Tennessee Lady Vols vs. Alabama, 3 PM EST

TV: SEC Network / go outside instead if it's nice out

Radio: listen to Mickey on your phone if you really want to

Stats: this won't make you any happier

We're into the Struggle Zone now. After dropping games at Lexington and Starkville-games that, had they occurred in a vacuum, might be excusable-€”Tennessee has now dropped four of their last five and five of their last seven. In a statement that we should never have to say, I'm not worried about them making the tournament just yet-€”the RPI of 13 helps a lot; it's a tough schedule and a young team-€”but man, this isn't fun to watch any more.

I can live with a mediocre Lady Vols squad; I made it through the Baby Vols. The Baby Vols were fun to watch in their own way; five freshmen trying to figure things out as they went. By the standards of Tennessee Women's Basketball, that season was a horrible disappointment. There were things to be excited about, though, watching Glory Johnson and Shekinna Stricken figure things out. (Yeah, they drove us up the wall later, but that year was fun.)

You can find mitigating factors with this team if you look; all their road games have been tough (well, maybe ignore Arkansas), they're young, there's a lot of new lineup minutes to deal with and figure out. That being said, this team is brutal to watch, point blank.

I don't mind watching interior-driven, defense-first teams. I kind of enjoyed the Cuonzo Martin era for its sheer bludgeon-ness, and I like watching the Memphis Grizzlies and I'll offer no apologies for that. However, it's somewhat obvious that both those teams are improving over the course of the season. This team is playing Bart Simpson in Duffless. (Also, if you'd like to feel old, that episode is older than everyone else on the team.)

So here's how today's game will go: Tennessee will look good for about a half, go insanely cold for a quarter, and the game will drive everyone up a wall. If y'all want to watch this, go for it. I value my blood pressure, and it's too nice outside here to stick around to watch this team.

I don't think we're at Fire Warlick range yet-way too many mitigating factors around this season, although losing out on a recruiting class isn't good at all-€”but the first way to right the ship is to beat the teams you're supposed to beat, preferably comfortably. Alabama is 2-6 in-conference; this should be a win. Win today, win against Arkansas on Thursday, and at least the bleeding is staunched before going to College Station.

PREDICTION: IT'S 55 DEGREES AND SUNNY HERE.