After his team’s 90-point outburst Tuesday in Southeastern Conference play, Tennessee coach Rick Barnes has seen what his squad is capable of with the ball against a quality defensive team.
Now it must prepare for another one.
Barnes and the No. 22 Volunteers (15-6, 6-3 SEC) will travel to South Carolina to conclude their regular-season series with the Gamecocks (13-8, 4-5) on Saturday afternoon in Columbia, S.C.
Against defensive-minded Texas A&M at home Tuesday, Tennessee scored its season high in points in conference action with a 90-80 victory, winning for the fourth time in five games.
Barnes said he expected a different style of game between the two sides.
“I didn’t think that would be that kind of game,” Barnes said. “I thought it would be in the 60s.”
He had reason to believe so judging by Tennessee’s previous showing.
In the game before — Saturday’s 52-51 loss to Texas in the Big 12/SEC Challenge — the Vols struggled most of the contest and had to rally from a 17-point deficit in the final eight minutes.
They shot just 35.8 percent from the field for the game.
Fittingly, Josiah-Jordan James clanked a 3-pointer from the wing at the buzzer — a final missed shot that doomed the team.
However, against the Aggies as an 11-point favorite, Tennessee led by as many as 13 in the first half. The Vols used a 16-2 run in the second half to lock down the 10-point win.
After the triumph, Barnes said aggressiveness was crucial.
“It’s hard to play at this level if you’re casual. If you play casual you’re not going to be effective,” said Barnes, who is 13-4 against South Carolina during his seven years in the SEC. “You’ve got to play with intensity, knowing that you’re playing against guys that are going to ball-hawk, especially against this team. And we’re getting ready to play another one.”
That would be South Carolina coach Frank Martin’s Gamecocks.
At home in Knoxville on Jan. 11, the Vols turned a close game at the half into a shellacking over the final 20 minutes, beating Martin’s bunch 66-46.
It was the seventh victory in the past eight matchups against the Gamecocks for Tennessee, which has excelled in distributing the ball: The Vols are tied with Kentucky at 17 assists per game.
Added Barnes of South Carolina’s defense: “They’re going to go after it, put a lot of pressure on you and not let you get too comfortable. It gets back to value with the basketball.”
Martin’s teams historically have thrived defensively, disrupting opposing offenses, keeping foes out of sync and away from any game flow, and owning the glass.
Yet, his club’s three-game winning streak ended Tuesday night at Mississippi State as the Bulldogs manhandled the Gamecocks in a 78-64 win.
The visitors fell behind by 22 points at the half and had no answer in the paint against big man Garrison Brooks, who finished with 18 points on 8-of-14 shooting.
Martin said his team — outrebounded 41-24 — lacked any kind of physicality.
“Wildens (Leveque) had one rebound in 19 minutes of play,” Martin said. “Josh Gray had one rebound, and Tre-Vaughn (Minott) had two rebounds. So that’s four rebounds combined from those guys.”
Tennessee leads the all-time series, which dates to 1927, by a 49-28 margin.
–Field Level Media