Arkansas basketball coach Eric Musselman wouldn’t have believed Tennessee could beat his team by 29 points with the Vols’ backcourt trio of Zakai Zeigler, Santiago Vescovi and Dalton Knecht combining to make just one three-point attempt.
But that was the reality on Wednesday night as Tennessee dominated the Razorbacks 92-63 despite a below average five-of-16 shooting performance from three-point range.
Tennessee totaled 92 points while making just five three-pointers because they dominated inside. The Vols scored 48 points in the paint and shot 21-of-30 at the rim. The most dominant interior scorer was junior big man Jonas Aidoo who totaled a game-high 23 points on 11-of-24 shooting from the field while adding 12 rebounds.
“He’s phenomenal,” Arkansas coach Eric Musselman said postgame. “He keeps getting better, like what you want to see out of players is his player improvement. And you can tell he gets in the gym. His mid range shot from where it was 24 (months ago), so much improved. Like he can make that shot. He’s big. He’s physical. He ducks in. I think he’s, again, like I said, I think he’s one of the most improved players that our league has. He’s a big who rebounds the ball, plays really, really, really hard. I thought that really Aidoo and (Jordan) Gainey were the two differences in the game.”
Aidoo is one of the difference makers for Tennessee’s offense this season. In recent seasons, Tennessee has struggled to score when perimeter jumpers aren’t falling. Northern Colorado transfer Dalton Knecht is the biggest difference maker in that regard this season but Aidoo is another big piece.
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The 6-foot-11 big man has taken the next step this season and that was particularly evident in Tennessee’s first five SEC games when he averaged 16.2 points per game. But Aidoo’s offensive production dipped in the Vols’ five previous SEC games before Wednesday night.
Over that stretch, Aidoo averaged just 8.4 points per game and Tennessee’s offense fell flat in losses against South Carolina and Texas A&M. Aidoo totaled just six points in both of those games. Getting him back on track against Arkansas was a major step in the right direction.
“I thought he played to the rim. That was a big thing. He played with some force in there,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said of Aidoo to the Vol Network. “The last couple days we told him he’s got to play quicker. And I thought he did that. I thought he mixed in a few stationary jump shots that we know he’s capable of making and rebounded. He had a major presence on that (defensive) end down there, too.”
The Durham, North Carolina native is capable of turning in big performances offensively and on the glass every game out. Barnes has emphasized as much throughout the season and says he can totaled a double-double every game.
“He just played with more force,” Barnes said. “That’s what it was all about. And he’s got continue to do it.”
While Aidoo may not be Tennessee’s best player but the way he can affect a game inside makes him one of its most important. His year-over-year improvement is one of the biggest differences in this season’s Tennessee team.
