11 for ’11: 11 of the most memorable moments in UT Sports
by Griffin H.
The word I’m using to describe these moments is memorable. I didn’t say happy, I didn’t say sad. Memorable.
So let’s start the countdown from 11:
11. Brian William’s Buzzer Beater: In a game against Georgia back in January, the then senior Brian Williams got an offensive rebound with 2 seconds on the clock and hit the shot falling backwards. It was an awesome shot, and a great moment that makes Vols fans go “YEAH!” For more on the game, and a video of the shot you can go here: http://teens4tn.com/2011/01/21/brians-buzzer-beater-williams-shot-harris-block-party-lead-vols-over-georgia/
10. Scotty Hopson/Tobias Harris Go Pro: Both Scotty Hopson and Tobias Harris entered the NBA draft. Harris went 19th and is currently playing for the Milwaukee Bucks. Hopson was undrafted. This was big news for men’s basketball because it took away more than 50% of the team’s scoring, so a lot of talent was going away.
9. Volleyball SEC Champs: The Lady Vols Volleyball team won the outright SEC title with a top 25 ranking to finish the regular season. They pulled out a close, ’dramatic’ win over Kentucky to win the title. Unfortunately, they got a bad seeding and lost in the second round of the NCAA tournament to Ohio State.
8. Men’s Tennis: A year after losing to USC in the NCAA Championship, the Vols’ Men’s Tennis team was ranked #1 briefly, were co-champions of the SEC, and made a nother deep tournament run to the semi-finals. Despite the low media coverage, it is still comforting to know we have championship contenders in at least one sport.
7. Justin Hunter/ Tyler Bray Go Down: Take away a game against Buffalo, and you would have the two best offensive players on the Vols football team go down with injuries in consecutive games. First, star wide receiver Justin Hunter went down early against Florida with a torn ACL while Tyler Bray two weeks later got hurt late against Georgia with a broken thumb. Bray would return for two games at the end of the season. It was huge because our entire season just went downhill from there.
6. The Merger: New Athletic Director Dave Hart is working on a merger to combine both the men’s and women’s athletic departments and Joan Cronan, the AD for women’s sports, will retire. Now Tennessee will join the majority of NCAA schools with merged departments.
5. Baseball Changes: Todd Raliegh was fired after a four-year, 108-113 tenure. Dave Serano was then hired on June 15th creating an exiting buzz amongst the fans. Everyone seems to be happy with the hire.
4. Kentucky Loss: 26 years ago Kentucky beat Tennessee. 35 days ago Kentucky beat Tennessee. They broke a streak unmatched in Tennessee history. It was the longest active streak in the FBS, but not anymore. The streak was broken. And so was Tennessee’s bowl eligibility. Tennessee finished 11 out of 12 in the SEC with a 5-7 record.
3. Bruce Pearl’s Departure: Bruce Pearl was very popular in Knoxville, he brought life back to Tennessee basketball. He exited the fans, and as we learned a year or so ago he also lied to the NCAA. He was fired in March, and Cuonzo Martin was hired. Many people were sad to see Bruce go, and it was very big news for everyone.
2. AD Changes: Mike Hamilton left with Bruce Pearl it seemed. When Bruce went, it was only a few weeks before Mike went as well. Joan Cronan was supervising both departments until the University hired Dave Hart, and began work on the merger.
And the #1 moment of 2011 in UT sports? Take a guess before looking, see if your right.
1. Pat Summitt: What can I say? She is truly a legend. She has done great things and this summer she was diagnosed with early onset dementia. It is a chronic illness that has no cure. Everyone in this town knows the name Summit, many people across the nation do to. The fans have gone out of their way to show support for Pat, and the “We Back Pat” T-shirts have sold over 50,000. Many of the opposing teams have worn We Back Pat T-shirts of their own. I don’t think there is any dispute that this story has hit harder than any other.
Now, for the Top Five Moments of the year broken down by sports (in no particular order):
- NFL: Al Davis’ Death
- NBA: Dallas Mavericks win the NBA Championship
- College Football: The Penn State Scandal
- MLB: The Cardinals’ Comeback Wins in the World Series
- College Basketball: Kemba Walker and UConn win 11 straight in Big East and NCAA tournament.
2011 was quite a year!
Griffin can be reached at teens4tn@gmail.com or leave a comment. Enjoying teens4tn.com? Subscribe in the sidebar. ->
Yays for Yemi: Freshman has career game, helps Vols over The Citadel
by Griffin H.
His teammates call him Yay. I call him Ju-Ju. He is also known as the Nigerian Nightmare, and as long as he keeps put up numbers like this I don’t think he or anyone else cares what his nickname is. He is Yemi Makanjuola, a Freshman at UT, and he had a career game last night as the Vols soared over The Citadel Bulldogs 86-55 in a solid win.
It was built by Points in the Paint, which Tennessee outscored The Citadel in 42-22, and Bench Points, 50-12. Makanjuola had 18 consecutive points, and ripped down 11 boards. He got all of his points in the second half, and only played 13 minutes. It was his first double-double, and was the only one on the team last night. Skylar McBee also came off the bench and scored double-digits hitting 4-of-5 in the first half from behind the arc. he finished with 12. Trae Golden and Renaldo Woolridge added 10 apiece.
The Vols next play Chattanooga on Monday night. As Cuonzo Martin tweeted today, “I was happy with the team’s play yesterday. Our resolution for 2012, continue to get better every day. Go Vols!”
Factoid of the Day: The margin of victory yesterday (31) was the largest all season thus far.
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Scared but Survived: Vols beat ETSU by 3
by Griffin H.
If the Vols have any skin on their teeth it’s disappearing fast. They pulled another close one out at the end, beating in-state foe ETSU 66-63. The can’t keep playing these close games always expecting to win, but for now it’s working. The Vols have now won two in a row after losing six of the previous seven.
Cameron Tatum led the Vols in scoring with 13. Trae Golden, playing with a broken nose had 11 but also recorded 4 assists, a team high. Kenny Hall matched Golden in scoring but was able to pull down 8 boards. Jeronne Maymon had 8. Skylar McBee came off the bench hitting 4-of-6 from behind the arc for 12 points. Renaldo Woolridge coming off a career-high game scored 6. Jordan McRae added 5
The Vols hit all four of their free-throws at the end of the game to seal the win although a desperation ETSU shot bounced off the backboard as the buzzer sounded. The Vols, now 5-6, will take on The Citadel Bulldogs (2-9) Thursday night at 6.
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Finally: Tennessee stops 4-game skid, beats UNC-Asheville
by Griffin H.
Finally a win. Finally something to celebrate. At first, however, it did not seem to great for the Vols. The start of the game posed a grim finish as the Vols trailed for most of the game. As many as 11 in the first half, and 10 in the second. Cameron Tatum was on fire during an 11-2 run with less than 10 minutes left in the game. They took the lead on a LONG shot by Tatum, 56-55.
The Vols led for the rest of the game, but barely. Asheville missed critical free-throws down the stretch and Tennessee escaped by the skin of their teeth with a four point margin of victory, 72-68. But, compared to the standard of late, it is something to celebrate
Renaldo Woolridge had a career-high 17 points, matching Tatum for team-high scoring. Kenny Hall had 12 points, alongside three blocks. Jeronne Maymon had his first double-double since Maui with 10 points and 13 points.
The Vols (4-6) will play ETSU (5-5) Friday (non-televised).
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Worst Loss Yet: Vols drop 3 straight with loss to Austin Peay
by Griffin H.
I can’t believe I never did a post for the Oakland game, or the Pittsburgh game. I am very sorry to anyone who visited my site expecting to see that. I really hope you will visit again.
Both the Oakland game and the Pittsburgh game were tough losses. They were hard to swallow. But not as hard as this one. When the Vols lost to Austin Peay yesterday by 4 points I found myself in shock. There isn’t whole lot to point out except that Austin Peay is 2-9, and Tennessee gave up 12 and 11 point leads in the second-half. Tennessee had a chance to win at the end, but couldn’t pull it off. So sitting at 3-5, the Vols will look to rebound against College of Charleston (7-1) Wednesday (at 9 on ESPNU).
Jeronne Maymon led scoring with 18. Kenny Hall recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds. Jordan McRae had 14 points and Skylar McBee had 9 points.
