Tennessee has made its living on the offensive end of the floor this year, as the Vols are averaging close to 80 points per game this season.
That offense could be challenged Tuesday night as Tennessee (10-9, 3-4 SEC) travels to Tuscaloosa to take on a defensive minded Alabama (10-8, 1-5) team in Coleman Coliseum (TV: SEC Network: 9 p.m.). The Crimson Tide are giving up just 67 points per game, while holding teams to 34 percent from behind the 3-point line.
Opposing teams have spent most of their effort trying to shut down Kevin Punter this year, and many have failed to do so as the junior is averaging over 23 points per game. But after his 36 point performance against No. 24 South Carolina, coach Rick Barnes expects that focus to go up a notch.
“Defensively, we would plan on (Alabama coach Avery Johnson) trying to trap Kevin Punter as much as he can, get the ball out of his hands and those type of things,” Barnes said. “He’s going to work hard at trying to take our top players away.”
“You’re looking at how Kevin’s scoring, teams are going to go in every game with some kind of approach, like `What can we do to slow him down, stop him from doing this or doing that?’”
With teams honing in on Punter, Barnes said that Armani Moore may see more time at the point so Punter can move to his more natural position at the two guard. This allows Tennessee to run more sets for the star player and hopefully get him better looks.
Against Alabama, though, that could be difficult as the Crimson Tide like to use an aggressive defense to put pressure on ball handlers and hopefully get easy buckets in the process. Alabama is forcing more than 13 turnovers per game, and taking the ball out of Punter’s hands could cause problems.
“They’re one of those teams that like to pressure the ball,” Moore said. “They’re going to try and feed off the crowd. It’s not necessarily a big gym, so the crowd can get into it at any time. I think the most important thing for us as a team is we just have to be smart with the ball.
“We have to make sure we don’t make dumb mistakes, like turning the ball over and letting the crowd get into it.”
On the offensive side, Alabama is led by Retin Obasohan who leads the team with over 14 points per game. Shannon Hale and Arthur Edwards both average over 10 points, while Edwards is the team’s second-leading rebounder at four per game.
Alabama is a team that lives and dies by the 3-point shot, and when those shots aren’t falling, the Crimson Tide struggle. They are shooting over 34 percent from 3-point range on the season and averaging close to eight makes per game.
When those shots are falling, any team can be tough to beat, something Barnes knows well.
“They do a really good job with their offensive scheme,” Barnes said. “They spread you out. They do a great job of driving and pulling your defense and kicking out. That’s a team that can make 10, 12, 14 threes if they get going. ”
With the Vols first top-25 win in the rear-view mirror, they know that now would be a good time to rattle off a winning streak, something Moore hopes will continue on Tuesday.
“Once you win a game, you feel like you should carry that over,” Moore said. “I think for us, we just have to develop a level of consistency. I don’t think there’s been one time where we’ve won two or three games in a row. That’s our goal over the next couple of weeks, to get on a winning streak and get something started here.”
