With a week off between matchups against Alabama and Kentucky, Tennessee held Ja’Kobi Gillespie out of its Thursday practice. Gillespie was averaging over 38 minutes per game in the Vols’ first five SEC games. Tennessee both needed to rest Gillespie and better learn how to play without him.
“We wouldn’t let him practice,” Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said. “We said we’re going to learn to play without him. … We can play without him. And the ball moves a little bit more, and that’s what we’re trying to get him to understand. He’s got to let it get off of him some and get back to him.”
That decision proved dividends Saturday night when Gillespie picked up his fourth foul with 13:35 remaining and spent the next seven minutes on the bench in Tennessee’s 77-69 win over Auburn. While Gillespie played his least number of minutes against power five competition this season, Tennessee found a way to survive without him.
The Vols led by five points when Gillespie exited the game. They led by five points when he re-entered with 6:12 to play in the game.
“I thought it was great for those guys and I thought they were confident. And they should be because they work hard together. And they know they need each other. And I didn’t think any at any point in time, that stretch was going on, that anybody left anyone on an island by themselves. They were trying to help each other, talking.”
It was not a great stretch for Tennessee offensively. The Vols scored 12 points on 13 possessions with two turnovers. But there were also possessions where the Vols looked competent but did not score including JP Estrella missing a layup and the front end of the bonus.
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The most important thing is that Tennessee survived. Gillespie was then fresh when he checked back in, finishing a tough layup and hitting a pair of free throws in his first two possessions back in the game— giving the Vols a nine-point lead with 5:30 to play.
“It’s not going to take just one guy to step up and take Ja’Kobi’s place when he’s not playing,” freshman Nate Ament said. “It’s going to take all of us. We’ve got guys that can do it. Really talented players all around. So for us, it’s just trusting each other. Knowing that when someone else has the ball, they’re going to make the right play when Ja’Kobi is out.”
Finding a way to beat a quality Auburn team with Gillespie battling foul trouble and turning in his worst performance of SEC play speaks to how this young Tennessee team is maturing. The Vols struggled to face adversity earlier in the season, crumbling when Kansas, Illinois and Arkansas went on second half runs.
In the eight days, Tennessee has survived major foul trouble against Auburn leading them to running a two-three zone for the first time all season. After late game mistakes kept them from putting the Georgia game away, Tennessee finished in overtime. At Alabama, Tennessee overcame an early doubled-digit deficit to win.
“I really feel like the main thing is just the mindset that we have,” freshman DeWayne Brown said of the Vols’ maturing.
Barnes pointed to better communication postgame. A team that lacked leadership earlier in the season is finding it. Ament is coaching players out of timeouts. Bishop Boswell is holding others accountable. Tennessee is far from a perfect team and they still make too many silly mistakes. But they’re growing and that’s a good sign as the calendar turns to February.
