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Tennessee basketball scores huge win vs. Kentucky: 3 takeaways

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 24: Tennessee Volunteers players react in the second half of the game against the Kentucky Wildcats at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 24, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Kentucky 82-80. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - JANUARY 24: Tennessee Volunteers players react in the second half of the game against the Kentucky Wildcats at Thompson-Boling Arena on January 24, 2017 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee defeated Kentucky 82-80. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
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Tennessee basketball beat Kentucky at home Saturday night with a huge second half. Here are three takeaways from the Volunteers’ win against the Wildcats.

After an 0-2 start to the SEC season, Tennessee basketball scored a much-needed win against the No. 17 ranked Kentucky Wildcats. Despite falling behind 37-29 at halftime, the Vols had a huge second half to win the game 76-65 in convincing fashion.

With the win, Kentucky falls to 12-3 overall and 2-1 in the conference. Meanwhile, Tennessee improved to 10-4 and 1-2 in the conference. This win also comes on the heels of two late-game collapses against the Arkansas Razorbacks and Auburn Tigers.

Ranked No. 23 in the country, this win might be just enough to keep the Vols in the Top 25. However, the loss to Auburn may be too much.

Anyway, this was a crucial win for the Vols, and the Vanderbilt Commodores on Tuesday gives them a chance to get back to .500 in the conference. Here are three takeaways from Tennessee basketball’s huge win against Kentucky.

1. This team is mentally tougher than given credit for.

Yes, they collapsed against Arkansas, Auburn and the North Carolina Tar Heels. But Tennessee basketball scored huge late wins against the Purdue Boilermakers and the Wake Forest Demon Deacons. So the questions on the mental toughness were always unfair.

Those questions were put to rest on Saturday. For a team on a two-game losing streak in the conference due to late collapses, falling behind to John Calipari’s ‘Cats was not the best-case scenario. But this team put together an amazing second half. And that deserves as much coverage as what their recent collapses had.

2. Inside game was dominant.

Grant Williams struggled early, but he finished strong with 18 points and eight rebounds. Meanwhile, Admiral Schofield had 20 points and nine rebounds. Heck, Kyle Alexander added nine points on the night.

Meanwhile, all five of the Wildcats’s inside players combined for 43 points. Williams, Schofield and Alexander alone combined for more points. On top of that, they outrebounded the Wildcats 37 to 30. Simply put, this team was dominant in the paint. And that was the difference.

3. Depth showed again.

Jordan Bone was battling an illness in this game and could only give a few minutes. Meanwhile, the Vols couldn’t get much out of Derrick Walker on the inside game. So on Saturday, they were limited to eight guys.

However, all eight guys were relevant. And Rick Barnes ran Schofield and Williams for more than 30 minutes each. This is a big deal going forward and why they won big in the second half. Tennessee basketball hardly shot better than Kentucky in regular play, and they only had four fewer turnovers. But there was a significant difference in the rebounding margin, and the Vols shot way better from the free throw line. That’s because they were just better, had more options, and fresher late. That’s going to be a huge benefit for Tennessee basketball going forward. And it’s why they are 1-2 and not 0-3 in the SEC at this point.

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