Ten points in the right places and the Vols Record for 2011 would be 25 – 7 instead of 19 – 13 as it is today. SIX more points and we would be 12 - 4 in the SEC winning the EAST as the #1 seed in this SEC Tournament having handed Florida two more losses and Alabama one more. 

The 2010 -11 Losses - points required to avoid the losses

FLA L 81-75 OT  ALA L 65-60 OT  Just TWO Points to avoid overtime with a W.

FLA L 61-60 MSST L70-69 CHAR L49-48  USC L65-64  Just EIGHT Points

ARK L68-65  Just FOUR Points

UGA L69-63 UK L64-58  Two 3 point baskets

OAK L89-82 Eight points

CONN L72-61 UK L73-61 COFC L91-78  forget it.    

We would still have two losses to KY, that crazy loss at Arkansas and the home loss to UGA. It would  take 4 more points for ARKY & 7 each for KY and UGA at home. That's 6 more 3 point scores to be 15 and 1 in the SEC with a single 12 point loss in Lexington.

This has been the schizophrenic setback season of impending NCAA penalties and our considerable discontent. Sure every season has "what ifs" and "could have beens" but there are very few that reach this level of near misses and gut wrenching losses at the final buzzer from inexplicably boneheaded plays.

Perhaps there was a minimal distraction from all the negative press and the uncertainty brought on by the baffling barbeque cover-up. But minimal is all that was required to cost us 6 pivotal games that would likely see us playing UGA tonight in our first SEC Tourney game as the one-seed instead of facing Florida for the third time.  Ten points is the difference in being a 2 or 3 seed instead of a 7 to 10 seed in the NCAA.