Lucas Panzica discusses some emotional losses for the Tennessee Volunteers basketball program going forward.
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00:00The men's college basketball regular season came to an end on Saturday and
00:04Vols fans said goodbye to four program legends at Food City Center in Thompson
00:10Bowling Arena. Hey, Lucas Panzeca here from 104.5 The Zone and A to Z Sports.
00:18That's right, four absolute legends doing their thing for the final time at home
00:23in Tennessee Orange. Two on the court, two off the court, and we start on the court
00:29with what I believe is one of the best duos in Tennessee men's basketball
00:34history, Zekai Ziegler and Jemai Mayshak playing their final game at home in that
00:3975-65 win over South Carolina. When you talk about culture setters for Rick
00:45Barnes' program, arguably there are none better than Ziegler and Mayshak. When you
00:51look at what those two players have achieved over the course of their
00:54careers, two Sweet Sixteen appearances, one Elite Eight, one SEC regular season
00:59title, one SEC tournament title, a shocking 60-5 record at home, and they
01:05were ranked part of Tennessee teams that were ranked for the entirety of their
01:10Tennessee careers. We obviously know all about Zekai Ziegler's incredible story, a
01:15diamond in the rough out of nowhere from New York, and finding a pivotal role in
01:20changing and sustaining this program under Rick Barnes. When you talk about the
01:25iconic duos in Tennessee men's hoops history, I think Zekai Ziegler and Jemai
01:30Mayshak belong right up there with Ernie and Bernie, with Admiral Schofield and
01:34Grant Williams, and so on. That is how much both of those players have meant to
01:38this program on and off the court. Not to mention, Zekai Ziegler wins SEC
01:43Defensive Player of the Year for the second year in a row, beating out his
01:47teammate Jemai Mayshak, who deservedly gets named to the SEC All-Defense team
01:52at the end of the regular season. Off the court, two other legends that were
01:57honored on Saturday are the broadcasters Bob Kessling and Burt Bertelkamp, who
02:01called their final home game for Tennessee basketball. Bob Kessling
02:05obviously announced his retirement months ago. He will be replaced by the
02:10legendary Mike Keith, but Burt Bertelkamp, Kessling's partner of 26 years on the
02:15Vol Network's radio broadcast for basketball, also will be hanging it up.
02:20It's gonna take some getting used to, not hearing Burt Bertelkamp yelling money
02:24when Tennessee hits a big three, and Tennessee fans all over the world are
02:28shouting that word when the Vols hit a three. The good news is, the season is not
02:33over. Tennessee, the four seed in the SEC tournament coming to Bridgestone Arena,
02:37it should be a thrilling tournament with how good the SEC has been top to bottom
02:42throughout the course of the regular season. So, the Vols will get matched up
02:46with either Texas A&M, Texas, or Vanderbilt in the quarterfinals of the
02:51SEC tournament, and then they'll look to March in the NCAA tournament and make
02:55sure that those four legends, Bob Kessling, Burt Bertelkamp, Zakai Ziegler,
03:00and Jemai Mayshak finish out strong.