2008–09 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team
2008–09 Tennessee Volunteers men's basketball | |
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SEC East Division champions | |
NCAA tournament, Round of 64 | |
Conference | Southeastern Conference |
East | |
Record | 21–13 (10–6 SEC) |
Head coach |
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Assistant coaches | |
Home arena | Thompson-Boling Arena |
Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Team | W | L | PCT | W | L | PCT | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
East
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South Carolina | 10 | – | 6 | .625 | 21 | – | 10 | .677 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Tennessee | 10 | – | 6 | .625 | 21 | – | 13 | .618 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Florida | 9 | – | 7 | .563 | 25 | – | 11 | .694 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Vanderbilt | 8 | – | 8 | .500 | 19 | – | 12 | .613 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Kentucky | 8 | – | 8 | .500 | 22 | – | 14 | .611 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Georgia | 3 | – | 13 | .188 | 12 | – | 20 | .375 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
West
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No. 21 LSU | 13 | – | 3 | .813 | 27 | – | 8 | .771 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Auburn | 10 | – | 6 | .625 | 24 | – | 12 | .667 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Mississippi State† | 9 | – | 7 | .563 | 23 | – | 13 | .639 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Alabama | 7 | – | 9 | .438 | 18 | – | 14 | .563 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ole Miss | 7 | – | 9 | .438 | 16 | – | 15 | .516 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arkansas | 2 | – | 14 | .125 | 14 | – | 16 | .467 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
† SEC Tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll |
The 2008–09 Tennessee Volunteers basketball team[1] represented the University of Tennessee in the 2008-09 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. This was the fourth season for Bruce Pearl as the Volunteers' head coach. The team, a member of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference, played its home games at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Preseason
[edit]The 2007–08 Volunteers finished the season 31–5 overall with a 14–2 mark in conference play. They won their first outright SEC regular season men's basketball championship in 41 years.[2] In postseason play, the Volunteers earned a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament. The team went on to lose in the Sweet Sixteen to the Louisville Cardinals and finished ranked at #7 in the ESPN/USA Today poll.[3]
The Vols lost three seniors from their team during the off-season: Chris Lofton, JaJuan Smith, and Jordan Howell. Also, sophomore forward Duke Crews and sophomore point guard Ramar Smith were dismissed from the team for a combination of "violations of the University of Tennessee’s substance-abuse policy and academic shortcomings."[4]
On November 3, 2008, the SEC released the rosters for the preseason All-SEC first and second teams. Junior forward Tyler Smith was chosen for both SEC Player of the Year and first team All-SEC. Wayne Chism and J. P. Prince were selected for the second team All-SEC, thus tying Tennessee with LSU for the most All-SEC selections (3).[5]
Recruiting
[edit]Bruce Pearl was able to pull together a highly ranked recruiting class for the 2008–09 season. The class included: Emmanuel Negedu, rated 13th among power forwards in the Class of 2008 by Rivals.com; Renaldo Woolridge, the 11th ranked small forward; Bobby Maze, a junior college guard averaging 20.7 points, 4.5 rebounds and 6.8 assists per game; and Scotty Hopson, a McDonald's All-American and ranked 5th overall by Rivals.com. The class also includes point guard Daniel West and center Philip Jurick. Rivals.com ranked the class as 7th best in the nation.[6][7]
2008–09 Roster
[edit]Name | Number | Position | Height | Weight | Year | Hometown | Former School |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Renaldo Woolridge | 0 | G/F | 6–8 | 208 | Freshman | North Hollywood, California | Harvard-Westlake |
Tyler Smith | 1 | F | 6–7 | 215 | Junior | Pulaski, Tennessee | Iowa |
Bobby Maze | 3 | PG | 6–2 | 185 | Junior | Suitland, Maryland | Hutchinson (Kan.) C.C. |
Wayne Chism | 4 | F/C | 6–9 | 242 | Junior | Jackson, Tennessee | Bolivar Central |
Emmanuel Negedu | 5 | PF | 6–7 | 240 | Freshman | Kaduna, Nigeria | Brewster (N.H.) Academy |
Quinn Cannington | 11 | SG | 6–4 | 165 | Junior | Knoxville, Tennessee | Fulton |
Steven Pearl | 22 | SF | 6–5 | 228 | Sophomore | Knoxville, Tennessee | West |
Cameron Tatum | 23 | G/F | 6–6 | 196 | Redshirt freshman | Lithonia, Georgia | The Patterson School |
Tanner Wild | 24 | PG | 6–0 | 170 | Senior | Huntington, West Virginia | Huntington |
Josh Tabb | 25 | PG | 6–4 | 196 | Junior | Carbondale, Illinois | Harmony Community Prep |
J. P. Prince | 30 | SG | 6–7 | 205 | Junior | Memphis, Tennessee | Arizona |
Scotty Hopson | 32 | SG | 6–7 | 185 | Freshman | Hopkinsville, Kentucky | University Heights |
Brian Williams | 33 | C | 6–10 | 267 | Sophomore | Bronx, New York | Harmony Community Prep |
Ryan Childress | 34 | PF | 6–9 | 235 | Senior | Cincinnati, Ohio | Moeller |
Phillip Jurick | 44 | C | 6–10 | 250 | Freshman | Chattanooga, Tennessee | East Ridge |
Schedule and Results
[edit]Date time, TV |
Rank# | Opponent# | Result | Record | Site (attendance) city, state | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
November 3* 7:00 pm |
No. 14 | Indianapolis | W 87-73 | Thompson-Boling Arena (18,378) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
November 7* 7:30 pm |
No. 14 | Tusculum | W 82-51 | Thompson-Boling Arena (20,421) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
Regular season | |||||||||||
November 15* 7:00 pm, SportSouth |
No. 14 | Chattanooga | W 114-75 | 1–0 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (21,864) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
November 18* 7:00 pm, SportSouth |
No. 14 | UT-Martin | W 91-64 | 2–0 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (19,761) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
November 21* 8:30 pm, CSS |
No. 14 | at MTSU | W 76–66 | 3–0 |
Murphy Center (11,802) Murfreesboro, TN | ||||||
November 27* 12:00 pm, ESPN2 |
No. 12 | vs. Siena Old Spice Classic |
W 78–64 | 4–0 |
The Milk House (3,357) Lake Buena Vista, FL | ||||||
November 28* 1:00 pm, ESPN2 |
No. 12 | vs. No. 16 Georgetown Old Spice Classic |
W 90–78 | 5–0 |
The Milk House (3,926) Lake Buena Vista, FL | ||||||
November 30* 7:30 pm, ESPN2 |
No. 12 | vs. No. 10 Gonzaga Old Spice Classic |
L 74–83 | 5–1 |
The Milk House (3,914) Lake Buena Vista, FL | ||||||
December 3* 7:00 pm, SportSouth |
No. 10 | UNC-Asheville | W 87-69 | 6–1 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (19,391) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
December 13* 12:00 pm, ESPN |
No. 8 | at Temple | L 72–88 | 6–2 |
Liacouras Center (8,068) Philadelphia, PA | ||||||
December 16* 9:30 pm, ESPN |
No. 16 | vs. No. 23 Marquette | W 80-68 | 7–2 |
Sommet Center (9,498) Nashville, TN | ||||||
December 20* 3:00 pm, SportSouth |
No. 16 | Belmont | W 79-77 | 8–2 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (21,314) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
December 29* 7:30 pm |
No. 14 | Louisiana-Lafayette | W 89-62 | 9–2 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (21,863) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
January 3* 2:00 pm, ESPN |
No. 14 | at Kansas | L 85–92 | 9–3 |
Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, KS | ||||||
January 7* 9:00 pm, ESPN2 |
No. 15 | Gonzaga | L 79–89 OT | 9–4 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (22,326) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
January 10 12:00 pm, Raycom |
No. 15 | at Georgia | W 86–77 | 10–4 |
Stegeman Coliseum (8,769) Athens, GA | ||||||
January 13 9:00 pm, ESPN |
No. 24 | Kentucky | L 72-90 | 10–5 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (20,474) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
January 17 6:00 pm, FSN |
No. 24 | South Carolina | W 82–79 | 11–5 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (20,203) Knoxville, TN | ||||||
January 20 9:00 pm, ESPN |
at Vanderbilt | W 76–63 | 12–5 |
Memorial Gymnasium (14,057) Nashville, TN | |||||||
January 24* 3:30 pm, CBS |
Memphis | L 52-54 | 12–6 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (21,905) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
January 28 8:00 pm, Raycom |
LSU | L 73–79 | 12–7 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (18,526) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
January 31 9:00 pm, ESPN |
Florida ESPN College GameDay |
W 79-63 | 13–7 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (20,984) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
February 4 8:00 pm, Raycom |
at Arkansas | W 72–70 | 14–7 |
Bud Walton Arena (16,064) Fayetteville, AR | |||||||
February 7 1:00 pm, Raycom |
at Auburn | L 77–78 | 14–8 |
Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum (6,321) Auburn, AL | |||||||
February 11 8:00 pm, Raycom |
Georgia | W 79-48 | 15–8 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (18,623) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
February 14 3:00 pm, Raycom |
Vanderbilt | W 69–50 | 16–8 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (20,375) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
February 18 8:00 pm, Raycom |
at Mississippi | L 65–81 | 16–9 |
Tad Smith Coliseum (7,250) Oxford, MS | |||||||
February 21 1:00 pm, CBS |
at Kentucky | L 58–77 | 16–10 |
Rupp Arena (24,394) Lexington, KY | |||||||
February 25 9:00 pm, Raycom |
Mississippi State | W 81–76 | 17–10 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (19,137) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
March 1 2:00 pm, CBS |
at Florida | W 79–75 | 18–10 |
O'Connell Center (12,490) Gainesville, FL | |||||||
March 5 7:00 pm, ESPN |
at South Carolina | W 87–70 | 19–10 |
Colonial Life Arena (18,000) Columbia, SC | |||||||
March 8 12:00 pm, CBS |
Alabama | L 67–70 | 19–11 |
Thompson-Boling Arena (20,493) Knoxville, TN | |||||||
SEC Tournament | |||||||||||
March 13 7:30 pm, Raycom |
vs. Alabama SEC Quarterfinals |
W 86–62 | 20–11 |
St. Pete Times Forum (14,128) Tampa, FL | |||||||
March 14 3:15 pm, Raycom |
vs. Auburn SEC Semifinals |
W 94–85 | 21–11 |
St. Pete Times Forum (10,387) Tampa, FL | |||||||
March 15 1:00 pm, CBS |
vs. Mississippi State SEC Championship Game |
L 61–64 | 21–12 |
St. Pete Times Forum (10,093) Tampa, FL | |||||||
NCAA Tournament | |||||||||||
March 20 12:25 pm, CBS |
vs. Oklahoma State 1st Round NCAA Tournament |
L 75–77 | 21–13 |
University of Dayton Arena (12,499) Dayton, OH | |||||||
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Eastern Time[9]. |
Rankings
[edit]Week | ||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
AP | 14 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 8 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 15 | 24 | — | Not released | ||||||||
Coaches | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 8 | 19 | 21 | 18 т | 25 | — |
References
[edit]- ^ The "Volunteers" nickname is exclusive to men's athletics at the school. Women's teams and athletes are formally referred to as "Lady Volunteers", but the short form of "Lady Vols" is more widely used (the university officially approves the use of both forms).
- ^ http://www.utsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/stats/2007-2008/teamcume.html [bare URL]
- ^ "2022-23 Men's College Basketball Rankings for Week 7". ESPN.
- ^ "GoVolsXtra, University of Tennessee sports coverage". Knoxville News Sentinel.
- ^ "Smith, Chism, Prince Named Preseason All-SEC by League Office University of Tennessee Athletics". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
- ^ "Basketball Recruiting - Cincinnati moves into 2008 team rankings". basketballrecruiting.rivals.com. August 19, 2008.
- ^ "Scout.com: Ready to be Amazed?". Archived from the original on June 20, 2008. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
- ^ "University of Tennessee Athletics Men's Basketball". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved November 8, 2008.
- ^ http://www.utsports.com/sports/m-baskbl/sched/tenn-m-baskbl-sched.html [dead link]