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Rick Barnes on Tennessee's offensive woes: 'The one word it comes down to is consistency'

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•02/06/23•

GrantRamey

Texas v Tennessee
KNOXVILLE, TENNESSEE - JANUARY 28: Zakai Zeigler #5 of the Tennessee Volunteers dribbles against the Texas Longhorns in the second half at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 28, 2023 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

A week ago, Zakai Zeigler was collecting the SEC’s Player of the Week award. He was coming off an eight-game run through the month of January in which 12.0 points, 8.5 assists, 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 steals. 

Against Georgia and Texas, on his way to being named the player of the week by the league, he averaged 16.5 points, 8.5 assists, 3.0 steals and 2.5 rebounds in two wins at Thompson-Boling Arena. 

Then things slowed down. 

The sophomore point guard scored 15 points in the 67-54 loss at Florida on Wednesday, but needed 19 shots to get there, as the Vols shot just 27.9 percent from the floor. 

He had just three points in the 46-43 over Auburn on Saturday, going 0-for-10 from the field and 0-for-7 from the 3-point line as Tennessee shot 27.0 percent as a team, going just 2-for-21 from the arc. 

Rick Barnes on offensive balance: ‘We can get it, we’ve got to get it’

“What would help him as much as anything,” head coach Rick Barnes said Saturday night, “is if he can get some people around him to score some baskets. That’ll help him as much as anything. When guys are open, if they’ll shoot their shots and when he throws it inside, if guys can finish some of those where you make people adjust.”

Zeigler had a team-high six assists against Auburn. The Vols had 11 as a team on their 17 made shots, after recording a season-low seven at Florida. Zeigler added four rebounds and had three turnovers in 35 minutes against Auburn, another team high. He had three assists, three rebounds and three turnovers to go with the 15 points in 36 against the Gators.

Zeigler isn’t alone, though. The inconsistency is a team-wide, season-long issue on the offensive end.

“He’s got so much better there,” Barnes said, “but we just need the balance. We can get it, we’ve got to get it. You guys have often asked me what we need to do to get better, and the one word it comes down to is consistency. We need to know what to expect. I don’t expect Zakai to go 0-for-10 (from the field) or 0-for-7 (from three).”

Up Next: Tennessee at Vanderbilt, Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET, SEC Network

Associate head coach Justin Gainey said before practice on Monday that it was Florida forward Colin Castleton’s length that bothered Zeigler at Florida. At Auburn, he said, Zeigler “just missed shots.”

“Castleton is a really good player,” Gainey said, “a unique player with his length and shot-blocking capability. I didn’t think Auburn’s defense did anything to fluster him. Those shots that he took, those are shots that he normally makes.”

The 54 points at Florida then 46 at home against Auburn were Tennessee’s two lowest scoring totals of the season. But the Vols have optimism that they’ll shake off the offensive struggles. 

“I think we have a mature group,” Gainey said. “We have a group that has been through a lot. They believe in each other. The positive talk that you hear in the locker room, that you hear in the huddles, doesn’t lead me to believe guys will start pressing. I think if anything, it will encourage the guys to continue to work on their craft and work on it extra and also in practice.”

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