INDIANAPOLIS — Tennessee associate head coach Justin Gainey stood in a victorious locker room recounting the Vols’ defensive breakdowns in their first two losses against Kentucky like he had watched them just a moment before.
“I felt like those first two (games) we didn’t come in, for whatever reason, with the intensity we needed, with the attention to detail to the personnel that was needed,” Gainey said. “That’s not us. … I thought the biggest adjustment was a mentality switch.”
That different mentality on the defensive end was the difference as Tennessee basketball coasted past Kentucky 78-65 on Friday night to advance to the Elite Eight.
“It was toughness throughout and that’s what we build our game on,” sophomore forward Cade Phillips said. “For that to play out how it played out on this stage against Kentucky, it feels great.”
Kentucky torched Tennessee from three-point range in each of the first two meetings, knocking down 12-of-24 attempts from deep. The Vols ran Kentucky off the three-point line and while the Wildcats made 40% of their attempts from beyond the arc, they took just 15 of them.
“Kentucky, they’re a great shooting team,” senior point guard Zakai Zeigler said. “If you don’t do what you have to do they’re going to burn you every time. They got great shooters and great drivers. I feel like tonight, we executed and did everything we needed to do.”
“We put a bigger attention on covering the three-point line and taking that away from them as best we could,” Justin Gainey said. “They only got 15 up. That was big.”
Tennessee mixed up a couple small things from the first matchup particularly with its ball screen defense. The Vols guarded ball screens and dribble handoffs differently depending on who the ball handler was for Kentucky. That diversity of coverage made it harder for Kentucky to make adjustments.
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The complexity and ever changing defense speaks to the maturity and veteran nature of Tennessee’s team.
“This group is a mature group,” Gainey said. “It’s an older group. It’s a veteran group and they do a great job making adjustments. Some times, shoot, they make the adjustments themselves.”
While Tennessee altered some things defensively from the first two games, the game plan was largely the same. It was the execution that was drastically different. Kentucky’s 65 points was tied for its lowest of the same. It was the first time that the Wildcats didn’t score at least 70 points since late January as Tennessee kept them off the offensive glass and forced a number of turnovers.
“It was more of a mindset shift if anything,” Phillips said of the defensive effort.
Jahmai Mashack did his thing, taking Koby Brea out of the game and recording five steals. Center Felix Okpara was a force for Tennessee inside, especially with his ability to rebound the basketball. Forward Darlinstone Dubar gave Tennessee highly significant minutes and sparked the Vols’ momentum in the first half when he chased down Andrew Carr and blocked his shot in transition.
“Dstone went to go get it and he got it,” senior guard Jordan Gainey said. “It just showed that effort is always going to win and he went out there and did that.”
“The play of the game to me, the defensive play of the game to me was when he ran the guy down and blocked it,” Justin Gainey said. “If you’re self absorbed, if you’re pissed off because you’re not getting into the game then you don’t make plays like that.”
The force and physicality that Dubar displayed on the chase down block perfectly represented Tennessee’s performance. Rick Barnes’ team set the tone on the defensive end of the court and flipped the script from the first two meetings.
