AAC Tournament Preview: Take UCF (+9.5) To Cover The Points Against Memphis
TAMPA, Fla — Tennessee point guard Kennedy Chandler had an eventful first postseason game in the Vols’, 72-59, win over Mississippi State.
Chandler injured what looked to be his right ankle — Tennessee’s official statement called it “a lower body injury” — on the defensive end under four minutes into the game. The point guard limped off the court on his own power, briefly sitting on the bench before making his way up the tunnel.
The point guard returned with 15:15 left in the first half shortly after the media timeout. The former five-star recruit didn’t look 100% but played effectively before reinjuring it just 31 seconds into the second half.
Chandler went straight to the tunnel afterwards before returning to the game and playing the final 8:33.
“I listen to him and our trainers,” Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said. “In Kennedy’s situation, I said to him, if I see you limping, you’re coming out of the game. He said I’m not limping. I said I think you are limping. He said I got kicked or something. I said is it the ankle? He said, no. I was kidding with him back there. Is it up to him? I said to him, how do you feel? He said, I’m fine. We have to trust him on that.”
The former five-star point guard was fantastic in the win, scoring 11 points on four-of-seven shooting while dishing out six assists with no turnovers.
With the NCAA Tournament right around the corner, Barnes is put in the difficult position of whether to allow his star guard to play at less than 100% or to keep him held out until the big dance.
“You know what, it’s always concerning with players,” Barnes said. “I’ve had players that I can tell you one time years ago when T.J. Ford who went down, and I thought he was really, really hurt, but I had gotten to know him so well, I walked over to him. We were at Madison Square Garden. I said, are you hurt? He literally looked up at me and said where is the camera? He wasn’t hurt. He was playing to the camera.”
Tennessee returns to the court Saturday at approximately 3:30 p.m. ET to face Kentucky in the SEC Tournament semifinals.
