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Tennessee Basketball: Ok, maybe Santiago Vescovi is really good

By Colton Pickard

KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 21: Tennessee Volunteers fans hold up a cardboard photo of women's basketball coach Pat Summitt during the game against the Connecticut Huskies at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 21, 2012 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Connecticut 60-57. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 21: Tennessee Volunteers fans hold up a cardboard photo of women's basketball coach Pat Summitt during the game against the Connecticut Huskies at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 21, 2012 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Connecticut 60-57. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee basketball won its first SEC game of the year thanks to freshman guard Santiago Vescovi, who is playing much better than I expected.

If you would’ve asked me at the end of December if Tennessee would’ve won an SEC game in January, I would have laughed in your face and given a definite no.

First off, after seeing Tennessee’s offense get worse every game, I didn’t think the Vols would be able to hang with most of the SEC teams they play.

Second off, I did not expect Santiago Vescovi to contribute as much as he currently is. In his first two games at Tennessee, he has a combined 30 points while shooting 53% from the field and 67% from three.

That includes Vescovi’s 12 points in the Missouri win. One thing that he’s brought to the team is consistent shooting and shot-making.

Vescovi shot 75% from the field against Missouri, and it looks like all Tennessee needs is one guy to shoot well each night, and everything else will come together.

One thing Vescovi struggles with is turnovers, and that’s because he is used to getting away with a few things that he’s not going to get away with in college basketball or the NBA.

In two games with Vescovi, Tennessee basketball’s offense has improved drastically compared to the last few games of 2019.

Tennessee needed a player to shoot and make his shots. If one guy is able to make shots consistently, then everyone else will fall in line.

If one guy can gain confidence and shoot and make just about any shot he puts up, then the rest of the team will inherit that confidence and feel comfortable shooting and making a range of different shots.

Tennessee didn’t beat LSU, but they played the Tigers close for most of the game, which I expected Tennessee to be blown out, so that’s an improvement.

In Vescovi’s second game, Tennessee beat Missouri by ten, and Vescovi was an offensive leader in the Tuesday night game.

Next. The Tennessee Titans are the most dangerous team in the playoffs. dark

The Vols’ next test will be against South Carolina at home, and that’s going to be another big test for this Tennessee offense, and we will see if they can continue to shoot consistently over multiple games.

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