Tennessee basketball: Three takeaways from Vols’ 96-52 win vs. USC Upstate
A 13-0 start for Tennessee basketball turned into another dominating win against a team named the Spartans. UT beat the University of South Carolina Upstate Spartans 96-52 Tuesday night in Knoxville, Tenn. at Thompson-Boling Arena.
With the win, Rick Barnes’ team, ranked No. 18 in both polls, improves to 8-2 on the year. This follows a 76-36 win over the UNC Greensboro Spartans last Saturday. USC Upstate, meanwhile, falls to 2-8 under fourth-year head coach Dave Dickerson.
Up next for the Vols is a trip to Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tenn. to take on the Memphis Tigers Saturday. Meanwhile, USC Upstate will hose the Brevard College Tornados that same day. Here are three things we learned from Tennessee basketball’s Tuesday win.
1. It was a complete offensive performance.
You seriously couldn’t ask for a better performance when the ball was in play. The Vols used their size to their advantage, as Olivier Nkamhoua led the way with 21 points on 9-of-10 shooting, and John Fulkerson had 12 points on 6-of-7. Off the bench, Brandon Huntley-Hatfield had six points, and Uros Plavsic had seven. This is why UT was 38-of-68, or 55.9 percent, from the field.
Beyond the paint, though, the Vols went 11-of-25, or 44 percent, from the three-point line. Nkamhoua hit both his attempts. Santiago Vescovi was 2-of-4. Josiah-Jordan James, Justin Powell, Zakai Zeigler and even Kent Gilbert all hit one. Meanwhile, Kennedy Chandler went 3-of-5 en route to 15 points. The offensive efficiency also led to his first double-double with 10 assists.
2. Defense and rebounding was just as dominant.
Yes, the defense was complete too. Tennessee basketball held USC Upstate to 20-of-55, or 36.4 percent, from the field. Meanwhile, they forced 21 turnovers, largely thanks to 15 steals. Vescovi led the way with three, but Fulkerson, Jahmai Mashack and Quentin Diboundje all had two. Chandler, James, Huntley-Hatfield, Jonas Aidoo, Zeigler and Gilbert all had one.
On the interior, it was just as dominant. The Vols had five blocks, and James led the way with two while Nkamhoua, Victor Bailey Jr. and even Brock Jancek each had one. Then UT won on the boards 43-30, with Nkamhoua and Huntley-Hatfield each grabbing eight boards while Fulkerson had six.
3. Free throw shooting was the one concern.
They didn’t turn the ball over, but the Vols still had some unforced mistakes. Those were from the free throw line, where they were 9-of-16. To be where they need to be, they needed to at least be 11-of-16, and while that’s small, it’ll be a big deal in close games.
Chandler missed his only attempt, and James was 1-of-2. That was the real story, as the starters 2-of-4. Five of the seven misses came from Diboundje, Jancek, Plavsic and Mashack, and those guys won’t play as much in more crucial contests, but Tennessee basketball still needs more efficiency from here overall.