By SCOTT FELTS
On Tuesday night, the 23rd ranked Tennessee Volunteers traveled to Columbia, South Carolina to face the South Carolina Gamecocks in the penultimate game of the regular season. The Vols were trying to right a two-game losing streak after winning eight of the previous nine games.
Tennessee (21–9, 11–6) stuffed South Carolina (12–18, 3–14) 78-59 on the Gamecocks’ senior night as the Vols slammed home 14 dunks (representing 35.8% of their total scoring on Tuesday) to outscore South Carolina 56-18 in the paint. More importantly, the win keeps Tennessee alive for a top four finish in the SEC and a double bye in the conference tournament.
Let’s go Beyond the Box Score to see how the game broke down.
Absent Ament: The Vols’ leading rebounder and second-leading scorer Nate Ament missed Tuesday’s game and the timetable for his return is uncertain. He was injured Saturday against Alabama after his right knee bent awkwardly after he became tangled in a scrum. Fellow freshman Amari Evans got the start in Ament’s absence. Evans finished with seven points, three rebounds, two assists, three steals, and a block.
Meechie Masterclass: Redshirt senior guard Meechie Johnson leads South Carolina with 17.2 points, 4.3 assists, and 1.3 steals per game. On his senior night he paced the Gamecocks with 20 points, also totaling two rebounds, four assists, and a steal. Only one other Gamecock player scored in double figures.
Record Setting Gillespie: Against Alabama on Saturday, Vols point guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie became the first Division I player in the last 15 seasons with 26 points, eight steals, seven assists, and five rebounds in a single game. He also had posted eight steals twice in a four-game span when no former Vol had ever reached that number previously. He also is the fourth player in SEC history with multiple eight steal outings, but the only one to do it twice in league play.
On Tuesday, Gillespie did exactly what I said he should have done after the Alabama game, and that’s find others to score points in Ament’s absence. He finished with eight points, two rebounds, two steals, but a career-high 12 assists.
Twin Towers: Tennessee’s bigs had a night to remember. Felix Okpara dropped 20 points along with eight rebounds while J.P. Estrella scored 22 with seven boards and three assists.
Rebound “Woe”rriors: The Vols have grabbed at least 15 offensive rebounds in 19 games this season, but only had a 9-7 advantage on Tuesday. They came in leading the country in offensive rebounds per game with 16.10, though will drop to 15.8 after tonight. They are second in the country in rebound margin (13.5) and are third in the country in rebounds per game at just under 43. Tuesday saw them fall short of those marks as well, though they did outrebound South Carolina by a 35-26 margin.
First in SEC: The Vols came in leading the SEC in scoring defense, allowing just 69.2 points per game, but the 59 points allowed Tuesday will only better that number. They are first in 3-point percentage defense at 30.5% (though they allowed the Gamecocks to go 9 of 27 for 33% on Tuesday). They are also first in offensive rebounds per game.
Last in SEC: Tennessee is last in the SEC in 3-pointers made and attempted. Not much was different on Tuesday as the Vols only went 4-for-13 from 3. A big reason for the losses the Vols have had even when being up double digits is the fact they are also last in the SEC in turnovers per game at 12.2. Not on Tuesday however, as the Vols only committed 6 turnovers while forcing 11 miscues.
Up Next: Tennessee will finish the regular season at home on Saturday against 24th ranked Vanderbilt at 2 PM. The Commodores (22–7, 9-7) traveled to Ole Miss late Tuesday night. For the Vols to finish in the top four and receive the double bye going into the SEC tournament, they need to win Saturday and have either Kentucky to lose its regular-season finale at home against Florida, or Arkansas lose both of its remaining games (home vs. Texas Wednesday, then at Missouri). Mizzou helped the Vols by losing to Oklahoma on Tuesday night.
Tip Ins: Tennessee is 13-2 in its last 15 matchups with South Carolina. … The Vols are 8-1 in their last eight games against the Gamecocks with seven wins by double digits, five by 20-plus points, and two by 40 or more. … Tennessee has held each of its last 10 opponents to fewer than 75 points. … Tennessee has led by double digit points in each of its last four losses, including by 13 or more in the second half in three of those.