Tennessee’s first SEC test was never in doubt.
It was the first conference game for each school and while it hadn’t yet played the competition that Tennessee had, Ole Miss entered the game undefeated.
The sold-out affair was hype from the jump, but the action started before the first whistle.
As pregame warmups came to a close, Dalton Knecht, Santiago Vescovi and Zakai “Zip” Zeigler were the only Vols left on the court. Knecht hit a free throw and Vescovi gave him an oop to finish their piece while Zip remained at the top of the key to get another three point try or two.
It struck me as a positive sign for the Vols.
With the emergence of Knecht early in the season, Vescovi and Zeigler both struggled a bit to find their respective rolls. This is due in part to a tough run for Vescovi, who lost his grandmother recently and has an unusually heavy workload in the classroom this semester. Zeigler is coming off of an ACL tear, so the peculiar start for each isn’t too hard to comprehend.
That seems to have been remedied in the case of Zeigler while Vescovi, though he ended up with 11 points, still isn’t quite what Tennessee fans are used to. He’s getting closer, though.
Zeigler started the game by blocking Gavin Murphy’s three-point attempt. Josiah Jordan James followed with his patented soft-touch jumper from the free throw line.
Front rim. Backboard. In.
Knecht looked for Vescovi on a wide-open three but it rolled just out on the Vols next possession. Ole Miss guard Jaylin Murray was true from three on the Rebels’ next trip down the court but Jonas Aidoo leaked out after another errant three.
Aidoo spun through the lane and put up a left handed hook shot that sent the crowd into a frenzy. Aidoo looked smooth, as did the Vols in general.
At the first media timeout, Tennessee led 6-4, with Ole Miss having shot five three pointers and only connecting on one. It would shoot only five more in the first half.
Tobe Awaka, Jahmai Mashack and Jordan Gainey were the first subs for the Vols. They replaced Aidoo, Vescovi and Knecht.
The plan was clear: Feed Tobe Awaka.
The 6-8, 250 lb. Sophomore got the ball deep in the post on both of UT’s next two possessions, with the second resulting in an “and 1.” Mayshack and company forced a timeout on the ensuing in-bounds for Ole Miss.
The next few minutes got rushed and sloppy but it was still a fun stretch to watch.
Gainey hit Tennessee’s first three of the game just outside of the 12-minute mark and the bartenders at Trailhead Beer Market could take a deep breath (The South Knoxville neighborhood watering hole offers half-priced drafts until the first three is made each game).
Tennessee led 14-6 at the under 12 break.
UT stretched its lead thanks to more inspired play from Aidoo, stretching the score to 18-6 at one point, but Ole Miss kept it close for the most part in the first.
Zeigler hit Tennessee’s second three of the game at the 3:20 mark in the first half. At that point, UT was two for 13 behind the arc for 15 percent. Soon after, Vescovi’s first three of the evening sharpened the number a bit.
On the Vols’ next possession, Mashack hesitantly released one that dropped, but the big one came from him as the clock expired just moments later. This one was much more confident and as both teams left the court to go to the locker room, voice of the Vols Jeff Jarnigan strung out the three call with some help from the home crowd. With those last three triples, the Vols improved their three- point percentage from deep to 31% for the half and the score read 40-31 in the home team’s favor.
Knecht opened the second half with a made three throw then Zeigler added a Tennessee three as the shot clock expired to stretch the lead to 11.
Knecht hit his first three of the game shortly after to push the lead to 17 and the Vols never looked back.
Aidoo has been flames of late and it’s an important marker to see him continue the trend as Tennessee enters the tough conference schedule. He ended the game with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Zeigler added 17 points and ten assists, many of them to Aidoo.
The Vols were hot in this one, even when they weren’t.
The Vol Monitor
– Tennessee’s perimeter defense was outstanding. It can beat anyone in the nation if it contains opposing guards as it did on Saturday.
– Josiah Jordan James’ ability to make shots from the free throw line will help in a major way if Tennessee goes up against a zone team in the NCAA Tournament. He could be the key to a long run for the Vols. He’s also appears to be a good human. When a ball went out of bounds and ended up in a youngster’s hands, he toyed with the kid and acted like he was going to throw the ball back to him. It’s the little things sometimes.
– Tennessee will travel to Starkville to take on Mississippi State on Jan 10th. The game will be televised on the SEC Network at 7 p.m. EST. This will mark the halfway point in the season.
