5 Takeaways: No. 3 Tennessee 102, Memphis 92

Photo by Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics

Tennessee and Memphis renewed their rivalry on Saturday and the Vols went on the road to pick up an impressive 102-92 victory. The sellout crowd of 18,119 was the first for Memphis since the John Calipari era, but it was no match for the Vols. Tennessee controlled the game from the opening tip, quieting the crowd early and often. Admiral Schofield had another terrific performance, scoring 29 points.

It took Tennessee just 3 seconds to score, as the tip went to Grant Williams and he found Kyle Alexander running down the lane for a 1-handed slam to start the day. The Tigers made 3 free throws on their first possession, to take a 3-2 lead, but this would be their only lead of the game. Yves Pons got rolling early and knocked down a 3-pointer, before his strong drive to the rim put the Vols up 7-3. Tennessee stretched their lead to 19-5 with 14:48 left in the first half.

Memphis used a 12-6 run to cut their deficit to just 8 with 8:15 to go before halftime. Later, Jordan Bowden eluded Memphis’ weak zone defense and Jordan Bone found him on a back door cut for a sweet alley-oop. Bone’s pass was incredibly accurate and all Memphis could do was watch.

Towards the end of the first half, Bowden made a triple and Schofield followed with his own 3-ball. The Vols led 50-35 at halftime. Tennessee continued to roll in the second half, behind 20 second half points from Schofield. There was a stretch in which Admiral scored 11 consecutive points for the Vols.

Late in the contest, Bone threw down a breakaway dunk, giving Tennessee an 89-74 lead. Tennessee was getting work in at the free throw line late in the game, scoring 16 of their final 20 points from the charity stripe.

Grant Williams had a nice day, posting 19 points, 4 rebounds, 5 assists and 2 blocks. Jordan Bone scored 17 points, making 11-12 free throws and Yves Pons scored 7 points. Jordan Bowden had a good game, recording 12 points, 6 assists and 5 rebounds.

Here are 5 Takeaways from Tennessee’s 102-92 win over Memphis.

Our State

Tennessee used this win to ensure fans that the state of Tennessee belongs to them. The Vols went into the FedEx Forum unintimidated, as the number 3 team in the nation should. It was the first sellout crowd for Memphis since the John Calipari era and the Vols spoiled it for them.

This matchup was the first true road game the Vols had played in this season and they handled it maturely. There were many times throughout the game in which Tennessee could have lost focus, but they stayed consistent with their play and a win was never in doubt.

Vols Reach 100 Points in a Game

Ironically, in a game that saw 22 fouls called on Tennessee and 35 against Memphis, the Vols surpassed the 100-point total for the first time this season. Tennessee took advantage of Memphis’ fouls, making 39 of their 46 free throw attempts. The lack of rhythm would make it seem as if a low-scoring game was in the making, but the Vols knocked down their free throws and were able to shoot well from the perimeter. The 57 total fouls allowed Memphis to hang around in the second half. Still, Tennessee had control of the game even when their lead was narrowed.

Memphis Flopped

Memphis flopped in the game more than any other team I have ever watched. Each flop was embarrassing to the culture Penny Hardaway is creating in Memphis. There was a small skirmish late in the game and Hardaway was seen patting Jordan Bone on the back as if Memphis was in the right. He claimed that the Vols had “balled-fists” when in reality the player who initiated the conflict was a Memphis player.

After the game, Hardaway had the nerve to say, “If you just watch the film I’m not making anything up. We even had it on the phone. I don’t know who Rick Barnes thinks I am but I’m not a dude that’s going to mess around about anything. I just call it like I see it. No matter how he’s trying to make things seem and I think its kind of low class how he’s trying to downgrade my guys for flopping and all that. Man, come on, give me a break”

The only person being low-class in this situation is Penny. Anyone in the country would consider Rick Barnes to be one of the most high-class coaches in all of college basketball. It has been rumored that Penny teaches his players to flop. He later used an expletive to unleash his feelings on Rick Barnes. Hardaway is clearly not thinking straight, because it was Jordan Bone who said more about the topic than Barnes. In fact, Coach Barnes spoke minimally when asked about the incident because as a high-class coach, he doesn’t get into petty arguments.

Admiral Strikes Again 

Schofield was coming off his career-high 30-point effort in the win over Gonzaga, but he was not satisfied. He dropped 29 points on Memphis, increasing his 2-game total to 59 points. Remarkably, only 14 of those points came in the first halves of those games. Admiral finished with 29 points on 8-12 shooting, including 4-8 from 3-point range and he went 9-9 from the free throw line. He also recorded 11 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal and a block. Schofield’s first shot of the game was a 3-pointer. The ball hit the rim and popped up in the air before falling in the net. This was a sign of just how hot Admiral was at the moment.

At the game’s conclusion, Admiral was smiling while walking around the court and holding up “Tennessee” on his jersey. He repeated “Our State” several times as he was getting showered with boos. It was at this moment that I realized how much enjoyment could come from having a rival despise your team.

Tennessee is Electric and Efficient

This is such a wonderful combination. Tennessee shot 52% (27-52) from the floor, including a 38% (9-24) clip from 3-point range. There were 5 Vols to reach double-figures, including Kyle Alexander, who neared a double-double with 10 points, 9 rebounds and 4 blocks. Tennessee doubled the Tigers in turnovers, 18-9, but this will certainly be an outlier in this category for the season. The Vols out-rebounded Memphis 42-34 on the day and blocked 9 shot attempts.

An alley-oop from Bone to Bowden epitomized the electric play this team is capable of playing with. Tennessee is having fun while winning and it sure feels good to be confident going into road games such as the one on Saturday. Rick Barnes has revived the basketball program in Knoxville and the rest of the season should be fun.

Player of the Game: Admiral Schofield