Team mottoes: Vols are ‘Pushin’ P’ while UK looks to ‘destroy the opponent’
When it comes to a team motto, Kentucky and Tennessee will bring different slogans into Tuesday night’s game.
Kentucky’s is more direct and impossible to misinterpret.
“We kind of have a common goal,” Lance Ware said Monday. “Which is just to try to go out there and destroy the opponent.”
A rap song inspires Tennessee’s motto.
After a 73-64 victory over Vanderbilt on Saturday, some UT players spoke of the team motto being “Pushin’ P.” That is a song title by Atlanta rapper Gunna along with Future and Young Thug. Gunna has described its meaning as a “player” who keeps it real.
“Just keep it true, keep it one hundred (percent),” Vols freshman guard Zakai Zeigler said after the game. “If you don’t know what ‘Pushin’ P’ means, that means you ain’t ‘Pushin’ P.’”
Zeigler contributed 16 points and five in the Vols’ victory over Vanderbilt.
The victory was Tennessee’s 14th straight at home, a streak that dates back to last season.
“Honestly, I feel like we translated (‘Pushin’ P’) onto the court in some type of way,” Zeigler said. “Now, we just keep going into the flow, and we’ve been winning more games. We’re on a streak.”
Revenge
Tennessee has won seven straight SEC games. The streak started after the 107-79 loss at Kentucky on Jan. 15.
If Tennessee thirsts for revenge, this will not surprise Kentucky.
While acknowledging revenge as a probable motivation, Ware said, “It’s really about us. As long as we follow and do the stuff we’ve been doing the last few games …, I think we should be OK.”
Kentucky hardly missed a shot in beating Tennessee. UK made 67.9 percent of its shots, 61.1 percent of its threes (11 of 18) and 20 of 21 free throws.
Tennessee committed 20 turnovers, which led to UK’s 32-11 advantage in points off turnovers and 27-1 advantage in fast-break points.
“If I’m those guys, I remember that we lost by 30 and they scored 100 points on us …,” UK associate to the head coach James “Bruiser’ Flint said. “We have to be ready for it. If not, they’re going to try to do the same thing to us.”
‘Mean streak’
Uros Plavsic, a 7-foot native of Serbia, has made an impact for Tennessee.
In the handshake line after the Vols’ 78-71 victory over Florida, a Gator reportedly joked about Zeigler being short. Plavsic yelled at the Florida players.
Before Tennessee defeated LSU 64-50, a LSU staff member threw a ball into the stands as Tennessee managers started shooting. Players and staff had to be separated.
“(LSU) wanted to win the fight,” Plavsic said after the game. “We wanted to win the basketball game. We did what we wanted to do. I think we did both, actually.”
ESPN announcer Jimmy Dykes said of Plavsic: He’s brought a toughness and a mean streak to Tennessee when he’s on the floor.”
Flint said he expected Plasvic and 6-12 freshman Brandon Huntley-Hatfield to be more imposing than they were in the first game against Kentucky when the two combined for 15 points and six rebounds.
Joe B. recalled
Kentucky’s first game against Tennessee this season came on the day former UK coach Joe B. Hall died at age 93. It was noted that Hall considered the Vols a rival.
Heading into the rematch, longtime Knoxville-based sportswriter Marvin West paid tribute to Hall.
“There were at least two Joe B. Halls,” West wrote for KnoxTNToday.com. “Basketball fans saw one, very serious, often stern, a brave man who replaced a legend, a man hardened by unimaginable pressure.
“Stokely Center faithful did what they could to make matters worse. ‘Sit down, Joe, sit down’ was the chant when the coach roamed the sideline, doing his best to help officials blow their whistles at the correct time.
“Very bright UT students once brought a thousand school newspapers to a game and pretended to be reading when Joe B. came out with his team. They ignored him. He was of no interest, suddenly a nobody. They didn’t even bother to boo him.”
Etc.
Karl Ravech, Jimmy Dykes and sideline reporter Marty Smith will call the game for ESPN.
This story was originally published February 14, 2022 at 2:00 PM.
