Three Things to Watch: Tennessee at Louisville

Credit: University of Tennessee Athletics

By Tucker Harlin

#12 Tennessee (1-0) travels north to face Louisville (1-0) at the KFC Yum! Center Saturday. The game tips off at noon ET and airs on ACC Network.

These are three things I’m keeping an eye on as Vols and Cards battle this weekend.

BIG MAN ACTIVITY AND HEALTH

The Vols aren’t in a great spot with their big men at the moment.

Felix Okpara is suffering from a hip pointer and J.P. Estrella has been dealing with plantar fasciitis for several weeks. That means Cade Phillips is the only fully healthy big man Tennessee is trotting out in its first game against power five competition.

The odd part about Okpara is how he was seemingly uninhibited on the defensive end but at times inept offensively against Gardner-Webb Monday.

The bigs Louisville is trotting out aren’t your traditional back-to-the-basket big men, so the Vols won’t have their hands full the way they did with Oumar Ballo in the exhibition.

Rick Barnes’ management at the five spot is worth watching as the position gets healthier.

OFFENSIVE PRODUCTION FROM GUARDS

With everything I said about the health of Okpara and Estrella, I’m not sure Cade Phillips and Igor Milicic are capable of picking up offensive slack. Both are terrific in their own ways, but they do more dirty work than bulk scoring.

Tennessee will likely rely on its guards to produce on offense. Knowing the history of these contributors, this thought isn’t exactly a comforting one.

Are we positive Chaz Lanier’s exhibition performance was a one off? Can Zakai Zeigler develop into a consistent three point shooter? Can Jordan Gainey abandon his streaky ways from 2023-24? Can Jahmai Mashack contribute consistently on offense?

As it stands, all of these guys will be called to increase their production if a deep tournament run is in the works.

TRANSITION OFFENSE ON BOTH ENDS

We know Tennessee’s offensive preference is for its swarming defensive efforts to generate quick baskets.

In the limited sample size we have from Louisville, the Cardinals ran out in transition to cruise to a quick victory over Morehead State Monday. Many of the Cardinals’ shots in the win were taken within 10 seconds of a fresh 30 on the shot clock.

Louisville turned the Eagles over 20 times in the opener, and 12 of those turnovers were on steals. You can expect a frenetic pace in “The Yum” Saturday.