi, who led the Vols with 18 points on six triples Thursday. “I think it's really fun whenever we start moving and everybody starts moving off the ball and on offense, too. That's when we are playing our best basketball.”