Tennessee Vols 10 biggest stories from January 2019

8. Grant Williams sets records.

Peanut Butter and Jelly has been the duo that Rick Barnes never had, and they have been taking the Tennessee Vols basketball program to record-setting heights. But while Admiral Schofield was the guy doing the work in December, Grant Williams has come on in January. And he’s proven to be the superstar.

Williams’s play in January already now puts him in the conversation to be the greatest Tennessee basketball player of all time. He is certainly the greatest since Chris Lofton, and his production in January was something to behold.

The guy was twice named SEC Player of the Week, he made it onto the Watch List for National Player of the Year, and he got a feature on SI. Simply put, wherever you look, Williams is the star in college basketball right now.

Believe it or not, it didn’t start out this way. Williams only had 4 points against the Missouri Tigers, the Vols’ second game in January. But he still averaged 21 points and 6 rebounds a game. The real headline, though, is his record-setting night.

Against the Vanderbilt Commodores, Williams carried this team to victory with 43 points. He went an amazing 23-of-23 from the free throw line, and that went with 8 rebounds and 4 blocks. It was one of the greatest individual performances in UT history, and that game is what puts Williams’s play on this list. Since that Mizzou game, his red-hot play has him averaging 24 points a game. If he keeps this up in February, he’ll have a historic season.