Freddie Dilione V hadn't yet arrived on Tennessee's campus this time a year ago.

A highly touted high school prospect, Dilione joined the Vols has a mid-year enrollee last January and red-shirted during the second half of the team's 2022-23 season, which ended in the NCAA Tournament Sweet 16.

Now, he's working his way into becoming more of a contributor.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION

That was evident in Tennessee's 74-56 win over Georgia Southern on Tuesday when Dilione paced the freshmen in scoring with 5 points in eight minutes on the floor. He saw early minutes off the bench as the Vols built a commanding first half lead.

"What we tried to do the other night was keep those young guys out there early with the older guys, so they had guys with them that knew what it's about," Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said. "He went in and I thought Freddie ran hard. He really tried to defend. I think all of them will tell you, you've got to get that second wind. I mean, when they come out of the game, they're winded. That's something that's part of it, knowing that they can fight through it.

"You hit the wall, you're either going to stop or slack off or whatever it is. That's where you've got to be mentally tough enough to fight through it and know that you can do it. Certainly they can do far more than they think they can."

Though Dilione had a head start compared to the rest of Tennessee's freshmen class, the last three months have been an adjustment for him, too.

He was one of 35 players to be invited to the USA Basketball U19 World Cup Team training camp in July and impressed during the Vols' three-game run in Italy in August, scoring 10 points and recording 10 assists against the Lithuanian U21 National Team.

Dilione played 16 minutes in Tennessee's season opener vs. Tennessee Tech but missed a four-game stretch, including the Maui Invitational and at North Carolina with a foot injury last month before playing in two of the last three games.

WATCH ON VOLREPORT: Tennessee coach Rick Barnes previews NC State

"I thought he really went in and played hard the other night," Barnes said. "Freddie's no different than the other young guys. It's a matter of understanding just how hard you've got to play and how valuable every possession is and understanding what we're trying to get done as a team. I think he is making strides. He had a good day (Thursday). His effort, along with the other freshmen is getting better and better. They don't know what they don't know when they get here. During the summer, pickup games, there's not a lot of intensity. You go on a foreign trip, there's not a great deal of intensity. Then you come back and once official practice starts, the old guys know what it's about because they've been through it. These guys haven't.

"They haven't been what they've gone through the last few months. They continue to adapt to it, adjust to it. That's part of the learning process. As long as they stay with a positive attitude, it will turn out good for them."

Dilione was available against Illinois last week, but Barnes played just eight players, none of which were freshmen.

WATCH ON VOLREPORT: Tennessee forward Tobe Awaka meets with media ahead of NC State game

The reasoning behind shortening the Vols' bench was Barnes' dissatisfaction with how the younger players performed in practice in the days leading up to the game. They responded before Georgia Southern, though a lackluster second half prevented them from picking up more minutes in the second half.

"I thought (the freshmen) were good," Barnes said. "I told our older guys that, 'You know what? You owe it to those young guys to give them a chance to get a sustained run out there so they know what it's like to really have to play hard for two and a half, three or four minutes and try to take care of every detail that we talk about. I do think that the freshmen are starting to give a much harder effort in practice. Again, that's the growth that you would expect.

"They've got to continue to do that. I believe with my whole heart that at some point in time we'll need them all and at some point in time they'll help us."

–––––

– TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM.

– ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION.

– SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOLREPORT YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

– FOLLOW VOLREPORT ON TWITTER: @TennesseeRivals, @TMansfieldMedia, @ByNoahTaylor, @RealTBannerman, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media, @TylerIvens, @Hunter_DeNote.

–––––