Tennessee led by as much as 15 points late in the first half against Alabama, and it seemed like the Vols would be able to get another double-digit SEC victory on Saturday.
Then, the Tide came rolling.
It started with a Riley Norris three shortly before the first half ended, and that drew Alabama to within 12. That would be the halftime deficit, as the Tide trailed 44-32 at the half. Then, the second half saw Alabama catch fire.
The Tide went on a 13-0 run in the first three-plus minutes of the second half, and they grabbed a 45-44 lead with 16:39 to go in the game.
From there on out, it was back and forth between the two teams.
Tennessee and Alabama exchanged the lead several times over the final 16 minutes of the game, but the Vols somehow managed to end up on top by the end of it thanks to strong perimeter defense in the closing minutes and their offense finally clicking.
No. 3 Tennessee (16-1, 5-0 SEC) escaped Alabama’s (11-6, 2-3 SEC) comeback effort in the second half to win 71-68. Grant Williams led the Vols in scoring with 21 points, and both Jordan Bowden and Admiral Schofield added 12 points apiece.
John Petty led Alabama with 30 points, and his three-point shooting was the reason the Tide roared to life in the second half. He made six of his 10 threes on the day and was 11-of-18 from the floor overall.
But more on him in a minute.
Here are our five biggest observations from the Vols’ gutsy 71-68 win over Alabama.
Free Throws Do Bama In
Alabama might’ve been able to win and win comfortably on Saturday if they had just made some free throws.
The Tide finished the game hitting just 44.4 percent of their foul shots, and that included an abysmal 4-of-13 from the free throw line in the second half. John Petty scored a lot from three, but he was just two-of-five from the free throw line, and Dazon Ingram finished just one-of-four from the line.
Alabama’s missed opportunities kept Tennessee in the game, and the Vols took advantage.
The Vols were 12-of-16 from the free throw line as a team, and they made their shots down the stretch. Tennessee was six-of-eight from the charity stripe in the second half.
Bowden Shuts Down Petty (Finally)
John Petty could not miss in the second half, and he was torching the Vols. He scored 20 of his 30 points in the second half, and at one point he had more points in the second half than Tennessee’s entire team.
But then Jordan Bowden was given Petty as his defensive assignment, and that was the difference.
Once Bowden was put on Petty, the sharpshooter went cold. After Petty made a three with 9:52 to go in the game to give Alabama a 59-58 lead, he didn’t make a single shot the rest of the game. He missed a three, had one blocked by Grant Williams, and committed a turnover.
Bowden shut off Petty and made it difficult for his teammates to get him the ball, and that turned things around for the Vols.
Admiral Misses, But Still Contributes
Admiral Schofield couldn’t buy a bucket for most of the game, but he made his presence felt in other ways.
Schofield was just 2-of-12 from the field at one point in the game, but he was contributing in other ways. He finished the game with 11 rebounds, four assists, and two steals. He finished with the second-best plus/minus on the team in the game with a plus-10. Only Jordan Bowden (plus-15) had a better plus/minus for the Vols.
The senior forward finally found his shot in the closing minutes, and he made some big shots for the Vols in the final three minutes. He hit a jumper with 2:51 to go to tie the game at 65-all, and he made his next shot to give Tennessee a 67-65 lead with 2:12 to go. The Vols wouldn’t give up the lead for the rest of the game after that.
Survive and Advance
The phrase “survive and advance” is typically used in March when talking about the NCAA Tournament. But on Saturday, it applied to a regular season game for the Vols.
Tennessee survived one of the best efforts they’ve received by an opponent all season on Saturday. Alabama and Florida both fought tough against the Vols this season, and somehow Tennessee won both games.
The Vols led for 29 minutes and 58 seconds of game time, but about 20 minutes of that came in the first half. Tennessee and Alabama exchanged the lead six times and were tied three other times in the second half, and it was far from easy for the Vols against the Tide.
Tennessee shot just 29.4 percent in the second half, and Alabama had made over 61 percent of their shots at one point in the second half. They finished hitting 46.4 percent of their field goals in the second half and made six threes in the second half compared to just one make from three for Tennessee.
But in the end, Tennessee did just enough and capitalized on Alabama’s mistakes to survive.
Coming for No. 1?
The win for the Vols wasn’t the only good news for Tennessee on Saturday.
No. 2 Michigan suffered their first loss of the season, falling on the road to unranked Wisconsin by a score of 64-54. With No. 1 Duke losing at home to unranked Syracuse in overtime on Monday, that leaves the No. 1 spot up for grabs and with Tennessee in prime position to snag it.
Duke will face-off with No. 4 Virginia at 6:00 Eastern today, and it’s believed that if the Cavaliers beat the Blue Devils, they may be able to leapfrog the Vols for No. 1 in the AP Poll come Monday. But regardless of what happens, the Vols should move up to at least No. 2 in the country on Monday.
