Episode 139: No. 5 Vols eyeing big week in Big Apple

GoVols247's Wes Rucker and Grant Ramey went into Fort Rucker Studio to break down the fifth-ranked Tennessee basketball team through its first three game and its big week coming up in New York. The Vols improved to 3-0 with an ugly-but-comfortable, 66-53 win over Georgia Tech earlier this week in Knoxville, but toughest tests are waiting for the Vols, starting with next week's NIT Season Tip-Off in Brooklyn's Barclays Center. Tennessee will face Louisville late Wednesday afternoon, and a win in that game would likely give the fifth-ranked Vols a shot against second-ranked Kansas on Friday night. It looks like the Vols might be back to full strength for next week's New York trip, too. Junior guard Lamonte Turner, the reigning SEC Sixth Man of the Year, is tentatively scheduled to return next week after missing the first three games of the regular season with a reported shoulder issue. Tennessee's performance against Georgia Tech was hardly the Vols at their best, but they controlled the game from start to finish and defended well enough to keep the athletic Yellow Jackets at bay. A dissection of that game and whether there should be any concern from that performance is one of the primary discussion points in this episode. It's also been a big week for the Vols on the recruiting trail, as three prospects — including five-star point guard Josiah James — officially became Tennessee signees. A detailed discussion of all three signees is included in this episode. There's no shortage of Tennessee basketball topics to discuss at the moment, so let's discuss them.