Rick Barnes previews No. 1-seed Tennessee in the SEC Tournament

Everything head coach Rick Barnes ahead of Tennessee’s trip to the SEC Tournament in Nashville, where the top-seeded Vols will play either No. 8-seed LSU or No. 9 Mississippi State on Friday afternoon (1 p.m. Eastern Time, ESPN) at Bridgestone Arena:

The advantages of having a veteran Tennessee team entering postseason play with games played on quick turnarounds

“I do think it is beneficial. You got older guys that have been around and especially when they played against teams multiple times, even over the past couple years, you have a feel for that. Obviously this time of year, I think we all have a feel for each other. But it is beneficial. We have older guys that have heard scouting reports and guys that can make things happen on the fly. Our older guys have been pretty good at that.”

The benefit of having almost a full week between games entering the SEC Tournament

“I hope it’s been good for us. Last time we had our bye week prior, I think Missouri I think is where it was. I thought we were a little bit slow getting going. But I feel like this time of the year, I think most teams needs, you need a rest, probably emotionally as much as anything just to be able to come down a little bit. And today’s a big day for us. We’ve got to get back at it and get prepared for whoever we are going to see on Friday.”

If it’s more difficult to deal with an elite perimeter defender or an elite rim protector

“I think both in their own way. If you’ve got an elite perimeter guy that can really guard the ball and keep you from getting the ball started where you want to get it started, and get you playing with your back to the basket, that puts a lot of pressure. But when you get to the rim, obviously, when you’re looking over your shoulder, it can create a lot of problems. But I can tell you this, I like to have one of each. I like to have both of them. But I think it all depends on what kind of team you have and what you’re trying to get done. But if you’ve got one or the other you’ve got a weapon.” 

If the start of postseason play is something that could get Santiago Vescovi shooting more

“I certainly hope so, because he’s done so much for us and I just want to see him go out on a great note and play up to his ability and what he’s capable of. I really hope so. I think that so many people are pulling for him to do that, but it’s going to be up to him. He knows what he’s capable of and he’s got to believe in it and he’s got to go out and go after it.”

How many times this season he’s had to talk to Vescovi about shooting more

“A lot. And not just myself, but his teammates too. They tell him. I’ve heard Zakai say it to him many times. I’ve heard Dalton say it. I’ve heard Josiah, all of them say it. I certainly understand, if you played the game, you know when you feel it, when you don’t. But still, you can’t get in rhythm if you don’t at some point in time start taking shots when they’re there.”

How rare it is for a player like Zakai Zeigler, at his size, to be named SEC Defensive Player of the Year and make the All-Defensive team for a third straight year

“He’s special. We’ve had good success with some smaller guards, but I go back when, there’s no way we knew that he would have the impact that he had when he got here. I mean, really, I said it and we meant it. We were going to redshirt him. And when he walked on campus we’re like, we can’t do that because (of the) elite perimeter defense and the way he went at it. And again, he spoils you as a coach because what you see him do every day. (What you see) in a game, that’s what he does every day. And you expect him to lead your team and you don’t expect him to ever have a down day, which he doesn’t have. If he’s had some, I could probably count them on one hand. But I don’t know if any of us could predict that he could do what he’s done and the way he’s done it. But as I’ve gotten to know him and really know him, I’m not surprised because he’s been a guy that has always found a way to get through whatever circumstance he’s been in with his family, off the court, whatever it is. I’m not surprised because he’s just a person that has tremendous confidence. He’s a person who’s got tremendous faith in the fact that he knows he’s going find a way to get through the wilderness some way, somehow.”

How this Tennessee team handles in-game adjustments, reacting to what the other team is doing

“I think they’re good. I think they understand offensively what we’re trying to get done. And we like spontaneity. We want to play out of concepts and so I think the guys that have played the majority of minutes understand what we’re trying to do. And I mentioned last week, I think they’ve gotten better to understand what each one of them is good at and how they can play to that strength. But defensively, when we get off script, we’re not very good. When we’re not locked into our scouting report to stay locked in, we can get exposed. And that’s happened to us a couple times. And right now we’ve got to understand it’s so important to stick to our game plan and what we need to do.” 

If he sleeps better at night knowing he has Dalton Knecht and doesn’t have to solely rely on a strong defensive performance

“Yeah, I think if you ask every coach before a game, if there’s one thing you’d like, you say, ‘Hey, what would you like to see done today?’ I really think if you ask every coach, honestly, they’d say make shots. Make shots. Because there’s a lot of things as coaches you think you can control through time with your players, but the one thing you can’t control is the fact that we can’t make the ball go in the basket and you know your players want to make them. I’ve seen some of the very best of the best struggle, as we’ve seen with his team and teams in the past. But the fact that when you’ve got a team that — I think we’ve got multiple guys who I think if they play to their ability, they’ve got a chance to make shots. But one of the tough feelings is when — to answer that question — is when you know you’re gonna struggle to score. It’s tough knowing, can we defend well enough? Can we find a way to score enough points to win the game?”

If he’s concerned about any sense of complacency with this group

“I don’t think in terms of complacency that this group, I mean, that would totally catch me off guard. I mean we talk about our goals and what we’re doing. This hasn’t been a team, and like every team, you’ll have some stretches during the season where you feel like you’re not, I don’t know the words complacency as much as it’s focus, you know, locked in like you need to, but it’s a long season. To do that you gotta have a special group of guys and for us to accomplish what we’ve done up to this point, I think we’ve got a group of guys that realize how difficult it is to win. And certainly going to a conference tournament, I mean, you can make a case that there’s a lot of teams that can, you know, catch some lightning in a bottle. Even the ones that are playing early that can make their run through the tournament. But that would totally catch me off guard with this group, if we let up in anyway.”

How important it is to prove you can win in multiple ways this time of year

“I think that it is. We do want to play fast ourselves, but when we are playing against teams that are wanting to slow us down, I think that we can settle in and play that way. And because of our versatility we have with our team and we’ve got, as you guys know, we got a multitude of ways we can play this team (in) different lineups, so whatever comes our way, I think we have a chance to adapt it.”

Who he thinks is the best at handling going off script offensively and offensively

“Well, to be honest, we don’t go off script a lot. I mean, we don’t. I mean, we have our concepts. I said before when you are a scorer like Zakai and Dalton and Jordan Gainey, those three guys in particular, they’re very confident players and if they’re open, I think they’re going to shoot it. And when they get that look that they’re going to go, they’re gonna go with it. But we don’t, we really don’t get off script a lot and if we do, I don’t think it’s good for anybody.”

The confidence he has in Tennessee’s young player right now if the Vols needed them to play

“I personally have a lot of confidence in our younger guys because I’ve watched them work and get better. I hope they realize too that they better be ready because they’ve had a really terrific attitude coming to practice every day. They’re trying to get better, they’re competing, but I don’t have a problem putting any of them out there.”

If there is an upside to playing for a No. 1 seed or if there’s not a difference between being a No. 1 or a No. 2 seed

“What I would say, you hear all the different people, ‘Hey, conference tournaments can wear you out, this, that, or whatever. I don’t think any player or coach has ever gone into a game and think, ‘well, you benefit by losing.’ I don’t think that, but when you’re where we are in the year that we’ve had, I just think you can go take care of business and business will take care of itself. We could talk about it, discuss it. With the way the term tournament is now, where we’ve seen every seed beat the other one, I’m not sure if it does or doesn’t matter. What matters more is probably the matchups you’re matched up against when the bracket comes out. That probably plays more of a role in it than seeds.”