Olivier Nkamhoua scored a season high-tying 20 points to fuel No. 8 Tennessee to an 86-44 victory over visiting Austin Peay on Wednesday in Knoxville, Tenn.
Nkamhoua made 9-of-11 shots from the floor and 2 of 3 from the free-throw line to match his previous season-high point total of 20, set during Volunteers’ 94-40 win over Alcorn State on Dec. 4. He also had five rebounds, five assists and two steals to help Tennessee (10-2) bounce back from a 75-70 setback to Arizona on Saturday.
Santiago Vescovi drained five 3-pointers to highlight his 18-point performance for the Volunteers, who bolted out to a 20-2 lead and held a 52-22 lead at halftime.
Vescovi’s point total fell just short of his previous season high of 20, set in Tennessee’s 64-50 win over Kansas on Nov. 25.
Tennessee’s Jonas Aidoo collected 10 points and nine rebounds off the bench. Tyreke Key added eight points and five assists for the Volunteers, who improved to 6-0 at home after shooting a robust 56.3 percent from the floor (36 of 64) and 44.4 percent from 3-point range (8 of 18).
Tennessee will look for a repeat performance next Wednesday when it begins Southeastern Conference play next Wednesday at Ole Miss.
Elijah Hutchins-Everett and Sean Durugordon each scored 11 points for the Governors (6-7), who shot 25.5 percent from the floor (14 of 55) and 19.2 percent from 3-point range (5 of 26).
Nkamhoua wasted little time putting his imprint on this game. He sank three quick jumpers to propel Tennessee to an 8-2 lead, and Tobe Awaka, Aidoo and Zakai Zeigler each added four points before Jahmai Mashack’s layup pushed the advantage to 20-2.
The teams traded baskets before Durugordon’s 3-pointer trimmed the deficit to 15 with 9:45 remaining. The Volunteers, however, revved up their offense again and scored 30 of the next 45 points to secure a 52-22 lead at halftime.
The second half saw more of the same, with Nkamhoua making three layups and Key sinking a 3-pointer during Tennessee’s 13-0 run. The surge gave the Volunteers a 77-32 lead with 8:42 to go as Tennessee’s lead never dipped below 40 points from there.
–Field Level Media