No. 9 Vols dominate Tennessee Tech in season opener
It wasn't exactly the high-flying start Tennessee displayed in its two exhibition games but it didn't take long for the Vols to get there.
Tennessee shook off a slow start offensively, offering fans inside Food City Center a glimpse of the No. 9 Vols' potential in a dominating 80-42 win over Tennessee Tech on Monday.
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Guard Dalton Knecht paced Tennessee (1-0) in scoring with 17 points on 6-of-11 shooting from the field while guard Jordan Gainey finished with 14 points and guard Josiah-Jordan James totaled 12.
Defensively, the Vols held Tennessee Tech (0-1) to 28.6% shooting and out-rebounded the Golden Eagles, 40-31.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Tennessee's first points came from a par of Knecht free throws, then Santiago Vescovi made his long-awaited appearance with a drive and layup to give the Vols a quick 4-0 lead before a scoring drought that went nearly three minutes.
On the defensive end, Tennessee was suffocating, holding Tennessee Tech scoreless in the first four and a half minutes, in spite of the Vols' sloppiness on the offensive end early.
James ended the skid with a 3-pointer off of a Vescovi assist but it didn't immediately fix Tennessee's shooting woes.
Gainey entered the game and answered a stretch in which the Vols hits just two of 10 field goal attempts with back-to-back scores to extend their lead to 14-6 with less than nine minutes left in the first half.
Gainey helped open up a 24-2 run for Tennessee that included three-straight scoring possessions from Knecht and a couple of James 3-pointers that the Vols rode to a commanding, 41-12 halftime lead.
James built off of an impressive first half with Tennessee's first points of the second, corner three that was followed by Zakai Zeigler's first points since returning from an ACL tear last February.
Freshman forward Cade Phillips provided an offensive spark in the second half with a dunk, then Gainey connected on another 3-pointer to up the Vols' lead to 57-27 with eight minutes, 37 seconds left.
Tennessee's comfortable lead allowed a number of freshmen to get minutes down the stretch. Freddie Dilione V made the most of his, scoring all of his 7 points over the last eight minutes, including an and-one that swelled the Vols' lead to 74-36.
PLAYERS OF THE GAME
Gainey made an immediate impact after entering the game. He jump-started a dominant run that created the Vols with a comfortable cushion the rest of the way.
Knecht had a strong debut in Tennessee's charity exhibition against Michigan State and looked as advertised in the opener. He was key in the Vols' run that erased a sluggish offensive performance in the opening 10 minutes.
This time a year ago, James' status was questionable as he missed multiple stretches with a lingering issue but he looked 100% against Tennessee Tech. James joined Gainey and Knecht in the Vols' offensive onslaught midway through the opening half and it carried over into the second half.
UP NEXT
Tennessee will get three days off before its first road test of the season at Wisconsin.
The Badgers, which finished just outside to the AP Top 25 preseason poll with 53 votes, finished 20-15 and reached the NIT semifinals last season.
Wisconsin is one of two Big Ten teams on the Vols' non-conference schedule. Tennessee hosts No. 25 Illinois on Dec. 9 in Knoxville.
Tip-off at the Khol's Center in Madison between the Vols and Badgers is set for 9 p.m. ET on Friday. The game will stream on Peacock.
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