Three Things To Watch For: Tennessee Basketball vs. Mississippi State

Photo By Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics

Tennessee basketball is looking to bounce back from its weekend loss in the midstate as they host No. 14 Mississippi State at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center on Tuesday night.

The Bulldogs keep improving under third-year head coach Chris Jans and are pushing for a top three-seed in this year’s NCAA Tournament.

Here’s everything to know ahead of Tuesday night’s top 15 matchup.

More From RTI: No. 6 Tennessee Basketball vs. No. 14 Mississippi State — How To Watch, Prediction, Preview

Josh Hubbard vs. Zakai Zeigler

Like watching undersized guards battle it out? This is the matchup for you.

5-foot-9 Zakai Zeigler is the best true point guard in the SEC. He enters the matchup averaging 12.3 points and 7.7 assists per game and is one of the nation’s best perimeter defenders and is the reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year.

5-foot-11 Hubbard is a true scorer at the point guard spot. He’s averaging 16.6 points and 2.9 assists per game. As Zeigler said on Monday, Hubbard is “a tough shot take and a tough shot maker.”

These two set the tone for their team. Watching them battle it out will be one of the game’s keys.

Another Battle On The Glass

As Rick Barnes said last week, the SEC is a rebounding conference and this is poised to be another battle on the glass. In the two matchups last season, the Bulldogs killed Tennessee inside. The Vols can’t have a repeat of that on Tuesday night.

Tennessee ranks seventh nationally in offensive rebound rate but has been average at best in defensive rebound rate, ranking 199th nationally. In each of its two losses this season, the Vols have struggled on the defensive glass.

Mississippi State is built to take advantage of the potential weakness. They rank 23rd nationally with a 36.6% offensive rebound rate. Controlling the glass and the inside game is a key part of Mississippi State’s strong offense.

The Vols need Felix Okpara and Igor Milicic Jr to rise to the challenge against the Bulldogs.

Can Tennessee Take Advantage Of Mississippi State’s Shaky Three-Point Defense?

Mississippi State has been good defending the rim this season but the Bulldogs have been very shaky defending the three-point line. The Bulldogs’ opponents are shooting 35% from three-point range this season, a mark that ranks just 250th nationally.

There’s an element of bad luck there but it’s also a large enough sample size to say that it’s a weakness for the Bulldogs. Mississippi State is giving up 35.4% of its points from the three-point line, a mark that is well above the national average.

Tennessee is a solid three-point shooting team and has been particularly strong at home. This is a game they should be able to hit eight to 10 triples. That’s a recipe for a victory. Getting Chaz Lanier going would be huge.

Similar Articles

Comments

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *