Tennessee absolutely dismantled Louisville 83-62 on Tuesday night at the Food City Center. The victory couldn't have come at a better time, as the win over 11th-ranked Louisville snapped a three-game losing streak. Vibes have never been higher in Knoxville.
It's worth noting that Louisville's star guard and second-leading scorer, Mikel Brown Jr., was out, but you play who you play, and you can't control who's in and who's out. You never apologize for a victory, especially versus a talented squad like Pat Kelsey's Louisville Cardinals.
It was clear Rick Barnes really got into the guys during the week off. The full week of practices paid major dividends for Tennessee. Let's take a look at the three main takeaways from the big win.
1. Defensive clinic
Tennessee put on an absolute show on the defensive end of the floor. The Vols forced Louisville to shoot 38% from the field and 20% from three-point land.
Louisville averaged 95 points a night going into Tuesday. Tennessee held them to 62. It was an all-around great defensive effort. Ball screen coverage was fantastic, and the length of the Vols gave Louisville fits all night long.
If Tennessee has defensive performances like this for the rest of the year, they will be a very tough team to beat.
2. Dominate inside the paint
The Vols were absolutely dominating inside the paint, they finished with 42 points down low. Jaylen Carey was unstoppable in the first half, and Felix Okpara was dunking on everyone. Nate Ament showed more aggression down low, and JP Estrella had some nice post moves that led to buckets. Tennessee feasted in the paint all night.
At one point in the first half, 22 of the 27 points scored for Tennessee came at the basket. It was absolutely absurd. This led to Louisville adjusting in the second half and opening up the three-ball for Tennessee.
The Vols dominated down low and it was a huge part in the victory.
3. Free throw shooting
If there was one negative from this game, it was that the free-throw shooting is still very mediocre. Tennessee only shot 18/28, 64% from the stripe. Most of the missed free throws came early in the game when it was still tight, which could've let Louisville back in the game.
Going into tonight the Vols shot 16/33, 48%, their last couple of games. We did see some improvement but overall the free throws are called free for a reason. They need to capitalize.
Tennessee has to make the free ones especially for a team who doesn’t have an elite offensive game.