- Reaching the regional semifinals of the NCAA tournament has become quite a habit for Tennessee. Figuring out how to win once the Vols get there? Well, that's the problem.
The Vols have never advanced past the round of 16.
Tennessee is in the regional semifinals for the sixth time in school history and for the third time in Bruce Pearl's five seasons. The second-seeded Vols (27-8) play No. 2 seed Ohio State (29-7) on Friday night in St. Louis - a rematch of the 2008 regional semifinal Tennessee lost 85-84 after blowing a huge halftime lead against Greg Oden and Michael Conley.
Pearl said Monday that his Vols have been playing for history all season.
``This team is one win away from going someplace that no Tennessee basketball (men's team) has ever gone. Every one of us would like to have our name on that accomplishment,'' he said.
This is the fourth time in six seasons for Pearl to take a team to this point of the NCAA tournament. He did it with Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2005 before Tennessee hired him away to revive a program that had to hide empty sections in its cavernous arena with black curtains.
Asked if he feels not reaching the regional final is weighing on him, Pearl said no.
``But it will be if it continues,'' he said with a smile. ``It'll be a great problem to have if every year I can't get my team from the Sweet 16 to the Elite 8. It's like when Mike Krzyzewski got to the Final Four every year but couldn't win the national championship. That was a real burden.''
Pearl is trying a combination in trying to find the right buttons to push to lead his Vols to Sunday's regional final against either Michigan State or Northern Iowa. His Vols lifted weights Monday just like they always do, and they planned to cheer the Lady Vols in their second-round game against Dayton Monday night.
But Pearl also has talked to some coaches, trying to glean any advice or tidbit he can use. Pearl said he plans to throw in a couple of different things at his team to keep the mood light. And he will tap Lady Vols coach Pat Summitt when she's off her own game-pressure for some tips considering her eight national championships.
``I'll be interested to see what her thoughts are,'' Pearl said.
Tennessee has plenty of experience this time around. Senior Wayne Chism will be playing in his third regional semifinal, while this will be the second for J.P. Prince.
The prospect of playing the Big Ten champ pales considering what Tennessee already has been through this season. Hopes of reaching the round of 16, let alone a fifth straight NCAA tournament berth, supposedly were ruined Jan. 1 when senior Tyler Smith and three teammates were arrested on misdemeanor drug and gun charges.
Pearl dismissed Smith a week after that arrest, and the other three - Cameron Tatum, center Brian Williams and point guard Melvin Goins - all had to work their way back from suspensions. That left the Vols with six scholarship players, and they worked with three walk-ons to hand then-No. 1 Kansas its first loss of the season.
Tennessee then became the first team since the 2001-02 season to knock off the top two ranked teams in the country in the same season with a 74-65 win over then-No. 2 Kentucky on Feb. 27.
The Vols are 9-3 over their last 12 games including their 83-68 second-round rout of Ohio, the team that knocked out Georgetown. Without using Pearl's preferred full-court pressure, they are holding opponents to 38.2 percent shooting during the tournament, a stat that slumps to 29.5 percent from 3-point range. They also are grabbing 3.5 more rebounds per game.
That has stoked expectations - not just from Tennessee fans but the Vols' themselves.
Pearl said Northern Iowa's upset of Kansas has all four teams heading to St. Louis for a two-game stretch where each has to like the odds of advancing.
``We've got to look at it the exact same way. We're two wins away from going to the Final Four,'' Pearl said.
