The name of the game sits within the description.
Free throws are supposed to be a given. They are defensive bailouts, on some occasions, and opposing teams can figure that out quite easily when facing Tennessee basketball.
The Vols shot 12-for-23 (52%) from the free-throw line against Arkansas in an 86-75 loss to begin SEC play. It brings Rick Barnes’ squad to 68.6% on the year — worse than 200th in the country.
“If we’re going to be that kind of team, like I told the team after the game, we’re going to struggle all year,” Barnes said.
NBA Hall of Famer Shaquille O’Neal built a 19-year career despite chronic struggles at the free-throw line. They were struggles so glaring that the league-wide strategy “Hack-a-Shaq” came to fruition.
Even then, O’Neal posted 10 seasons at the stripe better than what Tennessee shot Saturday.
“You want to run some things, but then you start thinking, well, if they get fouled, are they going to make the free throws?” Barnes said. “Guys that you want to be aggressive, they go pick up fouls and don’t make free throws. It really just continues to put pressure on every other part of the game.”
It failed the No. 19 (10-4) time and time again.
Nate Ament showcased the most struggle, going 5-for-11 at the charity stripe. Barnes has consistently spoken up on his star freshman and his ability to get to the line. But it does not give Tennessee a chance to win when he does not convert what the opposition is giving him.
“We believe what we do works if guys execute it,” Barnes said. “But then if you get down and you’re not making free throws, and you’re thinking, well, we got to make sure the guy gets involved here, if he does get fouled, you’ve got to go make free throws.”
With Ament’s efforts removed, the remaining team shot 7-for-12 from the line. No other player shot more than two in the game, including Ja’Kobi Gillespie, who went 2-for-2. J.P. Estrella joined him as the only perfectionist.
Jaylen Carey sported the worst effort without a make on two attempts. Bishop Boswell, Felix Okpara and Amari Evans all split the pair.
“That’s all mental,” Gillespie said. “So, really just giving our guys more confidence
just to shoot it and make it. So I feel like yeah, I mean, we’re going to get better at that.”
It’s a process that snowpiles throughout the game. But results aren’t showing much promise.
The Vols have shot better than 80% from the line in one game this season — a 31-for-35 effort against Tennessee State, which skews the median. Without that performance, Tennessee is sitting at 65.8% for the season.
On five occasions this season, the Vols have shot 60% or worse from the line. That includes a 57.6% and 52.2% showings in the last two games.
“I feel like when you’re missing them, you’re just thinking about it way too much,” Gillespie said.
Tennessee needs a better effort all around, but when the shots aren’t falling in the simplest part of the game, it makes everything tougher. The Vols committed 14 turnovers, but were fortunate to force 14 of their own. But with the margins so small in the conference, 11 misses at the line in an 11-point loss can make all the difference.
It makes it all the more difficult to pull out on the right side of the column.
“You can’t win,” Barnes said. “I mean, this league is too good.”
