Florida Atlantic Will Test Tennessee's Perimeter Defense
The thing about the NCAA Tournament is after the first round, you're guaranteed not to have an "easy opponent." Every team has won two games in a row and has had to play well to get to this point. While the name Florida Atlantic might not be intimidating to many, the Owls are a very good basketball team that can run a lot of teams out of a gym if they come out slow.
FAU vs. Tennessee will be a battle of depth. The Owls only have two players that play over 60% of the game minutes, and while they might not have a star or a national name, FAU has a handful of really good players.
Let's start with the guy that went for 29 points, 12 rebounds, and five assists in the second round against Fairleigh Dickinson. Johnell Davis is simply a do-it-all type of player for the Owls. He can shoot, is strong, rebounds, and defends. The best part about Davis is that FAU doesn't have to depend on him.
Johnell Davis, Florida Atlantic G
The plethora of guards that Dusty May has is, at times, scary. In addition to Davis, Alijah Martin, Michael Forrest, Bryan Greenlee, and Nick Boyd are also super valuable contributors. Brandon Weatherspoon and Jalen Gaffney are impactful players to round out the nine-man rotation for the Owls. The worst part about defending these guards is that all of them can shoot.
Inside, Vladislav Goldin is a perfect post-player for this team. Goldin can set and hold hard screens, has good hands when rolling to the rim, and is a tremendous passer. With FAU's spacing, the ball screens set by Goldin are extremely effective.
The final key component for Tennessee to get to the Elite 8 is how the game is officiated. While Tennessee was physically imposing against Duke, the refs sometimes allowed them to play this way. Unlike the Blue Devils, FAU plays very spread out, with four guards on the floor. Tennessee will have the advantage on the glass, but defensively, if they get called for more tick-tack fouls, it could be a long night. With a win, the Vols will move to their first-ever Elite 8 under Rick Barnes and will play on Saturday against the winner of Kansas State and Michigan State.
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