The Tennessee Volunteers played in their first of two exhibitions that they will have in the month of October on Thursday night. They played against Xavier, who is one of the many powerhouses in the Big East Conference when it comes to basketball.
Unfortunately for Tennessee, they were defeated, despite being viewed as the favorite to win the game. This was an eye-opener for the Vols.
Here are some stock up players, as well as some stock down players.
Stock Up: Terrence Hill Jr.
Terrence Hill Jr. was the first player worth mentioning as a stock up player after this performance. He was great in his time on the court, although he wasn't a starter for Rick Barnes and his staff. He led the team in scoring with 22 and was efficient until near the end of the game. There is some obvious work to do, but he is one of the players who shouldn't even come close to being a stock down player. In fact, he didn't just score, but he was awesome on defense too. He finished the game with three steals, while also showing his ability to run the point with three key assists.
Stock Down: DeWayne Brown II
When it comes to the returning big man DeWayne Brown II, he is someone that the Vols will expect a lot from down low. He served as the starting big man for the Vols, and he wasn't the greatest in the contest by any means. In fact, he didn't meet the expectations that had been previously set for him. He finished the game with 10 rebounds, which sounds good, but there were a lot of times he was being out-rebounded, and the Vols truly needed him to get some key rebounds on the offensive side of the ball. He also finished the game with three turnovers, which isn't something you want to do as a big man. The final note is that being a big man means that you will go to the line a ton in a physical game in the paint. Shooting 4/9 at the stripe isn't great at all. This is an exhibition, so there is no point in overreacting, but he will have to show some growth in this next one to indicate he has truly taken that next step that this staff has talked about.
Stock Up: Jalen Haralson
Another bench player for the Vols who showed up in a big way is Jalen Haralson. Haralson was great in his game, although you can see that there are ways to improve. He may not be the best player on the stat sheet, especially when it comes to efficiency, but what he was able to do on defense, which won't always show up on the stat sheet, is remarkable. Haralson is a transfer from Notre Dame who is also known for his offense, so we should all expect him to continue to grow, but his defense from last night looks night and day better than what it was when he was with the Fighting Irish. He is an easy stock up for me after his 10-point night.
Stock Down: Troy Henderson
Troy Henderson is by far one of the players with the biggest upside on this roster. He showed that when he was coming off the bench last season. In this start, Henderson only scored once from the field, while taking seven shots. That type of efficiency exhibition will get Henderson nowhere. He is going to have to settle in and make some of these shots. Obviously, it's an exhinition, which many would call a trial-and-error contest, but there is obvious room to grow. The expectations have been set high for the second-year player due to the fact that he is a returning player, and he served as a starter. Henderson is a stock down, but don't write him off yet.
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