Tennessee HC Rick Barnes Jokingly Wonders if His Players 'Are Betting on Games' in Viral Video

Tennessee men's basketball head coach Rick Barnes put his foot in his mouth during his postgame press conference after Saturday's 77-69 victory over Auburn.

"At the end of the games, some of the passes that we throw, I mean, just I don't know what to say other than sometimes I wonder if my guys are betting on games," he told reporters. "I shouldn't say that. Erase that. But I'm just wondering what's happening. Cause I know we're too good of players to do that."

It should be noted he laughed and apologized after making those comments and had an unserious tone.

While the Volunteers came away with the win, they turned the ball over 15 times and were just 4-of-13 from three-point range. It wasn't always pretty, but they played effective enough defense and got enough offense to turn a 10-point halftime lead into an eight-point victory.

Nate Ament led the way with 22 points and eight rebounds, although he was just 4-of-22 from the field. His ability to get to the free-throw line, where he went 12-of-15, made a significant difference in the outcome.

The Volunteers are now 15-6 overall and 5-3 in SEC play following a third straight victory. They are in solid NCAA tournament position and will have a chance to move up the seed line with upcoming games against Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Alabama.

But winning those ones will require more consistent play and better passes than the ones that caused Barnes to become exasperated enough to joke about whether the players were betting on the games.