Tennessee basketball took care of business in its final tuneup before the start of SEC play, dominating South Carolina State 105-54 on Tuesday night. The win marked Tennessee’s 44th straight home non conference win— a new program record.
Here’s three quick takeaways on a rout.
Rick Barnes Empties The Bench Early
Buy games are always an opportunity to get young players more playing time. But Barnes emptied his bench early. Twelve different Tennessee players checked in during the game’s first 10 minutes including from freshmen guards Troy Henderson, Amari Evans and Clarence Massamba.
This didn’t come after Tennessee jumped out to some major early lead either. The Vols’ first double-digit lead of the game came with just over 10 minutes left in the first half when they opened up a 17-7 advantage.
Evans led the way for that group, picking up where he left off before the Christmas break by slowly and surely making a bigger impact. He finished the game with 14 points, five rebounds, two assists and a block. Evans is embracing how he can help this Tennessee team defensively while also playing with confidence on the offensive end of the court.
Henderson threw in a triple while dishing out six assists without turning the basketball over. It was a good sign for Henderson to impact the game without relying on his jumper.
Usual Suspects Lead The Way For Tennessee
While an abundance of Vols played, it was the same Tennessee players driving the bus. Ja’Kobi Gillespie continued to be the go-to player for Tennessee offensively, scoring 21 points on 12 shots while adding eight assists in 28 minutes.
Nate Ament took just 10 shots but he made six of them on his way to scoring 16 points. He added seven rebounds and threw down this monster slam. The biggest negative for Ament were his three turnovers.
Nate Ament drops the hammer. pic.twitter.com/it5UUaQUUs
— Ryan Schumpert (@rschump00) December 31, 2025
Big men Jaylen Carey and JP Estrella have been Tennessee’s co-third options this season and both scored in double figures. Carey totaled 13 points and 10 rebounds for his third double-double of the season.
Carey also dished out two two assists and both were to Estrella. The sophomore big man scored just two points in the first half before finishing the game with 12 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double
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An Absurd Rebounding Margin And Other Odds And Ins
Tennessee has dominated the offensive glass this season and that’s particularly been the case in buy games. So it wasn’t shocking that Tennessee controlled the glass, but the final numbers were still absurd.
The Vols’ out-rebounded South Carolina State 52-16 over the course of the game. On the offensive end, Tennessee grabbed 20 offensive rebounds to South Carolina State’s 10 defensive rebounds. It was a season-high 66% offensive rebound rate for Tennessee. They were able to turn those 20 offensive rebounds into 22 points.
Turnovers will be a point of attention for Tennessee all season. The Vols came out sloppy with a number of early turnovers and eight in the first half. But Tennessee did a good job of cleaning it up in the second half and finished the game with just 10 turnovers.
Free throw shooting has been another area where Tennessee has struggled this season. The Vols shot just 19-of-33 from the foul like against the Bulldogs.
Box Score
Up Next
Tennessee basketball opens SEC play on Saturday afternoon at No. 18 Arkansas. Tipoff at Bud Walton Arena is set for 3 p.m. ET. ESPN2 is broadcasting the game.
