Shooting woes plague Vols in loss to No. 1 Kansas at Maui Invitational

For the second time in 20 hours, Tennessee faced a top two team, this time for third place in a stacked Maui Invitational field.

The seventh-ranked Vols matched No. 1 Kansas blow for blow at the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu in its third game in as many days, but second half shooting struggles were too much to overcome in a 69-60 loss.

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Tennessee (4-2) lost despite Santiago Vescovi scoring a game-high 21 points. It was the first time in six games that Dalton Knecht did not lead the Vols in scoring. He and Jordan Gainey finished with 13 points each.

Tennessee shot 31.0% from the field and 27.3% from 3-point range.

For Kansas (5-1), Hunter Dickinson turned in a double-double with 17 points and 20 rebounds as the Jayhawks shot better than 51%.

Kansas caught Tennessee sleeping on the opening tip after it was controlled by Dickinson. He immediately dished the ball to Adams who was left unaccounted for and scored on the Jayhawks' first possession.

It opened the way for an 8-4 Kansas lead at the first media timeout less than five minutes in with the Vols' only points coming from Vescovi.

Gainey ended an early scoring drought with a 3-pointer and James made a pair of free throws to put Tennessee in front for the first time, 9-8 with 13 minutes left in the first half.

Both teams traded baskets and leads but Vescovi and Gainey helped the Vols to an 11-3 run to go up 22-17 through the midway point of the half, then Kansas head coach Bill Self was whistled for a technical foul after protesting a travel call on Kevin McCullar Jr.

It led to two points off of Knecht free throws that extended Tennessee's lead by seven at 24-17, but Kansas responded with its own run, scoring nine unanswered points to reclaim the lead, 34-28 under three minutes remaining before halftime.

Tennessee was able to cut its deficit down to two before Vescovi's three in the closing seconds drew the Vols even at 35-35 at the intermission.

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Vols come up short in Maui Invitational semifinal loss to Purdue

The back-and-fourth poured over into the second half. The lead was exchanged twice in the first two and a half minutes of the period, beginning with Knecht's go-ahead 3-pointer.

Kansas led by one as Tennessee went cold from the field for a stretch. Threes from Gainey and Vescovi tied it up, 49-49 around the 13-minute mark, though the Jayhawks rattled off a quick run to open up a 57-51 advantage.

Tennessee had a few answers for its shooting woes. James scored on a much-needed jumper that put the Vols back within four, but it didn't stop Kansas from going up double-digits, 65-55 as the clocked ticked inside of four minutes.

Tennessee went nearly five minutes without a basket before a Vescovi three that made it an eight-point game with one minutes, 27 seconds to go. It wasn't enough.

Kansas outscored Tennessee 20-11 over the last 12 minutes.

Tennessee suffered through several scoreless stretches last season but appeared to have found consistency on offense with the additions of Knecht and Gainey in the first four games.

Against Kansas, it was the first time this season that the Vols have paid for a lack of scoring, especially late in the second half as the Jayhawks pulled away.

Tennessee was unable to find timely shots. The Vols attempted 71 shots but connected on just 22 of them, totaling 31.0% from the field. They were even worse from beyond the arc, shooting 27.3% with just nine of 33 attempts made.

Unlike in previous games, Knecht couldn't provide an answer. He scored 10 first half points and looked on pace to lead Tennessee in scoring for the sixth-straight game but had just 3 points in the second half.

After six days off, Tennessee will continue a daunting stretch against No. 14 North Carolina in the ACC/SEC Challenge in Chapel Hill next week.

The Tar Heels (5-0) beat Northern Iowa, 91-69 in game 1 of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Wednesday.

The Vols are 2-10 vs. North Carolina all-time, but won the last meeting in 2021 at the Hall of Fame Tip-off Tournament, 89-72.

Tip-off at the Dean Smith Center is slated for 7:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.

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