LEXINGTON, Ky. — Tennessee basketball’s offense could not have played better for the first 20 minutes but a dreadful second half performance saw the Vols’ blow another double-digit halftime lead against Kentucky, falling 74-71.
Here’s three quick takeaways on the loss.
A Turbulent Night For Ja’Kobi Gillespie And Nate Ament
When Tennessee’s offense is at its best, it is a two-man show with Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament leading the way. That’s never been the case more this season than it was in the first half against Kentucky.
Gillespie came out quick, scoring eight of Tennessee’s first 10 points while making his first four of his first six shots from deep.
Ament stepped in from there. The freshman started slow, missing his first four shots including an open layup. Then he went on an 8-0 run by himself and scored 11 straight points for Tennessee in a 2:21 stretch.
Gillespie’s scoring prowess disappeared for Tennessee in the second half, which was symbolic of a bigger team issue, and he scored just one second half points to finish the game with 15 points. Ament also slowed down in the second half but found a way to still slowly add to the scoring total, finishing with 29 points.
A Tale Of Two Halves From Three-Point Shooting
In five of the last six meetings between the longtime rivals, Kentucky has shot phenomenal from deep while the Vols have had various shooting performances with a few stinkers. The tide turned on Saturday night.
The most three pointers that Tennessee had made in a SEC game entering the second Kentucky game was nine. Tennessee connected from deep eight times in the first half against the Wildcats and did it on an unbelievably efficient 12 shots. As previously mentioned, Gillespie and Ament led the way with four triples a piece. Ament had hit four three pointers in a game just once previously this season.
On the other side, Kentucky missed its first six three-point attempts after shooting 11% higher than its season average in the meeting three weeks prior.
But it was a tale of two halves, Tennessee missed all six three-point attempts in the second half as a scoring drought proved costly. On the other side, Kentucky found its shooting stroke late in the first half before struggling again in the second half.
Tennessee got the perimeter shooting performance it wanted from Kentucky, just five-for-19, but was unable to capitalize on it.
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Scoring Drought Part Of An Ugly Offensive Second Half
In Tennessee’s loss against Kentucky last month, the Vols double-digit halftime lead slipped away because of bad defense and rebounding. This time, Tennessee’s double-digit second half lead slipped away because of putrid offense.
A 5:37 scoring drought midway through the second half turned a 10-point Tennessee lead into a two-point advantage. It could have been worse if it wasn’t for some solid defense during the stretch.
Tennessee often struggled to create good looks during the stretch and totaled two turnovers. But the Vols had some good looks, particularly at the rim, with a chance to break out of the slump and was unable to do so. Even when Tennessee ended the slump with a DeWayne Brown alley-oop, the offense still struggled to get anything going. There was a stretch in the second half where the Vols made just one-of-14 shots.
The final numbers were jarring as Tennessee scored just 24 second half points on 20% shooting from the field.
Final Stats
Up Next
Tennessee basketball heads back on the road Wednesday night when they’ll face Mississippi State at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville. Tipoff between the Vols and Bulldogs is at 9 p.m. ET and the SEC Network is broadcasting the game.
