How Tennessee Basketball is using football film study to emphasize rebounding

Gregg Polinksy had a point to make. No. 1 Tennessee was coming off a 67-52 win over Norfolk State, but the rebounding margin was far too close. The Vols had 21. The Spartans had 20. And that had to change. 

So the Tennessee assistant coach stood in front of the team in the film room and started showing clips of running backs carrying the football.

“He talked about yardage after contact,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said Saturday night. “And that’s what offensive rebounding is. You’re going to get hit. Can you go get some yardage afterwards and get yourself in position? Either get it, open up the gap for somebody else to get it, tip it back.”

There were plenty of yards after contact when Tennessee beat Arkansas 76-52 to open SEC play Saturday afternoon at Food City Center.

The Vols out-rebounded the Razorbacks 51-29 in total and were even more dominant on the offensive glass, 24-9, just four short of matching the program record.

“(Against Norfolk State we) didn’t do the things we had talked about,” Barnes said. “… We didn’t play hard on the offensive glass. Wasn’t making the effort to there. That’s got to be part of who we are, obviously, and it’s hard.”

Up Next: No. 1 Tennessee at No. 6 Florida, Tuesday, 7 p.m. ET

It’s a lot easier this season after adding Igor Milcic, the 6-foot-10 Charlotte transfer forward who has been dominant on the glass. He had a career-high 18 rebounds against Arkansas on Saturday, the most by a Tennessee player during the Barnes era and the most in a game since 2014. 

“Igor was spectacular,” Barnes said.

Milicic had nine rebounds in both the first and second half and grabbed a team-high six offensive rebounds.

He’s now averaging 8.9 rebounds per game, the most for a Tennessee player since Jarnell Stokes averaged 10.6 in 2013-14, and has 91 rebounds over his last eight games. 

“I think he has anticipation skills, obviously,” Barnes said. “He’s quick, got good hands. And when it gets to those 50-50, it’s effort … his effort, he’s pretty consistent with that all year.”

Zakai Zeigler said it’s not just effort seen on game day. It’s every day in practice.

“He makes it a priority to get to the glass,” Zeigler said. “Coach GP, he’s on everybody about crashing the glass, crashing the glass. I knew just recruiting (Milicic) last year, I remember me and GP talking about him, that they didn’t crash the glass at his other school, but that’s what he wanted to do.”

Milicic averaged 8.5 rebounds per game at Charlotte last season, but Tennessee’s coaching staff still felt he was underrated on the glass. After all, the 49ers ranked No. 356 (out of 362) in KenPom’s adjusted tempo, limiting the total number of possessions and limiting Milicic’s rebounding opportunities.

He’s a combined 2-for-18 from the 3-point line over his last five games, but has averaged 11.8 rebounds per game during that span. Effecting games without making shots, Barnes said last week, is the sign of “a true basketball player.”

“Even if he’s not shooting the ball well,” Zeigler said, “I can count on him to go get seven rebounds or five offensive boards. I see it every day, but it’s really impressive that he does it day in and day out.”

“Just got to be consistent,” Milicic added. “Even when you’re tired, you just have to crash it. Believe that the ball is going to fall in your hands. Sometimes it won’t sometimes it will. Today it did. I’m happy with it.”

Tennessee is third in the SEC in rebounding margin

Tennessee is third in the SEC in rebounding margin at +10.7 and Milicic is third in the league individually, behind Auburn’s Johni Broome (11.1) and South Carolina’s Colin Murray-Boyles (9.4). 

“(Rebounding is) fun,” Milcic said. “It’s just another opportunity to score. Chaz (Lanier) and Zakai got a few threes off of my offensive rebounds. But also Felix (Okpara) gets them, Cade (Phillips) gets them. It’s not just me who rebounds, it’s all of us.”

And it’s all yards after contact. On the glass chasing rebounds, on the floor chasing loose balls, everywhere in between. 

“We take a lot of pride it,” Zeigler said. “Us losing a rebounding battle, stuff like that, losing a 50-50 ball, it irks us. Coming to the bench, we might lose one 50-50 ball, guys are getting on each other. Or if we lose a segment in rebounding, coaches are getting on us or we might be getting on each other. 

“We just take a lot of pride in little things. That translates and shows how tough we are.”