Tennessee basketball enjoyed a Thanksgiving Eve feast, devouring UT Martin 78-35 on Wednesday evening at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center.
The Vols shot poorly from the perimeter but took care of the basketball and played phenomenal defense, holding the Skyhawks to the lowest scoring output in the history of the arena. Here’s three quick takeaways on the victory.
Tennessee Shoots Poorly From Perimeter
Tennessee constructed its roster to be a good three-point shooting offense and through six games it was working masterfully. The Vols entered the UT Martin game shooting 41% from deep, a mark that ranked just outside the top 10 nationally.
But Tennessee struggled to knock down shots from the perimeter against UT Martin, making just 10-of-37 attempts from deep. The Vols’ 27% shooting percentage from three-point range was their worst of the season to date. Their previous worse was 34.8% in their season-opening win over Gardner-Webb.
Tennessee’s perimeter shooting struggles came with its highest volume shooters struggling. Chaz Lanier made just four-of-13 three pointers while Zakai Zeigler mad just three-of-10 three pointers.
Despite the poor shooting it was a solid offensive showing from the Vols. They failed to reach 80 points but it was also a low possession game and the Vols still scored a strong 1.393 points per possession. Facing the worst team on their schedule, the Vols chose a good night for an off shooting performance.
Felix Okpara Plays His Best Game To Date
Tennessee transfers Chaz Lanier and Igor Milicic had earned most the headlines to this point in the season. But Ohio State center transfer Felix Okpara was the Vols’ most consistent performer in the offseason and he turned in his best game of the season against the Skyhawks.
Okpara turned in his first double-double of the season, totaling 10 points and 11 rebounds. The 6-foot-11 center owned Tennessee’s OVC foe inside, particularly on the defensive end where he blocked four shots. Five of Okpara’s 11 rebounds were on the offensive end and he did a good job quickly turning those into points as he was an efficient five-of-six from the field.
With Okpara leading the way, Tennessee dominated the offensive glass as they have all season to date. The Vols grabbed 20 offensive boards, rebounding 60.1% of their missed shots.
While Tennessee should dominate inside against UT Martin, the rebounding has been at its best against power five opponents. And the Vols are going to need more from Okpara than they’ve been getting. The UT Martin game was a strong start.
More From RTI: Where Tennessee Basketball Goes After Losing JP Estrella To Season-Ending Injury
Tennessee Dominates The Turnover Battler
Tennessee’s offensive success has been the promising success of the young season to date. The only area that they had struggled offensively through the first six games was with turnovers, posting a 19.4 turnover percentage.
For all of UT Martin’s flaws, the Skyhawks had been good at forcing turnovers entering the game. That made it at least a little bit notable that Tennessee did a solid job of limiting turnovers against UT Martin.
The Vols turned it over just four times in the first half and 11 times in the game ending with a 14.8% turnover rate. Tennessee’s guards were particularly strong taking care of the ball as Zakai Zeigler, Chaz Lanier and Jordan Gainey turned it over four times combined.
In no surprise, Tennessee forced 18 UT Martin turnovers as they overwhelmed the Skyhawks with ball pressure, turning them into 24 points.
Final Stats
Up Next
Tennessee basketball is back in action next Tuesday when they host Syracuse for the ACC-SEC Challenge. Tipoff at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center is at 7:30 p.m. and ESPN is broadcasting the game.
