No. 22 Ole Miss entered Saturday night’s SEC opening showdown against No. 5 Tennessee unbeaten. The Rebels are unbeaten no more as Tennessee used an extended run around halftime to coast to a 90-64 victory.
Here’s three quick takeaways on Tennessee’s lopsided victory.
Tennessee’s Front Court Shines
Tennessee forward Jonas Aidoo had struggled in the Vols’ last three games ahead of their SEC opener. But in the first half against an Ole Miss backcourt that includes 7-foot-5 and 7-foot centers, Aidoo was the best player on the court.
The junior big man finished the first half with 12 points (five-of-eight FG), four rebounds and a sweet bounce pass to a cutting Santiago Vescovi for a layup. Aidoo was just as good in the second half, finishing the game with 24 points and 10 rebounds.
Tobe Awaka didn’t put up the numbers that Aidoo did but his physicality and rebounding gave Ole Miss issues. The duo’s early scoring was particularly important as Tennessee started one-of-12 from three-point range. Despite a number of missed open threes early, the Vols built an early 18-6 lead with the duo combining for 11 points.
Tennessee affectively scored at the basket all night, finishing the game with 42 points in the paint and 18-of-28 shooting at the basket.
Tennessee’s Offense Comes Alive, Vols Open Up Lead Around Halftime
Coaches often emphasize the middle part of the game right before and after halftime as an extremely important stretch of the game. That stretch is right when Tennessee took control of the game and never looked back against Ole Miss.
The Vols led by four points with 2:10 remaining in the first half. Then after struggling to hit perimeter jump shots for the first 18 minutes of the half, they got perimeter shots to fall.
Santiago Vescovi drilled a contested three before Jahmai Mashack connected from the top of the key. The shot clock was off and Ole Miss looked like it would get the last shot of the half. But Zakai Zeigler fouled, sending Murray to the foul line with seven seconds remaining.
He hit one-of-two before Josiah-Jordan James raced up the court finding Mashack on the left wing. He pump faked and drilled a three-pointer as the first half expired. Tennessee finished the half on an 11-6 run in 2:06 which gave the Vols a nine-point halftime advantage.
Tennessee started the second half just as fast. A four-point possession to open the second half thanks to an offensive rebound on a free throw and a Zeigler three set the tone.
The Vols’ offense was a thing of beauty in the opening minutes of the second half as they outscored the Rebels 14-5 before the first media timeout.
After its offense scuffled for part of the first half, Tennessee scored 25 points in 6:14 around the intermission. The Vols never looked back.
Zeigler Keeps Playing Better-And-Better
I wrote in my SEC preview “Starting Five” about how well Zakai Zeigler has played since his bad three-game showing in the Maui Invitational.
The Vols’ starting point guard was brilliant in Tennessee’s SEC opener. Zeigler missed his first four shots, all triples, before getting into a groove on his way to a 17-point, 1o-assist double-double with only two turnovers. He also added five rebounds, a steal and a block on the game’s opening possession.
Zeigler put on a point guard masterclass. When Ole Miss fell behind and put on the full court press in the second half, Zeigler calmly dissected it and turned it into points by pushing the ball up the court.
But Zeigler did most of his damage in the pick-and-roll with Aidoo as the Rebels simply had no answers for the junior tandem.
Zeigler was fabulous on both ends of the court against Ole Miss. When he plays like that on the offensive end, the Vols become a dangerous unit.
Final Stats
Up Next
Tennessee resumes SEC play on Wednesday night when they travel to Starkville to face Mississippi State. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. ET with the SEC Network broadcasting the game.
