Tennessee Vols: Igor Milicic sends message to Chaz Lanier after missed free throw that would've tied the game against Vanderbilt
The Tennessee Vols nearly pulled off an incredible comeback against the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday in Nashville, but the Volunteers ultimately came up just short. Tennessee trailed by as many as 16 points in the second half against Vanderbilt. The Vols had a chance to tie the game with 2.8 seconds remaining, but guard Chaz […]
The Tennessee Vols nearly pulled off an incredible comeback against the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday in Nashville, but the Volunteers ultimately came up just short.
Tennessee trailed by as many as 16 points in the second half against Vanderbilt. The Vols had a chance to tie the game with 2.8 seconds remaining, but guard Chaz Lanier, a Nashville native, missed the second of two free throws which gave the Commodores a 76-75 win.
After the game, Vols forward Igor Milicic Jr had a message for Lanier.
"I mean, we all know how much it meant to Chaz," said Milicic. "We all know how much being from here it means to him to show up in his own city. But like you said, it's not on him. It's on all of us. And we all gotta get better collectively. It's not one play or one missed free throw [that] decided the game. It might be my rebound or somebody else's turnover that led to the loss. We're trying to encourage him to stay in it and not to hang his head. Just walk our path and then practice — we gotta get better."
That's certainly a great message from Milicic. There's nobody in the state of Tennessee that wanted that free throw to go down more than Lanier. It just didn't work out. That's how it goes in sports sometimes.
Lanier and the Vols, however, simply have to put that game behind them. Agonizing over what could've been would just be a waste of time for Tennessee. There's a lot of season left and it's not like Lanier is going to quit competing because he missed a free throw that would've tied the game.
Even if Lanier had made that free throw, he'd still have to get right back in the gym with the mindset that he needs to improve his game. Because, well, that's what elite competitors do.
