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  1. <?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
  2. <feed xmlns="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom" xml:lang="en">
  3.  <title>Rocky Top Talk -  All Posts</title>
  4.  <subtitle>Hope Lives Here</subtitle>
  5.  <icon>https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/51389/rtt-fav.png</icon>
  6.  <updated>2024-05-04T10:49:34-04:00</updated>
  7.  <id>http://www.rockytoptalk.com/rss/current/</id>
  8.  <link type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/" rel="alternate"/>
  9.  <entry>
  10.    <published>2024-05-04T10:49:34-04:00</published>
  11.    <updated>2024-05-04T10:49:34-04:00</updated>
  12.    <title>Dalton Knecht receives NBA Draft Combine invite</title>
  13.    <content type="html">  
  14.  
  15.    &lt;figure&gt;
  16.      &lt;img alt="Syndication: The Indianapolis Star" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/Qxr7Z8cjzfXNsr9kajAc0OU3gCs=/0x0:2859x1906/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73327030/usa_today_22913874.0.jpg" /&gt;
  17.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Grace Hollars/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  18.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  19.  
  20.  &lt;p&gt;Sounds like he’s going to go top ten, too.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="nqeQ6e"&gt;As expected, Dalton Knecht received his invite to the NBA Combine on Friday night, joining 77 other prospects on the invite list. Per ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, Knecht is viewed as a top ten prospect in this class, according to a memo sent out by the NBA. &lt;/p&gt;
  21. &lt;div id="MP6cDX"&gt;
  22. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  23. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;The NBA sent teams a composite ranking of the Top 10 2024 draft prospects, as determined by a blend of publicly available rankings, a panel of experts and a retained-scouting service. This determines which teams will receive medical results based on which tiers players fall in.… &lt;a href="https://t.co/Nl4IeyjYWq"&gt;pic.twitter.com/Nl4IeyjYWq&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Jonathan Givony (@DraftExpress) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/DraftExpress/status/1786522123562778821?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 3, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  24. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  25. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  26.  
  27. &lt;/div&gt;
  28. &lt;p id="Cf0wuh"&gt;Not many saw this rise coming from Knecht at this time last year. The transfer from Northern Colorado saw a big step up in competition level coming to the SEC, but that didn’t bother him one bit. He entered the program and was instantly the alpha scorer for the Volunteers, putting up 21.7 points per game. &lt;/p&gt;
  29. &lt;p id="a3n0ZB"&gt;The 6-6 guard scored 30+ points on eight separate occasions. Simply put, he was the offense for Rick Barnes. That production made him the clear choice to be named the SEC’s Player of the Year. He would go on to finish second to Zach Edey for the Wooden Award.&lt;/p&gt;
  30. &lt;p id="h1PrGp"&gt;Knecht ended up shooting 39.7 percent from three-point range, which is the main appeal for NBA teams. However, he showed plenty of ability to put the ball on the floor and get to the rim as well.&lt;/p&gt;
  31. &lt;p id="C4smF4"&gt;Looking around the mock draft world, Knecht’s landing spot has been projected as high as the top five and as low as 15th. &lt;/p&gt;
  32. &lt;p id="xqoqQd"&gt;CBS Sports has him &lt;a href="https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/2024-nba-mock-draft-serbian-star-nikola-topic-goes-no-2-behind-frances-alex-sarr/"&gt;going 11th overall&lt;/a&gt; to the Bulls. The Ringer has Knecht &lt;a href="https://nbadraft.theringer.com/mock-draft"&gt;coming off the board 4th overall&lt;/a&gt; to the Pistons. &lt;a href="http://NBADraft.net"&gt;NBADraft.net&lt;/a&gt; has him going 3rd overall to the Hornets. &lt;/p&gt;
  33. &lt;p id="CLmWsg"&gt;We’ll likely have a better idea of the top end pecking order following the Combine, which is set to begin next weekend (May 12th) and run all through the next week. The &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba-draft"&gt;NBA Draft&lt;/a&gt; will take place on June 26th and June 27th, moving to a two-night format this year. &lt;/p&gt;
  34.  
  35. </content>
  36.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/4/24148782/tennessee-basketball-guard-dalton-knecht-receives-nba-draft-combine-invite"/>
  37.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/4/24148782/tennessee-basketball-guard-dalton-knecht-receives-nba-draft-combine-invite</id>
  38.    <author>
  39.      <name>Terry A. Lambert</name>
  40.    </author>
  41.  </entry>
  42.  <entry>
  43.    <published>2024-05-03T22:48:09-04:00</published>
  44.    <updated>2024-05-03T22:48:09-04:00</updated>
  45.    <title>Vols drop game two of doubleheader to Florida 4-3</title>
  46.    <content type="html">  
  47.  
  48.    &lt;figure&gt;
  49.      &lt;img alt="COLLEGE BASEBALL: APR 20 Tennessee at Kentucky" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/wc545kRZPgnwxoo4pt4EnTG7zPo=/0x50:3000x2050/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73326472/2147967009.0.jpg" /&gt;
  50.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Jeff Moreland/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  51.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  52.  
  53.  &lt;p id="V5esPl"&gt;The &lt;a href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com"&gt;Tennessee Volunteers&lt;/a&gt; were looking to claim the series against the Florida Gators in one day.  Unfortunately, they couldn’t pull it off on Friday night in Gainesville, falling 4-3 in the second game of the doubleheader.  The Vols claimed game one 6-2.  &lt;/p&gt;
  54. &lt;p id="S95vGh"&gt;It was a day of swings and misses for Tennessee hitters.  They struck out 16 times for the game, with starter Liam Peterson recording 7 of them over the first 4 innings.  Between Peterson and Florida reliever Fisher Jameson, who struck out 8 Vols over 4 innings, Tennessee simply wasted too many plate appearances and were stymed by Florida’s duo.  &lt;/p&gt;
  55. &lt;p id="xkoTHH"&gt;Florida struck first in the third when catcher Brady Donay hit a no doubter over the left field wall off of starter Drew Beam.  Colby Shelton followed in the same inning with a 2-run shot for a 3-0 lead. &lt;/p&gt;
  56. &lt;p id="eIOQ9z"&gt;But that was all that Beam would allow for the day.  He finished with 3 runs on 6 hits with a walk and four strikeouts over 6 innings.  &lt;/p&gt;
  57. &lt;p id="rvZxtq"&gt;Tennessee got on the board in the fifth inning when Blake Burke slugged a double to the wall in right center field to plate Christian Moore.  Billy Amick would send one out to left field in the eighth inning to draw within 3-2.  &lt;/p&gt;
  58. &lt;p id="KWP91V"&gt;The Vols had a chance to tie the game or take the lead in the top of the ninth after a Christian Moore ground out plated a run and Blake Burke drew a walk with two outs.  However, Billy Amick fouled out to first base to end the game. &lt;/p&gt;
  59. &lt;p id="P15Go7"&gt;The Vols will look to claim the series on Saturday evening at 6:30 pm. &lt;/p&gt;
  60.  
  61. </content>
  62.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/3/24148548/tennessee-vols-drop-game-two-of-doubleheader-to-florida-3-2"/>
  63.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/3/24148548/tennessee-vols-drop-game-two-of-doubleheader-to-florida-3-2</id>
  64.    <author>
  65.      <name>Craig T. Smith</name>
  66.    </author>
  67.  </entry>
  68.  <entry>
  69.    <published>2024-05-03T18:09:41-04:00</published>
  70.    <updated>2024-05-03T18:09:41-04:00</updated>
  71.    <title>Tennessee takes game one against Florida, 6-2</title>
  72.    <content type="html">  
  73.  
  74.    &lt;figure&gt;
  75.      &lt;img alt="Syndication: The Knoxville News-Sentinel" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/dU0nd5u6iyhf6ZSdFRjWncdF5BE=/0x0:4486x2991/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73326167/usa_today_22570998.0.jpg" /&gt;
  76.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Caitie McMekin/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  77.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  78.  
  79.  &lt;p&gt;The Vols take the first game of the series.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="CMO96S"&gt;Tennessee’s first game against Florida was postponed due to weather on Thursday night, setting up a double-header on Friday. No. 3 Tennessee was looking to bounce-back from a midweek hiccup against Lipscomb, and they found just that on Friday afternoon.&lt;/p&gt;
  80. &lt;p id="N8FOpS"&gt;Dean Curley kicked off the scoring in Gainesville this afternoon, knocking home Dylan Dreiling with a single through the right side of the infield. Tennessee kept the pressure on with a steal of home. It was Hunter Ensley coming home on a double steal attempt that worked to perfection.&lt;/p&gt;
  81. &lt;div id="pdLP7u"&gt;
  82. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet"&gt;
  83. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;CALL STANDS!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The ole' delayed double steal.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;  &lt;a href="https://t.co/eJLZZ24M9g"&gt;https://t.co/eJLZZ24M9g&lt;/a&gt; (SECN+)&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GBO?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#GBO&lt;/a&gt; // &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OTH?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#OTH&lt;/a&gt; // &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeatUF?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BeatUF&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/ztMVfooaVS"&gt;pic.twitter.com/ztMVfooaVS&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Vol_Baseball/status/1786478923166941394?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 3, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  84. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  85. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  86.  
  87. &lt;/div&gt;
  88. &lt;p id="BL6WNV"&gt;Tennessee starter Chris Stamos ran into trouble in the bottom of the second. Florida’s Brody Donay hit a two-run shot over the right field fence to tie things up at two each.&lt;/p&gt;
  89. &lt;p id="aiajef"&gt;Three singles in the second inning for Tennessee — that trend continued in the third. Back to back singles had the Volunteers threatening, and Billy Amick delivered with a double down the line. Christian Moore would score, but Blake Burke was thrown out at the plate after running through a stop sign.&lt;/p&gt;
  90. &lt;p id="eKBLfE"&gt;Dreiling knocked in Amick on the next at bat to give Tennessee a 4-2 lead.&lt;/p&gt;
  91. &lt;p id="aDpyLM"&gt;Stamos exited the game in the bottom of the fourth inning, and AJ Causey danced out of trouble with runners on second and third to keep the Vols’ lead. Causey would go on to strike out the side in the bottom of the fifth. &lt;/p&gt;
  92. &lt;p id="CO62Tt"&gt;Causey breezed through the sixth and seventh without any issue.&lt;/p&gt;
  93. &lt;p id="H7RA3O"&gt;Carrying a 4-2 lead into the top of the eighth, Tennessee put two men in scoring position with one out. Cannon Peebles was intentionally walked, bringing Reese Chapman to the plate. Chapman hit a sacrifice fly to dead center, giving Tennessee a 5-2 lead.&lt;/p&gt;
  94. &lt;p id="f7WObb"&gt;The Vols added more insurance in the top of the ninth as Dylan Dreiling drove in another one. Tennessee carried a 6-2 lead into the bottom of the ninth, and AJ Causey was set to finish this one off. &lt;/p&gt;
  95. &lt;p id="oveAU9"&gt;Causey’s ninth inning didn’t go as planned, and Kirby Connell was called in to finish this one off. With two men on, Connell got a fly out and a double play to finish this one off.&lt;/p&gt;
  96. &lt;p id="0pzykE"&gt;Tennessee and Florida will play game two of the series 45 minutes after the conclusion of this one. SEC Network+ will have the call.&lt;/p&gt;
  97. &lt;p id="UpnqTf"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  98.  
  99. </content>
  100.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/3/24148340/tennessee-vols-baseball-takes-game-one-against-florida-6-2-recap"/>
  101.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/3/24148340/tennessee-vols-baseball-takes-game-one-against-florida-6-2-recap</id>
  102.    <author>
  103.      <name>Terry A. Lambert</name>
  104.    </author>
  105.  </entry>
  106.  <entry>
  107.    <published>2024-05-02T15:26:26-04:00</published>
  108.    <updated>2024-05-02T15:26:26-04:00</updated>
  109.    <title>Point Guard Ben Hammond set to visit Tennessee</title>
  110.    <content type="html">  
  111.  
  112.    &lt;figure&gt;
  113.      &lt;img alt="Syndication: The News-Leader" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/uBF22IncHTWW1tyPg5lgshG_Y3k=/0x44:4521x3058/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73323414/usa_today_22281691.0.jpg" /&gt;
  114.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Nathan Papes/Springfield News-Leader / USA TODAY NETWORK&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  115.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  116.  
  117.  &lt;p&gt;A new target emerges.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="geeQTS"&gt;A new basketball prospect has emerged for Tennessee in the class of 2024. Ben Hammond, who recently decommitted from Rhode Island, will take an official visit to Tennessee on Monday.&lt;/p&gt;
  118. &lt;div id="bINHwi"&gt;
  119. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  120. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEWS: 2024 4⭐️ Ben Hammond tells &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/LeagueRDY?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@LeagueRDY&lt;/a&gt; he will take an official visit to Tennessee and Rick Barnes on Monday.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;Hammond was originally committed to Rhode Island before recently deciding to reopen his recruitment. He’s also taken a recent visit to Virginia Tech.&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;One of the… &lt;a href="https://t.co/B7eXz5FbyO"&gt;pic.twitter.com/B7eXz5FbyO&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— 24/7 High School Hoops (@247HSHoops) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/247HSHoops/status/1785793375280537602?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;May 1, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  121. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  122. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  123.  
  124. &lt;/div&gt;
  125. &lt;p id="3e1TAa"&gt;The 5-11 point guard is a three-star prospect, according to 247Sports. He ranks 195th overall in the class, coming out of Fairfax, Virginia. Providence, Virginia Tech, Iowa, Butler, Penn State and several others have &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/247HSHoops/status/1781343537126129880"&gt;reportedly reached out&lt;/a&gt; since Hammond re-opened his recruitment. &lt;/p&gt;
  126. &lt;p id="nbtPJC"&gt;Hammond was &lt;a href="https://247sports.com/longformarticle/cooper-flagg-aj-dybantsa-nike-peach-jam-superlatives-college-basketball-recruiting-212708756/#2195165"&gt;named ‘best teammate’&lt;/a&gt; last summer at the Nike Peach Jam, helping his team win the tournament title. &lt;/p&gt;
  127. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  128. &lt;p id="3z2HtB"&gt;The Rhode Island commit may lack size, but he is as tough as nails and showcased the winning intangibles he brings to the floor during the event.&lt;/p&gt;
  129. &lt;p id="R6WIqs"&gt;Hammond is a high-level competitor with a great feel for the game. Defensively, this makes his man consistently uncomfortable thanks to Hammond’s ball pressure. He is a floor general on offense who gets everyone in the right spots and makes everyone around him better. (Travis Branham, &lt;a href="https://247sports.com/longformarticle/cooper-flagg-aj-dybantsa-nike-peach-jam-superlatives-college-basketball-recruiting-212708756/#2195161"&gt;247Sports&lt;/a&gt;)&lt;/p&gt;
  130. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  131. &lt;p id="20DYLf"&gt;Sounds a lot like Zakai Zeigler, right? Zeigler also made a name for himself at Peach Jam, and Tennessee quickly pounced. Now entering his senior year, Zeigler is the unquestioned leader of the team. He won the SEC’s Defensive Player of the Year award this past season, despite his 5-9 frame. It’s pretty easy to draw the parallels here. &lt;/p&gt;
  132. &lt;p id="yZvody"&gt;Tennessee has three scholarships remaining after signing three transfers and four-star prep guard Bishop Boswell.&lt;/p&gt;
  133. &lt;div id="9M2mWy"&gt;&lt;div style="left: 0; width: 100%; height: 0; position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%;"&gt;&lt;iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hRfMZyAmX7c?rel=0" style="top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; border: 0;" allowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" allow="accelerometer; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share;"&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;/div&gt;
  134.  
  135. </content>
  136.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/2/24147097/basketball-recruiting-point-guard-ben-hammond-set-to-visit-tennessee-vols"/>
  137.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/2/24147097/basketball-recruiting-point-guard-ben-hammond-set-to-visit-tennessee-vols</id>
  138.    <author>
  139.      <name>Terry A. Lambert</name>
  140.    </author>
  141.  </entry>
  142.  <entry>
  143.    <published>2024-05-01T08:31:45-04:00</published>
  144.    <updated>2024-05-01T08:31:45-04:00</updated>
  145.    <title>Watch: Jordan Beck notches first career MLB hit for the Rockies</title>
  146.    <content type="html">  
  147.  
  148.    &lt;figure&gt;
  149.      &lt;img alt="COLLEGE BASEBALL: JUN 12 NCAA Super Regionals" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/8-vLY0tZ0HvWAMgUgWrfz02kM_w=/0x111:6604x4514/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73319760/1241299030.0.jpg" /&gt;
  150.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Bryan Lynn/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  151.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  152.  
  153.  &lt;p&gt;That didn’t take long.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="u6kZ21"&gt;It took Jordan Beck exactly one attempt to earn his first career hit in the MLB on Tuesday night. Beck, the former Tennessee baseball star, was called up to the Colorado Rockies after a hot start to the year in Triple-A ball.&lt;/p&gt;
  154. &lt;p id="hwWQuQ"&gt;He stayed hot for the major league team last night in Miami. Colorado put up a huge first inning, giving Beck a chance to hit in the first inning despite slotting in at No. 8 in the lineup.&lt;/p&gt;
  155. &lt;div id="BbzJoY"&gt;
  156. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  157. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Just getting started   &lt;a href="https://t.co/prNDPyV8e3"&gt;https://t.co/prNDPyV8e3&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/btPeOnAMQv"&gt;pic.twitter.com/btPeOnAMQv&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Rockies/status/1785448931679195317?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 30, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  158. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  159. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  160.  
  161. &lt;/div&gt;
  162. &lt;p id="hnBmdO"&gt;Beck found another hit — also right back up the middle — later in the night. He finished his first career start with a 2-for-4 night at the plate, giving the Rockies some much-needed offensive help. &lt;/p&gt;
  163. &lt;p id="WwiJyg"&gt;Colorado sits just 7-22 on the season so far, so the Beck call-up was a no brainer. Beck was hitting .307 in Albuquerque with five home runs in 25 games. He was already up to 28 RBI on the year, sitting with a .999 OPS.&lt;/p&gt;
  164. &lt;p id="gzFRmD"&gt;Now with his big-league career off and running, Beck can give Colorado fans something to cheer for in what’s shaping up to be a pretty dismal season.&lt;/p&gt;
  165.  
  166. </content>
  167.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/1/24145953/jordan-beck-first-career-mlb-hit-colorado-rockies-tennessee-baseball"/>
  168.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/1/24145953/jordan-beck-first-career-mlb-hit-colorado-rockies-tennessee-baseball</id>
  169.    <author>
  170.      <name>Terry A. Lambert</name>
  171.    </author>
  172.  </entry>
  173.  <entry>
  174.    <published>2024-05-01T07:30:00-04:00</published>
  175.    <updated>2024-05-01T07:30:00-04:00</updated>
  176.    <title>Questions and Answers: Felix Okpara Edition with Connor Lemons, one of Land-Grant Holy Land’s Buckeye Hoops experts</title>
  177.    <content type="html">  
  178.  
  179.    &lt;figure&gt;
  180.      &lt;img alt="Ohio State v Illinois" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/eKQoN1kwGcsIqED0NwUJb66CWF8=/0x0:5784x3856/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73319664/2087313013.0.jpg" /&gt;
  181.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by David Berding/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  182.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  183.  
  184.  &lt;p id="Z73RFS"&gt;With the recent addition of former &lt;a href="https://www.landgrantholyland.com"&gt;Ohio State&lt;/a&gt; center Felix Okpara to Tennessee as Rick Barnes and staff continue to revamp the roster, I know I didn’t have enough time to catch many, if any Ohio State games. And so I wanted to give folks who are more concentrated on just Tennessee basketball some insight into Okpara’s skills, weaknesses and an idea of what he can bring to the table for the Vols next year on the court. &lt;/p&gt;
  185. &lt;p id="NpKOwR"&gt;Obviously, we can look at his counting stats and his per-40 stats to get an idea of his impact, but I wanted to dig a little deeper, so I reached out to &lt;a href="https://www.landgrantholyland.com/"&gt;Land-Grant Holy Land&lt;/a&gt;, the home of everything Ohio State Buckeye sports. And &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/lemons_connor"&gt;Connor Lemons&lt;/a&gt;, one of the people who cover hoops there was kind enough to answer my questions about Okpara’s game. &lt;/p&gt;
  186. &lt;p id="dvVqRZ"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;1.) Let’s start with a broad brush here — give us some strengths and weaknesses of Okpara’s overall game. &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  187. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  188. &lt;p id="maLQIX"&gt;In general, I think Felix is the perfect post player for a team that has an explosive backcourt and isn’t necessarily relying on their center for a ton of points on a per-game basis. He finished the season strong and played really well in the &lt;a href="http://www.sbnation.com/nit-tournament"&gt;NIT&lt;/a&gt;, but I’m not sure he will ever turn into much more than a 10 points per game-type player on that end.&lt;/p&gt;
  189. &lt;p id="qPxmh1"&gt;However, he’s a game changer on the defensive end. I think Felix could wind up being an SEC Defensive Player of the Year kind of defender, because I thought he was going to be a candidate for Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year his junior year, had he stayed. He’s got a 7-foot-4 wingspan and finds ways to block shots that aren’t even in his zip code. The game that sticks out for me is when Ohio State played at &lt;a href="https://www.theonlycolors.com"&gt;Michigan State&lt;/a&gt; this past season, I remember watching Tyson Walker and AJ Hoggard altering the arc of their shots on the fly at the last second when Okpara would slide over to help, and it really gave them trouble.&lt;/p&gt;
  190. &lt;p id="biTzIa"&gt;He’s not super mobile on the defensive end, and had trouble with athletic bigs who can step out and hit jumpers. I thought he made strides at the end of the season, but sometimes Ohio State had no choice but to sit him when opposing teams went small. Still, he’s one of the best interior defenders in the country in my opinion, so you kind of take whatever offensive output he’s able to give when he’s impacting things so much at the other end.&lt;/p&gt;
  191. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  192. &lt;p id="vT43Kn"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  193. &lt;p id="SrPNgT"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;2.) Was there any known discord between Okpara and Ohio State? Were there locker room issues or anything like that? Barnes is pretty careful about whom he adds to the team in terms of character, but you never really know until somebody gets somewhere… Was his departure a surprise, and how did Buckeye fans react to it? &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  194. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  195. &lt;p id="IXgflQ"&gt;To my knowledge there were no issues with Felix in the locker room, disagreements between him and the coaching staff, or anything like that. In fact, when the team was asked at media day last year who the funniest player on the team was, Felix was one of the most common responses. He’s kind of a quiet guy, but his teammates love him.&lt;/p&gt;
  196. &lt;p id="fvrDwP"&gt;As I’m sure you guys are aware, Felix put out a graphic in early April about how he was “100% committed” to running it back with Ohio State, so him leaving was kind of a stunner to everyone, including the team and coaches. Jake Diebler brought in Kentucky center Aaron Bradshaw after Felix announced he was staying, and truth be told I think both guys would’ve still seen the floor quite a bit. Ultimately, Felix decided to make a move to another program where there would be a more guaranteed spot for him to get minutes.&lt;/p&gt;
  197. &lt;p id="ByngmV"&gt;Ohio State fans (obviously) didn’t react well to it since he had already announced to the world that he was coming back, but I think Felix has earned the opportunity to start (or at least get starter’s minutes) somewhere after battling in the trenches for the last two seasons for bad Ohio State teams. If he felt threatened by Bradshaw, I can’t say I blame him. I think Okpara leaving for Tennessee would’ve been received a bit worse if another Buckeye hadn’t left to play for Michigan the very next day.&lt;/p&gt;
  198. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  199. &lt;p id="rQHUNX"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  200. &lt;p id="ST3ogR"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;3.) Just going by his counting stats, at this stage, it seems like he’s capable of being a force defensively and then he looks like he can be, at the least, a lob threat on offense — how do you see his game translating into what Tennessee does, especially considering the Vols’ revamped roster and Rick Barnes encouraging a quicker pace on offense?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  201. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  202. &lt;p id="wTbkHm"&gt;Without having a ton of knowledge of who Tennessee has brought in this off-season in the transfer portal (sorry, it’s tough enough to keep it all straight for the conference I cover, let alone all the other conferences), I think Felix fits perfectly with how Barnes tries to build his defenses on a year-by-year basis. The Volunteers have been top-five in defensive efficiency each of the past four seasons, which is really, really impressive. From an outside perspective, I think Tennessee gets a reputation for being a nasty, muck-it-up team that will hold you to under 60 points really try to establish that they’re the nastier, more physical team. I think Felix willl fit right in with that. He’s a top-tier shot blocker that makes teams completely change their plan of attack. He will send shots packing into the fifth or sixth row of seats, get fans on their feet and completely change the momentum in the arena with one play. I think Tennessee fans will accept him pretty quickly as part of the family.&lt;/p&gt;
  203. &lt;p id="2DvBjk"&gt;Offensively, you’re spot on with the “lob threat” assessment. He’s willing to hustle down the floor and make himself available for transition dunks — he did that a lot with Ohio State. I thought he was a decent cutter in half-court offense as well, but his back to the basket post-up game just isn’t quite there yet. I would say a more up tempo offense suits him better, but even if not, the defense will play anywhere.&lt;/p&gt;
  204. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  205. &lt;p id="mvZpBx"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  206. &lt;p id="gSjyad"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;4.) What kind of growth can you see happening in Okpara’s game? Do you think he has or will develop a repertoire of post moves? Has he shown flashes of being a better free-throw shooter or developing an in-or-around the paint jumper?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  207. &lt;blockquote&gt;
  208. &lt;p id="yMfLIb"&gt;Felix ended the season scoring in double-digits in all three NIT games, which is the first time in his career that he’s scored 10+ in three consecutive games. He had 12 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks in the Georgia game, and that was one of the first games I noticed he was demanding the ball below the basket and attacking defenders without hesitation. He didn’t hit every shot (he finished 6-for-10), but I thought it was encouraging that he was being the aggressor below the basket. I’m not sure that will ever be a strength of his, since he’s going into his junior season now and he’s still a work in progress in that area.&lt;/p&gt;
  209. &lt;p id="IVKMAh"&gt;I was kind of surprised to see that his free throw percentage actually went down this past season, because his free throw form looks pretty sound and he had stretches this season where he would go to the line and hit several in a row. I guess there’s no way to back this up, but the shot looks good to me and he looks confident taking them, so I think he will up that 59% FT rate this year.&lt;/p&gt;
  210. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  211. &lt;p id="67Rkvg"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  212. &lt;p id="YzMF2w"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;5.) Okpara averaged 3.9 fouls in 23.6 minutes per-game last season. What would you say his biggest problem is with staying out of foul trouble? (Connor is correct here — Okpara averaged 2.9 fouls per-game, not 3.9... my bad)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  213. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="wezII9"&gt;I think he averaged 2.9 per game actually — at least that’s what ESPN says. For as many shots as he blocks, contests, and alters, I think 2.9 per game is pretty acceptable. I think extrapolated out to a per-40 minute basis, he’s blocking roughly 4 shots per game. I personally will take that kind of post defender every single day even if he’s picking up roughly three fouls per game. The one area I would look out for is if Barnes tries to keep him on the floor against a smaller lineup where he has to chase someone around a bit, I have seen him get beat off the dribble from time to time and then just reach out and foul the driver to prevent a basket.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  214. &lt;p id="AHqho3"&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  215. &lt;p id="aMX8J9"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;6.) Defensively… does he offer options, scheme wise? Can he switch, hedge, play in drop coverage? In your opinion, what’s the best fit for his skill set?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
  216. &lt;blockquote&gt;&lt;p id="g6C3lm"&gt;Kind of like I said above, Ohio State played far more man-to-man than zone last season, and both Holtmann and Diebler did their best to get Okpara out of games when opposing teams had more mobile post players who were comfortable operating on the perimeter. He needs to improve his ability to switch and guard smaller defenders, even if it’s only something that happens occasionally. Having him drop down on the screen and invite the open man to shoot rather than drive to the basket works sometimes, but any screen action that involves Okpara on defense and a shooter on offense is probably asking for trouble.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;/blockquote&gt;
  217.  
  218. </content>
  219.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/1/24145938/vols-basketball-questions-answers-felix-okpara-tennessee-ohio-state-buckeyes-ncaa-transfer-portal"/>
  220.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/5/1/24145938/vols-basketball-questions-answers-felix-okpara-tennessee-ohio-state-buckeyes-ncaa-transfer-portal</id>
  221.    <author>
  222.      <name>Nick Carner</name>
  223.    </author>
  224.  </entry>
  225.  <entry>
  226.    <published>2024-04-30T21:24:49-04:00</published>
  227.    <updated>2024-04-30T21:24:49-04:00</updated>
  228.    <title>Tennessee baseball loses first midweek game of the year, to Lipscomb, 9-6</title>
  229.    <content type="html">  
  230.  
  231.    &lt;figure&gt;
  232.      &lt;img alt="Texas A&amp;amp;amp;M v Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/UnSfxAk0Lxw4rCyVd78qDix7jkg=/0x1481:2894x3410/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73319073/1477587523.0.jpg" /&gt;
  233.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  234.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  235.  
  236.  &lt;p id="GvJGkB"&gt;The Tennessee baseball team had been 11-0 in midweek games until Tuesday’s matchup with Lipscomb, when the Vols’ battery of typical midweek pitchers gave up four solo home runs and five of the six throwers surrendered at least one run in the 9-5 loss. &lt;/p&gt;
  237. &lt;p id="NFV5OD"&gt;Dylan Loy started and held Lipscomb to just one run in his 2 IP while allowing three hits and striking out two. He got some help from Cannon Peebles, when Loy struck out the batter and Peebles  threw out a runner heading to second for an inning-ending double play in the first. &lt;/p&gt;
  238. &lt;div id="zhxs5t"&gt;
  239. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  240. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Little strike 'em out, throw 'em out double play to end the top of the first!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;  &lt;a href="https://t.co/kPc6cjVBSO"&gt;https://t.co/kPc6cjVBSO&lt;/a&gt; (SECN+)&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GBO?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#GBO&lt;/a&gt; // &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OTH?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#OTH&lt;/a&gt; // &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeatLipscomb?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BeatLipscomb&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/4oBVXFUiOS"&gt;pic.twitter.com/4oBVXFUiOS&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Vol_Baseball/status/1785431614350307573?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 30, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  241. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  242. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  243.  
  244. &lt;/div&gt;
  245. &lt;p id="peOxYH"&gt;But in the third inning, Marcus Phillips, who’d shown some recent promise as a possible addition to the weekend bullpen group, gave up a double, a home run, three hits, three earned runs and one walk while tying the team-high for strikeouts with four. He pitched the third and the fourth, giving Lipscomb the lead back after the offense came out of the gates with two runs in each of the first two innings. &lt;/p&gt;
  246. &lt;p id="HwVf9H"&gt;In the B1, Christian Moore got hit by a pitch, Blake Burke earned a full-count walk and Billy Amick singled to load the bases. Dylan Dreiling singled in the Vols’ first run, and Dean Curley hit into a double play that allowed another run to cross. Reese Chapman flew out to end the frame with a runner stranded on base. &lt;/p&gt;
  247. &lt;p id="6zzh3S"&gt;In the UT half of the second inning, Colby Backus, who got a start in the outfield, hit the first pitch he saw into left for a double. Dalton Bargo earned a four-pitch walk, and Burke brought both men home with his 21st double of the season, which slots him in at a tie for second nationally. &lt;/p&gt;
  248. &lt;div id="7zNheG"&gt;
  249. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  250. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;Blake's 21st double of the year drives in a pair!&lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;  &lt;a href="https://t.co/kPc6cjVBSO"&gt;https://t.co/kPc6cjVBSO&lt;/a&gt; (SECN+)&lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/GBO?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#GBO&lt;/a&gt; // &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/OTH?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#OTH&lt;/a&gt; // &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/BeatLipscomb?src=hash&amp;amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;#BeatLipscomb&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/lRF9u1pARG"&gt;pic.twitter.com/lRF9u1pARG&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Tennessee Baseball (@Vol_Baseball) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/Vol_Baseball/status/1785440609605767231?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 30, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  251. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  252. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  253.  
  254. &lt;/div&gt;
  255. &lt;p id="UpzSZP"&gt;The offense went the next four innings without scoring a run, managing a base runner in each half inning but not bringing them around to score. &lt;/p&gt;
  256. &lt;p id="YOiZoh"&gt;While the Tennessee offense lagged, Lipscomb popped off for five runs in innings 4-6. Andrew Behnke gave up two solo home runs in his 1.1 IP after Phillips exited, then after Behnke’s exit in the T6, JJ Garcia gave up another solo shot before the half inning finished. &lt;/p&gt;
  257. &lt;p id="ncSlW0"&gt;Lipscomb tagged on two more runs in the eighth, and UT attempted to battle back, with a run in the B7 and a run in the B9, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the deficit. &lt;/p&gt;
  258. &lt;p id="VOSs7j"&gt;Burke and Amick were the only two Vols with more than one hit, and that duo plus Dreiling and Curley accounted for all of the team’s runs scored. &lt;/p&gt;
  259. &lt;p id="wI3iJl"&gt;Here are the rest of the stat lines for the pitchers the Vols threw other than Loy and Phillips:&lt;/p&gt;
  260. &lt;p id="hXnThY"&gt;Behnke got tagged with the loss. 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 0 K&lt;/p&gt;
  261. &lt;p id="aEZgU1"&gt;JJ Garcia: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K&lt;/p&gt;
  262. &lt;p id="qLA6dI"&gt;Matthew Dallas: 1.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 4 K&lt;/p&gt;
  263. &lt;p id="7ZcK1s"&gt;Nate Snead: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K&lt;/p&gt;
  264. &lt;p id="t74we6"&gt;Midweek game losses happen — it’s obviously difficult for the guys on the team to be dialed in for every game of the year, four times a week. &lt;/p&gt;
  265. &lt;p id="fhDtYg"&gt;Tennessee goes to Florida the weekend series, and the Vols are second nationally in runs scored while the Gators aren’t in the top 50. UF is 23-21 on the season and just 9-12 in SEC play. Obviously Jac Caglianone presents a problem with his 26 home runs, but his numbers as a pitcher aren’t that hot this year with a 4.10 ERA and at least three walks surrendered in eight of his 10 appearances. &lt;/p&gt;
  266. &lt;p id="Ph0vy3"&gt;Game one is scheduled for &lt;strong&gt;Thursday&lt;/strong&gt; night at 7 PM EST. &lt;/p&gt;
  267.  
  268. </content>
  269.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/4/30/24145947/tennessee-vols-baseball-first-midweek-game-loss-blake-burke-billy-amick-dylan-dreiling-tony-vitello"/>
  270.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/4/30/24145947/tennessee-vols-baseball-first-midweek-game-loss-blake-burke-billy-amick-dylan-dreiling-tony-vitello</id>
  271.    <author>
  272.      <name>Nick Carner</name>
  273.    </author>
  274.  </entry>
  275.  <entry>
  276.    <published>2024-04-30T12:31:36-04:00</published>
  277.    <updated>2024-04-30T12:31:36-04:00</updated>
  278.    <title>Jonas Aidoo commits to Arkansas</title>
  279.    <content type="html">  
  280.  
  281.    &lt;figure&gt;
  282.      &lt;img alt="Creighton v Tennessee" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/rSQ1s3nkFtSihTLOG2NQ4kloaYE=/0x0:5580x3720/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/73317869/2124035029.0.jpg" /&gt;
  283.        &lt;figcaption&gt;Photo by Mike Mulholland/Getty Images&lt;/figcaption&gt;
  284.    &lt;/figure&gt;
  285.  
  286.  &lt;p&gt;The decision is in.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p id="mSlTbh"&gt;Jonas Aidoo has a new home — and he’ll be staying in the SEC. The 6-11 center announced on Monday that he will be joining John Calipari and the Arkansas Razorbacks next season. &lt;/p&gt;
  287. &lt;div id="q7grgW"&gt;
  288. &lt;blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-dnt="true" align="center"&gt;
  289. &lt;p lang="en" dir="ltr"&gt;NEWS: Tennessee transfer big man Jonas Aidoo has committed to Arkansas, he confirms to &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/On3sports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@On3sports&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;br&gt;&lt;br&gt;The 6-11 junior averaged 11.4 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game this season. First by &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/MattNorlander?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;@MattNorlander&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;a href="https://t.co/Obkx3aE563"&gt;https://t.co/Obkx3aE563&lt;/a&gt; &lt;a href="https://t.co/LZHMWPcXRA"&gt;pic.twitter.com/LZHMWPcXRA&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;— Joe Tipton (@TiptonEdits) &lt;a href="https://twitter.com/TiptonEdits/status/1785093604744007819?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw"&gt;April 29, 2024&lt;/a&gt;
  290. &lt;/blockquote&gt;
  291. &lt;script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"&gt;&lt;/script&gt;
  292.  
  293. &lt;/div&gt;
  294. &lt;p id="1PODZI"&gt;Baylor was the perceived favorite here, but Arkansas made a strong push this weekend getting him on campus for a visit. Alabama, North Carolina and Kentucky were also involved. &lt;/p&gt;
  295. &lt;p id="1GTw2C"&gt;Aidoo is coming off of his best season yet, emerging as a true offensive threat for Tennessee during his junior year. He averaged 11.4 points per game, shooting 51.5 percent from the field. Aidoo added 7.3 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game.&lt;/p&gt;
  296. &lt;p id="pPWloy"&gt;Rick Barnes admitted that Aidoo’s departure was a surprise.&lt;/p&gt;
  297. &lt;p id="IMGjPY"&gt;“He had told everybody he was fine,” Barnes told the media in an uncharacteristically short response. &lt;/p&gt;
  298. &lt;p id="cPtJyq"&gt;Aidoo also entered the &lt;a href="https://www.sbnation.com/nba-draft"&gt;NBA Draft&lt;/a&gt;, and there’s been some chatter about him wanting to have more freedom to shoot from long range. He shot 20 percent on very limited attempts from three-point range last season, but developing his shot a little bit more could boost his NBA stock.&lt;/p&gt;
  299. &lt;p id="8cIdpu"&gt;Tennessee essentially replaced Aidoo with &lt;a href="https://www.landgrantholyland.com"&gt;Ohio State&lt;/a&gt; center Felix Okpara, who might not be as skilled on the offensive end, but likely is going to bring a little more to the table defensively. The Volunteers have also landed two long wings — 6-10 Igor Milicic and 6-8 Darlinstone Dubar. &lt;/p&gt;
  300. &lt;p id="aXkVkt"&gt;Tennessee still has three open spots on the roster left to fill.&lt;/p&gt;
  301.  
  302. </content>
  303.    <link rel="alternate" type="text/html" href="https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/4/30/24145413/tennessee-basketball-center-jonas-aidoo-commits-to-arkansas"/>
  304.    <id>https://www.rockytoptalk.com/2024/4/30/24145413/tennessee-basketball-center-jonas-aidoo-commits-to-arkansas</id>
  305.    <author>
  306.      <name>Terry A. Lambert</name>
  307.    </author>
  308.  </entry>
  309. </feed>
  310.  

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