Tennessee Guard Checks For Faulty Floor At Madison Square Garden To Avoid Another Embarrassing Slam Dunk Fail

Tennessee basketball is set to face Florida Atlantic in the Sweet Sixteen at Madison Square Garden on Thursday night. Senior guard Josiah-Jordan James had to make sure that the playing surface is up to standard!

Earlier in the season, back in December, James committed a very embarrassing blunder during the Jimmy V Classic as the No. 13-ranked Volunteers played the Texas Tech Red Raiders. Tennessee was down one with just under four minutes left.

James stole the ball on an errant pass and took off down the court for what should have been an easy, sure-thing layup or huge statement dunk. What happened next was neither of those things.

James got a little bit overzealous. He began his three-step approach just beyond the three-point line, took his second step at the free throw line and went up for the two-handed jam.

James came nowhere close, floundered short of the rim and had to toss up a prayer as he fell. It missed.

Tennessee went on to lose that game in overtime. James' miss wasn't the only reason for the loss, but it added salt to the wound.

Now, as the Vols continue to push toward the Final Four, James made sure that Madison Square Garden's floor is up to his standard. He doesn't want to end up getting ahead of himself and flopping to the hardwood during the NCAA Tournament!

James plays the fourth-most minutes on the roster as Tennessee's fourth-leading scorer and rebounder. His early-season failure is long in the past. The Vols are cooking and nothing is going to get in their way, especially not a slippery spot on the floor at The Mecca!

Should James suffer a similar fate as he did against Texas Tech, we now know that the court is not to blame. It has been properly checked and cleared by the man himself!