#4 Cougars Defeat Vols in Knoxvegas

Let me set the scene for you again in case you don't remember this one. New Year's Eve. ESPN2. The Cougars are coming off what would be their lone home loss of the season to Clemson. Meanwhile, the Vols are coming off an embarrassing 2-5 stretch that saw their national ranking disappear (still don't think they deserved a 9 seed in the tourney). Bruce Pearl was still trying to hide all his NCAA violations by glorifying the team's improving graduation rate during his tenure.  

In front of a national audience, against a team that has two probable NBA draft picks (Tobias Harris and Scotty Hopson) the Cougars thoroughly dominated. The stats don't even paint the whole picture. The fact that CofC shot 14-25 from behind the arc makes it look like we got hot and rode the 3 to an upset victory. Not the case. The Cougars dominated on offense inside and out. Simmons handled the freshman Harris with ease and the Vols (specifically Pearl) had to throw the kitchen sink to try and beat us.

On one particular no-call against Simmons, Pearl got so heated that he was ejected from the game. This was the last trick Bruce had up his sleeve, but things didn't go to plan and no one rallied around their coach's departure. 

This game makes it into the top 5 because it was our most sound victory over a quality opponent. The wins against Wofford, ETSU and Davidson at home were all the types of victories where you feel confident for the entire game. The ball was moving, shots were open and players executed their specialties.

But none of the previous games were against a program as storied as Tennessee's. 

Some of my favorite moments from the game:

• The usual Goudelock swooning that commentators make whenever the Cougars are televised
• Wiggins, playing just outside his hometown, getting the Cougars off to a good start and playing some fantastic defense on Hopson
• Wiedeman's emergence. This was the first game I can recall where I realized Wiedeman's role on the team. He's really good at doing the little things to make those around him better.
• The quote after a Simmons dunk in which one commentator said "College of Charleston is just putting on a clinic here in Knoxville"
• The look on assistant coach Tony Jones' face when he realized he'd be filling in for Pearl. Can you imagine if that happened to Byington?