Despite first-half woes that led to a three-point deficit at halftime, Tennessee climbed out of a bad shooting start to defeat Missouri in Columbia for the Vols’ 20th win of the season.
No. 5 Tennessee defeated Missouri by a score of 72-67 on Tuesday night behind big performances by the Vols’ big men.
While Dalton Knecht will get the television headlines for his second-half scoring burst that helped Tennessee build a comfortable lead, it was Tobe Awaka and Jonas Aidoo who kept the ship from sinking when the Vols started the game 0-from-9 from the perimeter. In a week in which Tennessee’s coaching staff emphasized toughness to the media and in practice, Awaka played as physical and as good of a game as you can ask for – especially on a night that featured bad shooting stretches.
Awaka finished the game with 18 points and 10 rebounds while Aidoo added 14 points and four rebounds of his own. Aidoo also put up four blocks while Awaka added one.
Knecht ended the first half with just two points as he struggled to find any sort of shot to fall. After a few minutes in the second half had passed, though, Knecht found his stroke. Knecht scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half and was critical in helping Tennessee gain the lead and then build the lead, stretching all the way up to 13 points at one time. The 6-foot-6 guard also tallied 10 rebounds and one block in the win.
Tennessee could hardly get anything done in the first half, leading to frustrated plays resulting in turnovers or bad shot selections. The Vols used the midgame break to reset and refocus, putting up 46 second-half points compared to just 26 first-half points.
While it wasn’t the prettiest of games by any stretch, Tennessee did enough to survive in Columbia and come out with a five-point win as the SEC race heats up.
After the game, Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes met with the media in Columbia. Barnes spoke about his halftime message, Dalton Knecht’s second-half emergence, first-half struggles, and more.
More from RTI: Three Quick Takeaways As Tennessee Overcomes Bad First Half To Defeat Missouri
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Tennessee HC Rick Barnes
