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JOHN ADAMS

John Adams: Tennessee rises, falls to level of opponent

John Adams
john.adams@knoxnews.com

The Tennessee women’s basketball team showed its range in the past two games. And I’m not referring to shooting.

In a remarkable five-day stretch, the Lady Vols overcame a 15-point deficit to beat No. 6 Notre Dame; then, three days later, blew a 17-point advantage in losing to Auburn by 18.

The pattern suggests they should be at the top of their game Sunday against Vanderbilt.

If you want more evidence why this is Team Extreme, go back a week earlier. The Lady Vols led by 13 points before losing to Ole Miss by five.

The team loses its focus as easily as it loses leads. And since the roster includes six McDonald’s high school All-Americans, many fans cite coaching as the biggest reason for the disappointing 11-7 start.

A lack of player development is a factor with coach Holly Warlick’s fifth team. But the larger problem has been recruiting.

A dreadful year of recruiting has impacted the team from a depth and competitive standpoint.

Tennessee’s only signees were Cheridene Green, a junior college transfer who is sitting out the season after knee surgery; Kamera Harris, who has played in just six games; and Schaquilla Nunn, a graduate transfer from Winthrop who has been productive in limited playing time.

When players aren’t playing up to their potential, a strong bench can be a great motivator. If the starters are sagging, you summon the reserves. But there’s too big of a drop-off from starters to subs with this team. And there aren’t enough subs.

Tennessee Head Coach Holly Warlick watches a play as team members celebrate during a game between University of Tennessee and Notre Dame University at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee on Monday, January 16, 2017.

So Warlick can only hope her players play their way through the fog that too often engulfs them for too long. Good luck with that.

The recruiting problem has been addressed, though too late for this team. In 2017-18, Tennessee will be bolstered by the nation's No. 1-ranked recruiting class. Also, UT has two commitments for the 2018 recruiting class.

Things are looking up if you look far enough ahead.

As for this team, it already has left a mark. It’s the first in program history to lose three consecutive SEC games. Moreover, combine its seven losses with the 14 from last season and you have a school-record 21 losses over two seasons. The previous high was 20 losses (back-to-back 10-loss seasons in 1983-84 and 1984-85).

The state of affairs could change dramatically next season. In addition to adding the No. 1 recruiting class, UT will have point guard Te’a Cooper available. She’s sitting out this season after last summer’s knee injury.

And there’s the possibility star players Diamond DeShields and Mercedes Russell could return for their senior seasons. That would leave UT with a talented and deep team.

You might have written off this season after Tennessee’s 4-4 start. But even amid a three-game conference losing streak, you can’t write off the postseason.

As bad as the Lady Vols looked in wasting double-digit leads in recent losses, they also have beaten No. 10 Stanford and No. 6 Notre Dame. Those performances bode well for March and the NCAA tournament.

They also serve as an indictment of a team that too often rises and falls to the level of its opponent.

John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342A-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com. Follow him at: Twitter.com/johnadamskns.