NASHVILLE -- There are few postseason basketball cliche´s as overused as the oft-heard emphasis on good guard play. But as is often the case with well-worn sayings, they keep being repeated because they're true.

In Tennessee's case, guard play has been a strong suit (for the most part) in the final month of the season, and if the Vols end up hoisting their first SEC Tournament trophy since 1979 on Sunday, you can bet that the Big Orange backcourt had a large hand in the proceedings.

The challenge for the backcourt and the rest of the Vols starts today against a South Carolina team that got past Mississippi State XX-XX in opening round action here in Nashville.

If Tennessee gets by the Gamecocks this afternoon, they'll face No. 3 seed Alabama on Friday afternoon at 3:30 EST.

"I think getting guard play is always important, obviously, but at this time of year I guess it gets more attention because everything is magnified," Trae Golden said. "The further you go the better teams you're playing against and the more important every possession gets. I just say that whether you're talking about guards or the whole team, you've got to make good decisions and take care of the basketball."


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