The Big Orange hopes to reverse this troubling trend tonight, when it hosts Josh Heytvelt and Gonzaga. Tipoff is set for 9 o'clock at Thompson-Boling Arena with television coverage provided by ESPN2.
Tennessee's first shot at Heytvelt and the Zags was not a pleasant experience. Playing in the Old Spice Classic at Orlando, the Vols trailed 37-36 early in the second half, then saw Heytvelt take over the game. The 6-11, 240-pound senior hit a 3-pointer, a 17-footer, a dunk and two free throws – nine points total – in a 37-20 surge that turned the one-point lead into an 18-point bulge (74-56).
Heytvelt finished 5 of 6 from the floor en route to 15 points in helping Gonzaga prevail 83-74.
Two weeks later the Vols were burned by another big man, 7-foot 220-pound Temple stringbean Sergio Olmos. Like Heytvelt, the Owls' pivot man was pivotal (pun intended) in turning the game's momentum.
With Temple leading just 52-48, Olmos hit a layup, a pair of free throws, a 15-footer and two more free throws – eight points in all – during a 27-11 explosion that turned a four-point lead into a 20-point cushion (79-59).
Olmos finished with 19 points and 5 blocks and the Owls finished with an 88-72 triumph.
The Vols met another quality big man and a similar fate last Saturday – Cole Aldrich, Kansas' 6-11, 245-pound sophomore. After UT whittled a 17-point deficit to seven with 4:33 to play, Aldrich hit back-to-back dunks in a 10-4 spurt that padded the lead to 87-74 and sealed the Vols' doom.
Aldrich finished 10 of 14 from the floor en route to a 22-point, 10-rebound, 6-block performance that helped the Jayhawks win 92-85.
The productivity of opposing big men does not suggest that 6-9, 240-pound Vol center Wayne Chism is relaxing defensively, however. The problem with UT's post defense lies elsewhere.
“I would say that Aldrich played as well as he did as a function of our ball-screen defense,” UT coach Bruce Pearl said. “He got a lot of open looks and lobs, and we didn't press up on him when he took his jump shot. It was not good ball pressure, not good ball-screen defense.”
Conversely, the Vol boss thought Olmos' big outing vs. the Vols was a function of the home-floor advantage.
“I think Olmos was a guy that just played better at home and probably gave that Temple team a lot of confidence,” Pearl said. “He's a big 7-footer who has been inconsistent (but) he made a couple of shots and got his confidence.”
Blessed with more experience than Aldrich and more talent than Olmos, Heytvelt could provide a big test in every sense of the word.