Tennessee picked up a massive road win over South Carolina to get things back on track. The Vols did it without Nate Ament, who remains sidelined with a high ankle sprain, and while Ja'Kobi Gillespie was effective, he wasn’t asked to carry the scoring load. Instead, Felix Okpara and J.P. Estrella delivered when Tennessee needed a spark, stepping up in key moments to secure the victory. This was encouraging to see, but Tennessee needs to get Ament back in the lineup as soon as possible.
Postgame, when Rick Barnes was asked about Ament, he provided an extremely positive update on Nate Ament, saying he looks good
"He looks good today. We obviously knew he was not going to play. Our doctors and trainers will tell us on that. I could just tell you, if it were up to Nate, he would have played today. I've told you guys all year, he's one of the toughest kids I've ever been around."
Barnes also talked about how tough Ament is, and emphasized that if it were up to Ament, he would've suited up on Tuesday night.
"The fact that he played in the Missouri game after that high ankle turn, he wanted to play the other night," said Barnes. "Obviously, doctors didn't think it was the wisest thing to do. I can tell you, if it were up to him, he would have played today. Obviously, the right decision was not to play him."
Finally, Barnes was asked if Ament would play again this season and it was a resounding yes.
"Oh yeah, absolutely. I'm telling you, he would've played today. I mean, he would've if they would've agreed to let him play today. But that's who he is. He just wants to play."
Nate Ament should be back for Tennessee's March Madness game
This was as good an update as the Vols can get. It sounds as if all goes according to plan, Ament will be back by Tennessee's March Madness round one game, or maybe even sooner. This may be pushing it, but if he is able to play Saturday against Vanderbilt, that would be a huge boost for the Vols. It would likely be his last game at the Food City Center, too, as Ament will likely declare for the draft after this year.
Once everything shakes out, the Vols are expected to have Nate Ament back just in time for the most critical stretch of the season.